What is Fostering?
Fostering is about opening your heart and your home to a child who needs care, stability, and encouragement. Sometimes children cannot live with their own families for a while, and fostering gives them a safe, loving place where they can feel supported and valued.
It isn’t about being perfect — it’s about being there for a child who needs someone to believe in them.
Why Scotland Needs Foster Carers
Scotland currently has over 11,800 children looked after by their local authorities (as of July 2024).
Why Children Come into Care
Children may need foster care for reasons beyond their control, such as:
The Needs of Children in Foster Care
Every child deserves safety, love, and a sense of belonging. Many children in care need:
The Promise and Stand Up for Siblings
Scotland has made a national commitment through The Promise to ensure that every child in care grows up loved, safe, and respected. A key part of this is keeping brothers and sisters together whenever it is safe and possible to do so.
The Stand Up for Siblings partnership works to improve experiences and outcomes for siblings in care. For many children, being placed with their brother or sister provides the stability and sense of belonging they desperately need. Foster carers play a vital role in making this possible by welcoming sibling groups into their homes.
By becoming a foster carer, you are not only providing love and stability—you are helping Scotland keep its Promise to children.
How Fostering Works
Children come into foster care for many different reasons, and every child’s story is unique. As a foster carer, you may look after a child for just a short time, or you may become a steady presence in their life for months or even years.
There are different types of fostering to suit different families. Find out more about the different types of fostering which we offer at Foundations Matter here.
Whatever the type, the heart of fostering is the same: giving a child the chance to feel safe, cared for, and hopeful about their future.
The Role of a Foster Carer
As a foster carer, you’ll make a real difference every single day. You’ll:
Fostering or Adoption – What’s the Difference?
Both fostering and adoption change lives, but they’re not the same:
Fostering is usually temporary. You care for a child until they can return to their family, move to another foster home, or sometimes go on to adoption. The local authority and the child’s birth family often remain involved in decisions.
Adoption is permanent. Adoptive parents take on all legal rights and responsibilities for a child for life, just like a birth parent would.
Fostering is about being there for a child at a crucial time in their life — giving them safety, stability, and the love they need right now.
Who Can Foster?
At Foundations Matter we believe fostering is a calling to open your heart and home to a child in need. Every child deserves to feel loved, safe, and valued — and with God’s help, ordinary people can do extraordinary things in the life of a young person.
You don’t need to be “perfect” to foster. What matters most is a caring spirit, patience, and a willingness to walk alongside a child who needs stability and love. If you can offer kindness, guidance, and a safe home, you could be the answer to a child’s prayer.
You can apply to foster if you:
Fostering is a practical way to reflect God’s love. As Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes one of these little ones in my name welcomes me” (Mark 9:37).
Fostering is about opening your heart and your home to a child who needs care, stability, and encouragement. Sometimes children cannot live with their own families for a while, and fostering gives them a safe, loving place where they can feel supported and valued.
It isn’t about being perfect — it’s about being there for a child who needs someone to believe in them.
Why Scotland Needs Foster Carers
Scotland currently has over 11,800 children looked after by their local authorities (as of July 2024).
- 32% of these children live with foster carers.
- There are only around 3,000 approved foster households, down 17% since 2019–20.
- 43% live with kinship carers, showing that while family networks are important, they cannot meet the full demand.
Why Children Come into Care
Children may need foster care for reasons beyond their control, such as:
- Abuse or neglect (the leading reason across the UK, affecting around 60% of children entering care).
- Parental illness, substance misuse, or family breakdown.
- Domestic abuse in the home environment.
- Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children arriving in Scotland without family.
The Needs of Children in Foster Care
Every child deserves safety, love, and a sense of belonging. Many children in care need:
- Emotional and psychological support: to recover from trauma and rebuild trust.
- Stability and routine: consistent care, mealtimes, and schooling.
- Educational encouragement: looked-after children are more likely to fall behind in school and need extra support.
- Health and wellbeing care: including help accessing physical and mental health services.
- Identity and belonging: children need carers who respect their background, culture, and family ties.
- The chance to stay connected with siblings: which is often the most important relationship in their lives.
The Promise and Stand Up for Siblings
Scotland has made a national commitment through The Promise to ensure that every child in care grows up loved, safe, and respected. A key part of this is keeping brothers and sisters together whenever it is safe and possible to do so.
The Stand Up for Siblings partnership works to improve experiences and outcomes for siblings in care. For many children, being placed with their brother or sister provides the stability and sense of belonging they desperately need. Foster carers play a vital role in making this possible by welcoming sibling groups into their homes.
By becoming a foster carer, you are not only providing love and stability—you are helping Scotland keep its Promise to children.
How Fostering Works
Children come into foster care for many different reasons, and every child’s story is unique. As a foster carer, you may look after a child for just a short time, or you may become a steady presence in their life for months or even years.
There are different types of fostering to suit different families. Find out more about the different types of fostering which we offer at Foundations Matter here.
Whatever the type, the heart of fostering is the same: giving a child the chance to feel safe, cared for, and hopeful about their future.
The Role of a Foster Carer
As a foster carer, you’ll make a real difference every single day. You’ll:
- Offer love, patience, and encouragement.
- Provide a safe and stable home where a child can thrive.
- Help with everyday things like school, hobbies, and health.
- Support a child to build confidence and feel proud of who they are.
Fostering or Adoption – What’s the Difference?
Both fostering and adoption change lives, but they’re not the same:
Fostering is usually temporary. You care for a child until they can return to their family, move to another foster home, or sometimes go on to adoption. The local authority and the child’s birth family often remain involved in decisions.
Adoption is permanent. Adoptive parents take on all legal rights and responsibilities for a child for life, just like a birth parent would.
Fostering is about being there for a child at a crucial time in their life — giving them safety, stability, and the love they need right now.
Who Can Foster?
At Foundations Matter we believe fostering is a calling to open your heart and home to a child in need. Every child deserves to feel loved, safe, and valued — and with God’s help, ordinary people can do extraordinary things in the life of a young person.
You don’t need to be “perfect” to foster. What matters most is a caring spirit, patience, and a willingness to walk alongside a child who needs stability and love. If you can offer kindness, guidance, and a safe home, you could be the answer to a child’s prayer.
You can apply to foster if you:
- Are aged 21 or over (there’s no upper age limit).
- Have a spare bedroom suitable for a child.
- Live in Scotland permanently or long-term.
- Are in good enough physical and emotional health to care for a child.
- Can provide a secure and nurturing environment.
- Married, single, or living as part of a family unit.
- Parents already or considering fostering as your first experience of caring for children.
- Working, retired, or at home full-time.
- Homeowners or renters.
Fostering is a practical way to reflect God’s love. As Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes one of these little ones in my name welcomes me” (Mark 9:37).
