How much do foster carers earn?

Foster carers are paid for the work they do, and receive money to cover the costs of having a child or children living with them. These payments are called fostering fees and allowances.

Woman and young toddler in shopping trolley

Foster carers are self-employed. They receive fostering fees for the time, knowledge and skills they bring to the role. Fostering allowances are paid to cover the costs of looking after the child or children who live with you.

Fostering allowances and fees can seem complicated at first glance. Our advisors can explain how fostering fees and allowances work, so you can make informed choices about becoming a full-time foster carer, or whether you might need to carry on working as well. Foster carers can work full or part-time as well as being a foster family.

How much do you get paid for fostering in the East of England?

Fostering is a professional role with significant responsibilities, and the allowances paid by our Foster East partners reflect this. Each local authority sets their own foster care allowance rates based on UK government guidelines meaning foster care fees and allowances vary from area to area.

All foster carers are self-employed. Foster carers can work full or part-time as well as being a foster parent. Some foster parents carry on with their job at the same time as being a foster carer, some people make foster caring their full-time career.

In addition to an allowance, payments are also made to financially support you when you become a foster carer. We appreciate that many people decide to give up work or reduce their working hours to become foster carers. All councils in the Foster East partnership offer a range of financial packages to ensure that choosing to become a foster parent is affordable for our foster families.

Local authority foster care allowances in the East of England

To help you focus on providing the support and care the children and young people in our region need, our local authority partners pay generous foster carer allowances. Some Foster East partners also pay additional fees for special occasions or retainer fees and provide other benefits such as memberships to fostering support organisations.

All partners are committed to paying fostering allowances in line with or above UK government guidelines. All authorities review the foster allowances whenever government guidelines change.

Everyone is different. If you'd like a better idea of the financial implications of becoming a foster carer based on your own personal situation, we can arrange for you to speak to an assessing social worker in your area.

Fostering finance facts

Fostering households do not pay tax on the first £19,360 they earn from fostering each year
Foster carers also receive tax relief for every week a child is in your care
You could receive up to £25,000 per year with no tax to pay
The UK government gives foster carers National Insurance Credits towards a state pension

You can find further information and an illustration of how tax relief works on Help and Support for Foster Parents in England.

What does the fostering allowance cover? Fostering allowances and fees explained

Foster carers receive a fostering allowance for each child who stays with them (and adult in the case of parent and child fostering). The weekly allowances are paid on a monthly basis, and cover the cost of caring for the child (and adult) as well as providing an income.

Fostering allowances are paid per child based on their age. The allowance covers:

The cost of feeding the children in your care
Utility costs (energy, water) associated with caring for children and young people in your home
Expenses for clothing
Transport costs
Entertainment, activity and recreational costs
Pocket money for the child/young person
Fostering skills and other payments

Foster East partners appreciate the huge amounts of time, the dedication and effort foster carers put into building their knowledge and developing additional skills. Professional fostering fees are paid in recognition of this experience and training. The fees are set by your level of experience and training.

Self-employment and paying tax and National Insurance on fostering allowance

All foster carers in the UK, whether working with a local authority, or for an independent agency, are classed as self-employed whether you continue with your current employment or not. If you become a foster carer you will need to register with HMRC for the role.

To make fostering an affordable choice, the UK government applies a generous tax-free allowance to fostering income. In fact, as a foster carer in the East of England you can expect almost all your fostering income to be exempt from tax thanks to Qualifying Care Relief.

This means that, as a foster carer you keep more of your fostering income than someone with a similar salary in alternative employment does.

More information about fostering payments and taxes

The Department for Education funds Fosterline, a call centre and corresponding website with confidential and impartial advice and information about a broad range of queries current and prospective foster carers may have, including specialist tax and benefits advice and support to the foster carer and members of the fostering household.

They can be contacted on Freephone number 0800 040 7675, from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday or by visiting their website Fosterline.

Don't rule yourself out of fostering, talk to us today!

Let's talk and see if fostering could be right for you. Representing all 11 fostering authorities in the East of England, Foster East is here to help you. We're open from 8am to 8apm daily. can discuss your circumstances and help you to start your fostering journey with your local council. Call us on 0330 024 1177 or enquire now online.