Fostering
We are currently recruiting foster carers. We need homes for children of all ages and backgrounds ranging from babies to teenagers. They deserve to grow up in a loving, safe and caring home. The sort of home we hope you can provide.
Fostering is a chance to give a child a brighter future. By fostering a child you will offer them a home on a temporary basis, most children will return home after a period of time, but some foster parents offer long term care.
We are currently the only local authority in England to have received the highest possible rating of 'outstanding' for both our safeguarding and work with looked after children in reports published by Ofsted.
Thinking about becoming a foster parent?
When you are considering becoming a foster carer, you will have lots of questions about the role.
Get in touch
The first thing to do is to get in touch. There are many ways to do this:
Watch a video
Lambeth foster carers and and a Lambeth social worker share their experiences and challenges of being a foster carer.
What our children have said they want from a carer
Fostering can be complex, challenging and demanding. It can also be very rewarding to see a child develop . We asked our foster children about what is important to them and what make them feel cared for. This is what they said:
- "If I have failed somehow, tell me about other ways of achieving"
- "Look beyond my label"
- "Involve me in decisions about me"
- "Don’t say you understand until you really feel as if you do"
- "Stick to your promises"
If you feel that you can be sensitive, supportive and listen to the voices of a foster child please get in touch with us.
There are four steps to fostering - initial enquiry, the assessment process, the fostering panel and the final decision whether or not to recommend you as a foster carer.
We are looking for foster carers from diverse backgrounds to reflect the diversity of the children who need care.
Our fostering team, along with social workers and other professionals will provide an excellent induction, ongoing training and your own supervising social worker.
There are a range of tasks and responsibilities that are part of the challenging but rewarding fostering role.
Children and young people are fostered for many reasons, and because of this Lambeth offers a variety of services to meet these needs. We need remand carers, respite, young parent and baby carers and shortbreak carers.
Before excluding yourself please talk to us first. It is true that there are factors that may result in an unsuccessful application to become a foster carer. Some of the issues are outlined.
Information about our statement of purpose, our Foster Carer's Charter, parent and child placement procedures, as well as other important documents that cover how we work.
Lambeth Fostering is on facebook
Like our Lambeth Fostering facebook page.
Frequently Asked Questions
More Questions and answers on the FAQ page.