Frequently Asked Questions

If you already have children living with you, it is essential to consider the impact that fostering might have on them. We encourage you to have open and honest conversations with your children before, during and after the fostering process. They may initially be excited about gaining a sibling. Still, it is important that they always feel welcome and encouraged to ask questions about how fostering may impact them. During the assessment, we involve your child or children as much as possible to help prepare them for living with their new sibling.

Enquiry 

Start by filling out the enquiry or call us. We will gather some of your basic information, and we can answer any questions you may have.

Information Evening 

The information evening is an online, one to a two-hour event that we run regularly. We will talk about fostering, the process, children's early life experiences, and other fostering-related topics. If you are a couple, we ask you both to attend.

Screening Visit 

The screening visit to your home is an opportunity for us to get to know you and answer your questions. If you are fostering as a couple, we ask that you are both present. 

We recommend preparing for the visit. Please read over the information we provided to you at the information evening. After the visit, we will inform you on how to continue. That is because sometimes we require further checks or information. If a decision is made not to proceed, we will notify you of the reasons behind our decision.

Foundations for Fostering Training Programme 

If proceeding to the next stage you  will be invited to attend the mandatory Foundations for Fostering training programme. This training will clarify what you can expect as a foster carer, both the rewards and challenges you may face. 

Application Form 

Following the Foundations for Fostering training, you will be invited to complete an application form that justifies that you still wish to proceed. Once received, we can then move to the assessment stage.

What Happens During the Assessment? 

You will be allocated an assessing social worker who will undertake the assessment with you. The process involves visits from the assessing social worker at your home. The assessment process should be completed in 16 weeks. 

Once they have completed their assessment sessions, they will write up their findings in a written report known as the full assessment report. Then, the Foster Care Committee (FCC) will read and consider your suitability to foster.

The FCC is independent and consists of people who have experience in fostering either professionally, personally or both. 

If your application is approved: 

Once you have been approved as a foster carer, we can enter the matching process and immediately start looking for children to match with you. When a potential match is identified, we will share all information with the social worker and answer all questions you have. 

It varies from foster carer to foster carer, but once you are approved, a child may come and live with you from the day of approval. 

If your application is declined: 

We will write to you outlining the reasons for the decision and the process you should follow if you wish to pursue your application.

The statutory allowance is €352 for a child over 12 yrs old and €325 for a child under 12 yrs old. This is a weekly allowance and is per child in your care. Origins offer a range of additional payments and benefits to our foster carers.

Your weekly allowance covers living costs such as food, clothes, school books, activities, essential travel and household bills.

When fostering with us, the allowances you receive are exempt from taxation under the Finance Bill 2005; your money isn't classed as income when applying for certain benefits. It will not affect your ability to receive disability allowance, disability benefit, unemployment assistance or a medical card.

Fostering can be hard work. However, we work with carers to support them in this important task. The following is the support we offer:

• 24/7 on-call telephone support - we always have a qualified social worker on the phone to answer any query you have, no matter what time or day.
• Ongoing training - we have a training calendar which provides regular monthly training for our foster carers.
• We also identify any specific training needs and ensure to provide them to you.
• An allocated senior social worker
• Irish Association of Foster Carers (IFCA) membership
• Fostering Family Day
• Access to Origins attachment and development trauma consultant
• Tailored support packages
• Regular support groups