Money. It’s the elephant in the room when it comes to fostering. People often feel awkward asking about it, worried it might seem selfish or inappropriate. But here’s the truth: foster carers do get paid – and it’s okay to talk about it.
Whether you’re just starting to explore fostering or you’re deep into the decision-making process, understanding the financial side is essential. So, let’s break the taboo and dive into what foster carers in Swansea can expect when it comes to pay and support.
is it wrong to ask about money?
Not at all. While fostering is rooted in compassion and the desire to change the lives of local children, it’s also a commitment that affects your household. Knowing how fostering fits into your financial life is not only practical – it’s responsible.
Paying our foster carers is part of the support we provide foster carers with so they can provide the best possible care for local children, but we never want people to solely rely on a fostering income.
During your assessment, your social worker will chat with you about your income, outgoings, and the financial support you’ll receive. It’s all part of making sure fostering works for you and your family.
do you have to have money to foster?
Nope. You don’t need a mansion or a fat savings account. What matters most is the love, warmth, and stability you can offer a local child.
how does foster carer pay work?
It’s important that you are recognised and financially rewarded for the time you dedicate to supporting and creating a safe family environment for the children in your care.
As soon as you start caring for a child or young person, you will get paid.
Child Allowance
This is paid weekly, and you will receive this for every child in your care. The amount you receive, is dependent on the age of the child. The child allowance should be spent on the child and is to help cover the costs of caring for the child.
Foster carer fee
This is paid weekly, and you receive this for every child in your care. It is a flat fee and is not age dependant. The carer fee acknowledges the skills, training, time and commitment needed to care for each child that is in your care.
Essentially, we want you to feel financially secure when you’re a foster carer with us, so you can focus your attention on providing great care and enjoy a good quality of life. That’s why we pay higher than the Welsh Government’s recommended weekly allowances.
how is the money supposed to be spent?
The child allowance element of what foster carers get paid goes towards the day-to-day cost of caring for a child. It is intended to cover all the needs of your foster child such as:
- Clothes for the child
- Food for the child
- Household bills
- Transport
- Activities
- Pocket money
- Savings
The foster carer fee recognises your skills, training and experience so how you spend it is totally up to you. Foster carers don’t need to keep receipts or keep a record of how the money is being spent.
how much will I get paid?
The minimum our foster carers receive is £442 per week, per child (tax free). This is based on only caring for one child and doesn’t include the additional payments we provide our carers for birthdays, holiday, religious festivals and Christmas.
how are foster carers paid?
We pay our foster carers every fortnight via a BACS payment direct to your bank account.
how many children can you foster?
The maximum number of children you can foster at any one time is three, unless there is an exemption in place and it’s in the best interests of the child or sibling group.
extra payments for special occasions
Foster carers are given one-off payments for every child in their care for the following:
- Birthday = ÂŁ100-ÂŁ200
- Christmas = ÂŁ150-ÂŁ200
- Holidays = ÂŁ203.97-ÂŁ331.88
- Religious festivals = ÂŁ150-ÂŁ200
This extra financial support helps to make celebrations memorable for every child in your care.
do you get paid travel expenses?
A percentage of the child’s allowance is to cover trips that are local, the everyday running around.
However, if you travel over and above that, you can claim mileage at a cost per mile. This applies if you make frequent journeys that are over 20 miles.
can you claim for any equipment or additional costs?
Certain expenses you incur when looking after children are not covered as standard by your pay and in those instances, you might be able claim back any additional costs.
Baby equipment
We will assist with the following if you foster babies:
- Mattress – you can claim a new one for every baby placed
- Car seats – we will replace this when the seat reaches its expiry date (usually within 4-7 years)
- Double / triple prams – if and when a foster requires this type of pram, we will either pay for a standard model or contribute the same amount should a foster carer opt for a premium model.
Equipment for disabilities
If you care for a child with additional needs who requires specialist equipment, then we will assist with this.
Emergency / exceptional costs
You can claim emergency or exceptional costs when you agree to care for a child or sibling group in an emergency or when they arrive at your home with little or no belongings.
Schools Essentials Grant
This is available to children and young people who are looked after and attend a Swansea school. The grant can be spent on school uniform, school sports kit, school trips, IT equipment and general equipment such as school bags and stationery. The funding available for each child or young person each year is ÂŁ125 with the exception of those in Year 7, who will be entitled to ÂŁ200.
- More information: www.swansea.gov.uk/schooluniformgrant
what if you have gaps where no child is living with you?
All foster carers will receive a weekly carer fee payment (known as a retainer) when there is no child placed with them. However, this is on the proviso that they are available to accept placements and are flexible with the ages of the children they will foster (0-18, 5-18, 0-11 or 11-18 years).
These payments are made so that foster carers have peace of mind knowing that they will have some sort of regular income.
In general, most of our foster carers don’t have much of a gap in between placements – some don’t have a gap at all – unless they specifically request a break. In reality, we are constantly looking for foster placements for local children so our foster carers don’t wait long. However, there will be occasions where some foster carers wait a little while but there are often specific reasons why, such as:
- Matching alongside carers’ own children or other foster children in the household
- Location
- The type of fostering you provide
- Limited age range
You won’t get the retainer payment if you don’t accept placements that we believe/know are matched to your skills and abilities.
do i have to save for a foster child?
For every child that is in your care, five pounds is automatically deducted every week from the child allowance. This goes into a savings account for the child, which Swansea Council sets up. The savings are in the child’s own name and will go with them if they return home, move to different carers, or when they reach adulthood.
Obviously, if a child is placed with you on a long-term basis, you may decide up open up a separate savings account for them.
do I have to give a foster child pocket money?
Giving pocket money to a foster child isn’t just about handing over a few coins – it’s about teaching valuable life skills. From budgeting and saving, to understanding the value of money, pocket money helps children grow in confidence and independence. It’s a small step towards them being able to manage money, and it can make a big difference in their development.
When should it start?
It’s generally advised that foster children begin receiving pocket money from around five years of age. The exact age and amount are usually agreed between the foster carer and the child’s social worker, based on the child’s needs and circumstances.
Fairness Is Key
Foster children should receive the same amount of pocket money as any other child in the household of a similar age – whether that’s another foster child or the carer’s own child. Equality and fairness are essential in creating a nurturing and inclusive home environment.
Where Does the Money Come From?
The weekly child allowance paid to foster carers includes an element intended for pocket money.
are foster carers considered employees?
No – they’re not. Even though foster carers receive payments directly from Swansea Council, they are officially classed as self-employed.
This status reflects the flexible and varied nature of fostering. Every fostering journey is different, and the pay that a foster carer receives depends on many factors, such as:
- Whether they provide respite or foster on a more full-time basis, with the ability to switch between the two or change the type of fostering they offer
- Fostering involves everyone that lives in the household
- Foster carers taking breaks from fostering
- Foster carers declining placements that aren’t the right fit
Because of these variations, being self-employed gives foster carers the freedom to adapt their role to suit their lives and circumstances.
And if you’re new to all this – don’t worry. Registering as self-employed is straight forward and easy to set up. Once you are approved as a foster carer, you will need to register as self-employed with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for Income Tax self-assessment and National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
do foster carers get taxed?
As foster carers are classed as self-employed, it means that the majority don’t pay any tax at all – this is certainly the case of most Foster Wales Swansea carers.
Foster carers need to earn more than £19,360 before they are taxed at all – this is the basic tax allowance.
However, foster carers also get tax relief (it’s referred to as Qualifying Care Relief) for every week that a child is in their care which is why very few foster carers pay tax on their earnings from fostering.
The weekly amount of tax relief is dependent on the age of the foster child in your care:
- For each child under the age of 11 in your care, you will benefit from a tax relief of ÂŁ405 each week.
- For each child aged 11 or over in your care, you will benefit from a tax relief of ÂŁ485 each week.
Example:
You won’t pay any tax if you receive less than:
- ÂŁ40,420 per annum, per child under the age of 11 years
- ÂŁ44,580 per annum, per child over the age of 11 years
So, to put it simply, the Qualifying Care Relief threshold is extremely generous.
All that’s required of foster carers is to submit a simple self-assessment every year which works out if you owe any tax. No detailed accounts and receipts are required under this scheme. In reality, only a small number of foster carers pay any tax as a result of going over the tax threshold.
- For more information on Qualifying Care Relief, visit the Government’s website.
- You can find more information about completing your tax return on the Government’s website.
- The Fostering Network also offer information on tax and national insurance.
do foster carers pay national insurance?
Foster carers must register for National Insurance Contributions (Class 2). However, you won’t have to pay these contributions if you have no taxable profit from fostering, or if your taxable profit is under £12,570 (2024/25).
As foster carers are unlikely to exceed a taxable profit of ÂŁ12,570 or more, they are eligible for National Insurance Credits (Class 3). These credits are important because they help fill gaps in your National Insurance record, protect your entitlement to certain state benefits, and count toward your State Pension.
You can apply for a National Insurance Credit for each week you are approved as a foster carer. You do this at the end of each tax year by filling in form CF411A and submitting a letter from Foster Wales Swansea to confirm that you were approved to be a foster carer for the tax year. Class 3 credits count towards the basic and additional state pension.
- You can apply for National Insurance Credits on the GOV.UK website.
Some foster carers might have to play Class 4 National Insurance Contributions if they go above a certain profit threshold from their self-employed foster care earnings.
When you reach state pension age, you usually stop paying National Insurance Contributions even if you are being paid to foster. The only exception to this is if your earnings are above a certain profit threshold i.e. you are required to pay Class 4 contributions.
- The Fostering Network can offer free financial advice to alleviate any anxieties around this topic.
- For more information on National Insurance, visit the HMRC’s website.
do foster carers receive a pension from swansea council?
No, they don’t. As foster carers are not classed as employees, they don’t receive a council pension. For those who foster full-time and don’t have another job alongside it, it’s strongly recommended to look into setting up a private pension plan. Planning for the future is just as important as caring in the present, and there are plenty of options available to help foster carers build financial security for retirement.
will fostering affect my benefits?
No, the payments that foster carers receive through fostering is not regarded as income and therefore isn’t taken in consideration.
The following state benefits are not affected:
- Housing benefit
- Universal Credit
- Carer’s Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance
As fostering counts as self-employment, you could be entitled to Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit if you have children of your own. You can learn more about these benefits at GOV.UK.
The only exception is Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), which will be affected if you are receiving fostering pay.
You can use a free benefits calculator to check what you could be entitled to.
If you are a couple, then one person would be nominated as the primary or lead carer and although fostering income is disregarded when it comes to the majority of benefits, other household incomes such as a partner’s income would have to be declared, and you cannot receive Universal Credit if your capital (savings and investments) is above £16,000.
Disability Living Allowance
If you have a foster child with a disability who needs extra looking after or has walking difficulties, you can make a claim for a Disability Living Allowance (DLA) on their behalf.
The child’s disability or health condition must mean at least one of the following apply:
- they need much more looking after than a child of the same age who does not have a disability
- they have difficulty getting about
They must have had these difficulties for at least 3 months and expect them to last for at least 6 months.
Find out more information on DLA for children, at GOV.UK
To fill in a claim form, click here.
do foster carers get discounts?
Yes. Foster carers in Swansea can enjoy a range of discounts and perks designed to make life a little easier and a lot more fun. Here’s what’s on offer:
Local discounts
Foster carers receive a Passport to Leisure card, which gives access to discounted entry at cultural and leisure venues across Swansea. Whether it’s swimming, museums, or theatre performances, there’s something for everyone.
Free activities and events
Throughout the year, foster families are invited to free activities and events – not just for foster children, but for the carers’ own children too. These experiences are all about creating joyful memories and giving families the chance to bond and have fun together.
National perks
All foster carers are automatically enrolled as members of The Fostering Network, the UK’s largest fostering charity. Membership includes access to exclusive discounts on:
- Family days out
- Holidays
- Entertainment
It’s just one more way we say thank you to our carers for the incredible work they do.
can you work and foster?
Yes, you can – and many foster carers do it successfully. Fostering is a flexible and varied role, which means it can often be balanced alongside employment. Some carers choose to work part-time, while others step away from work entirely to focus on fostering full-time, especially if they have a partner who works.
Thanks to the generous fees and allowances provided, many foster carers find they can afford to dedicate themselves fully to the role if they wish. Others prefer to keep working, and that’s perfectly fine too.
Foster Carers Come from All Walks of Life
Our carers work across a wide range of professions, including:
- Council staff
- Teachers and teaching assistants
- School caretakers
- Engineers
- NHS staff
- And many more
Whether you’re employed or not, fostering can fit into your life – it’s all about finding the right balance.
Age-Based Considerations
There are a few things to keep in mind depending on the age of the children you care for:
- Children aged 0–5: Someone in the household must be available full-time, as these children are not yet in compulsory education.
- Children aged 5+: Someone must be available to do the school run and attend meetings related to the child’s care.
Finding What Works for You
Every family is different, and what works for one household might not work for another. Whether you continue working or choose to focus solely on fostering, you’ll still receive your foster carer pay. This financial support is there to help you provide the best care possible, no matter your circumstances.
Of course, fostering does require flexibility. You’ll need time for training, meetings, school holidays, and – most importantly – being present for the child in your care.
If you’re unsure how fostering might fit into your work life, the team at Foster Wales Swansea is always happy to offer personalised advice and guidance.
are some foster carers paid more than others?
Yes, they do. Foster carers receive different levels of pay depending on several key factors, including:
- The type of fostering you are providing
- The number of children you care for
- The age of the child you look after
- The specific needs of a child
While all foster carers receive a generous standard rate, there are also specialist tariffs for those who take on more complex or intensive placements.
- Foster Plus carers: These carers support children with higher or complex needs and receive a double carer fee to reflect the additional care and expertise required
- Residential Step-Down carers: These carers welcome young people who are transitioning from residential care into a family setting. It’s a big step for the child – and a big commitment for the carer – so a higher carer fee is provided.
- Parent and Child carers: – These placements involve one or both parents living with their child (usually a baby) in the foster carer’s home for around 12 weeks. Due to the intensity of these arrangements, carers receive a child fee and carer allowance for each individual in the placement.
do foster carers with private fostering agencies get paid more than local authority foster carers?
Whilst it’s commonly assumed that Independent Fostering Agency (IFA) carers get paid more than those who foster for their local authority, this often isn’t the case. In addition, carers who foster with Independent Fostering Agencies are caring for those children and young people who were unable to be placed in-house with local authority foster carers. These tend to be:
- Teenagers
- Children with complex needs
- Large sibling groups
- Parent and child
ready to learn more?
Understanding the financial side of fostering is key to making a confident, informed decision. Whether you’re just starting to explore the idea or you’re seriously considering taking the next step, having clear information helps you decide if fostering is the right fit for you and your family.
The team at Foster Wales Swansea is here to guide you through every detail – from allowances and fees to specialist support and flexible options. They’ll help you understand what financial support is available and how it can work for your unique circumstances.
Reach out to Foster Wales Swansea – they’ll walk you through everything.
- Call: 0300 555 0111
- Request a call back: Fill out our contact form
Let’s start the conversation – and see where fostering could take you.
