History of foster care in the UK

You probably know about how fostering works in the UK – but do you know how long it has been around for?

While the act of raising children whose parents cannot look after them has existed for centuries, an official and regulated fostering system came into effect over a century and a half ago.

Read on the find out more information from Beacon Fostering about the start of the foster care system and how it has changed over the decades.

The first case of fostering

Foster care as we know it first appeared in 1853, when Reverend John Armistead placed children from the workhouse with families, who would receive payment from their local union (or council) to look after the child. In 1869, the first foster care in Liverpool placement occurred, when a couple took in a child whose mother had died.

Introduction of laws and regulations

Baby-farming was a widespread practice in the 19th century, where poor, unwed mothers paid other women a sum of money to look after their babies and infant children.

Many farmers would either murder the youngsters or neglect them, and a series of publicised cases resulted in the government introducing regulations for fostering services and laws to protect children. These were the Infant Life Protection Act 1897 and the Children’s Act 1908.

Adoption would also gain legal status with the 1926 Adoption of Children Act.

Social services

From the 1940s onwards, more laws and regulations were created not just to protect children within families and the fostering system, but also to ensure that the local authorities would be better equipped to spot signs of child mistreatment and act upon them.