You could change children’s lives by becoming a foster carer in Cardiff.

There are many children who cannot be looked after by their own family. This could be for a variety of reasons such as illness or family breakdowns. Unfortunately, in most cases, it is due to some form of abuse or neglect. TACT are recruiting foster carers in Cardiff to provide care and support to these children. You could join our Fostering Cardiff team!

You may have been considering fostering for a while, or you may be looking to transfer from your current agency or local authority. Maybe you are completely new to the idea of fostering. No matter where you are on your journey, we have all the information you need to start making a difference to young people’s lives.

Watch a short film made by some of our young people in Wales:

 

How do I start fostering in Cardiff?

Many people think that they need some form of childcare qualification to start fostering. This is not the case, as full and ongoing training will be provided. However we do ask that fostering applicants have some experience of caring for children.

To begin a fostering application, we would just need to check some initial qualifying criteria. You would need to:

• Be aged 21 years or over
• Have at least one spare bedroom in your home
• Be a full time resident of the UK

If you fulfil all three points above, we would like to talk to you more about fostering. You can complete the enquiry form on this page to get started.

Why foster in Cardiff with TACT?

TACT is the UK’s largest dedicated fostering charity. We have been providing nurturing and caring homes for vulnerable young people since 1993.

We work closely with Cardiff Council to help provide foster homes for vulnerable young people. As we are a charity, we do not ‘profit’ from foster care. Instead, we are able to reinvest surplus income into providing more support and training for our Cardiff team of foster carers.

Our ability to reinvest has enabled us to develop some unique additional support services, over and above what a fostering organisation is required to provide. These services include a dedicated Education Service, Health Service – and an online foster carer portal. Our TACT Connect community ensures that when children leave our care, they have TACT’s support into adulthood and beyond.

This is why 98% of our carers would recommend us to others thinking of fostering.

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“We decided to foster through TACT because of the charity’s values and commitment to helping children in need.”

– TACT Cymru Foster Carer

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We provide our foster carers with full training, 24/7 support and a generous Cardiff fostering allowance:

Cardiff Fostering Payments

Foster carers are highly skilled people, and our Cardiff fostering payments reflect this.

The fostering allowance is made up of two elements:

• An allowance for each young person in your care: this covers outgoings such as food, clothing and travel for a young person.
• A foster carer fee: this is your carer ‘fee’, in recognition of your knowledge and skill and when caring for young people in your home.

The total payment you will receive will depend the type of foster care you are providing, the number of children you are caring for (you receive a payment per young person), their age, and any additional needs.

There are also additional payments for children’s birthdays, holidays and religious festivals. We also pay long service awards and a Refer a Friend fee (if you recommend someone who then goes on to be an approved foster carer with us).

Here are some examples of the weekly Cardiff fostering payments you could expect to receive when you have a young person placed with you:

Full training

As mentioned previously, you don’t need to have taken any previous childcare training as full and ongoing training will be provided.

The first training course will be delivered early in the foster carer assessment period. This is called Skills To Foster, and it is delivered remotely. The course is designed to provide an overview of fostering. Attended by other applicants, there will be opportunities for you to ask questions, and share any thoughts and experiences. An existing TACT foster carer will also be present in the sessions – providing additional insight and knowledge.

If you go on to become an approved TACT foster carer, you will be allocated a full training programme to help you further your skills. This will enable you to care for more children with a variety of different needs.

24/7 support

You will benefit from full 24/7 support. This will mainly be provided by your own Supervising Social Worker, but we also offer an out-of-hours support service – so there will always be someone on hand to help you.

Being properly supported as a foster carer is one of the most important factors in deciding on a fostering agency. This is why we provide additional platforms, some of which are unique to TACT. The better we support you, the better you will be able to provide the guidance and care required to make a difference to young people’s lives.

This is what we provide:

• Full 24/7 support. Provided by your Supervising Social Worker and our out-of-hours support service.
• Foster carer portal. An online information hub that provides advice and training to help with your day-to-day life as a foster carer.
• Education service. Ensures that all young people in your care receive the educational opportunities they are entitled to.
• Health service. Our health service was established in order to provide young people in your care with ongoing physical and mental health monitoring.
• Support groups. Our support groups operate in Cardiff and the surrounding areas, and provide you with a local outlet to meet other carers in your area, share experiences and knowledge, and even make new friends!
• Support for young people. Our Children’s Resource Workers provide the children in your care with additional support, activities and events.
• Supporting your own children. We understand that your own children play an important role in the fostering household. As such, our Children Who Foster events provide your own children with an opportunity to socialise with other young people who make an amazing contribution to fostering.
• Peer support. In some areas, peer-to-peer support may be available. These work by pairing newly approved foster carers with experienced TACT carers to provide another level of support.

Transferring to TACT

There are many reasons why current foster carers may wish to transfer from their local authority or agency. If you are currently a foster carer in Cardiff, we can provide a ‘fast track’ application process to ensure that the transfer to us is straightforward and stress-free. You would also not be required to re-take the Skills To Foster course.

Transferring to us with young people already in placement is entirely possible, but we would just need to ensure that the wellbeing of the young people come first. We would work closely with you and your existing fostering provider to ensure a smooth transition and continuity of care.

If you are interested in finding out more about transferring to us, simply select ‘I am currently a foster carer‘ on our form. We will then be able to talk you through the process in more detail.

A fostering charity that goes above and beyond…

• Our foster carer perks include a number of exclusive memberships and special offers – many of which are available via our Foster Carer Portal.
• Our TACT Connect service ensures that our care leavers continue to receive help, support and guidance even after they have officially left our care.
• We advocate for young people, actively campaigning in order to instigate positive change within the care system.

Start your fostering journey in Cardiff today, and change a child’s life. Simply fill in the form on this page to get started!