Fostering and divorce – what you need to know

If you are part of a couple and are considering fostering, you may be wondering what will happen if your relationship comes to an end.

Will you be able to continue fostering after that, and who do you inform? And what about the children you are fostering?

Here at Beacon Fostering, our objective is to give you the facts on fostering and reassurance that if any problems arise, you can rely on us, your support network, to help you.

Here is what you need to know if you divorce your spouse or split from your partner while fostering.

If a split should happen

When foster parents split up, this constitutes a ‘significant change’ within the home and family structure, and they will need to inform their social worker.

The fostering panel will assess the situation and see if it feasible for one of the parents to continue fostering their child(ren). The other parent can either offer to resign or be assessed as a single foster carer.

Adjusting to life as a single foster parent

If your relationship ends and you continue to become a foster parent, there will be regular review meetings with your social worker and the fostering panel to ensure that everything is going well, and to provide any additional support should you need it.

We at Beacon Fostering are concerned with providing a safe and stable home for children in foster care in Lancashire, Preston and other areas of the North West. We are on hand to offer extensive support and assistance through our fostering network in such a situation.