Fostering Allowances
At Clifford House, we believe that all our foster parents deserve to be rewarded well for the work that they do. That’s why we offer a competitive and generous allowance and payment structure to our foster parents.
Receive on average £24,540 per child each year, with this increasing the longer you foster. What’s more, because of the special tax rules for foster parents, this is generally tax-free.
Find out how much you could receive fostering with Clifford House with our finance calculator
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The biggest payback from fostering is the reward of seeing a child develop and take positive steps forward – and knowing you’ve played a big part. This takes time, commitment and patience. It also takes money, because as a foster parent, you’ll be responsible for the child’s clothing, entertainment, days out and all their day-to-day living expenses.
We’ll give you a generous allowance to help cover these costs. On top of this, we’ll pay a fee to recognise your hard work and the fact that fostering is a professional career. The amount you’ll receive will depend on a number of factors, including your experience and the age of the children.
There’s more too. You’ll also receive a birthday and festival allowance for the children in your care, 2 weeks of paid respite per year, and access to exclusive discounts for shops, restaurants and family experiences through our rewards platform.
Discover how fostering will affect your finances
Finances should never be the barrier to fostering. Like any caring profession, it’s important to know you’ll be able to make a difference without having to worry about whether you can afford it.
Download our fostering finance guide for everything you need to know about foster care pay, tax, benefits and more!
Fostering Allowance Breakdown
Our fostering allowances and payments take into account the demands of fostering and recognises your commitment, hard work and patience, with payments beginning from the moment a child or young person is placed in your care.
Foster parents receive at weekly payment when a young person is placed in their care. The fee compromises of two elements:
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Child Allowance
This covers all expenses in relation to the child, including food, clothing, transport, outings, activities and more.
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Professional fee
This payment takes into account the demands of fostering and recognises your commitment, hard work and patience for caring for a vulnerable child.
How much are foster parents paid?
The amount you receive as a foster parent depends on a number of factors, including your experience and the ages of the children in your care.
Discover our fostering payments below…
Grade 1 – New to fostering
You’ll start your fostering career with Clifford House on our Grade 1 payment tier until you’ve completed 12 months of fostering and your core training.
Depending on the age of the child in your care, you’ll receive between £368.69 and £455.63 per week, per child.
Grade 2 – 1 years’ experience
Once you’ve completed 12 months of fostering children, plus your Training and Development Standards and all core training, you’ll move to our Grade 2 payment tier.
Depending on the age of the child in your care, you’ll receive between £378.70 and £465.64 per week, per child.
Grade 3 – 3 years’ experience
You can also apply to become a Grade 3 foster parent, however, you’ll need to have at least 3 years of achieving excellent outcomes for children in your care and also play an active role in your local support groups and activities.
Depending on the age of the child in your care, you’ll receive between £388.71 and £475.65 per week, per child.
Finance Calculator
Find out how much you could receive fostering with Clifford House
Other great benefits
At Clifford House we want to acknowledge the work you do as foster parents. You go above and beyond for children and young people every day and we believe we should do the same for you. That’s why our extra benefits and perks reward your commitment and helps you create memorable experiences for your family and the young people in your care.
£100 annual birthday allowance for the child in your care
Each fostering household will receive an annual £100 payment to help cover expenses of a child’s birthday presents/celebrations.
£100 annual festival allowance for the child in your care
Each fostering household will receive an annual £100 payment to help cover expenses of presents/celebrations for their primary religious festival for each child in their care.
Paid for Activities
At Clifford House, we’re one big family, and that means a full calendar of fun activities for the whole family. Enjoy barbecues, trampolining, bowling, mini golf, and more!
Christmas time is always a special time of year, and foster families are invited to a Christmas party, along with a seasonal activity such as a visit to the pantomime. Our foster families also receive a gift from us too.
Foster Parent Discount Scheme
We provide all of our foster parents with access to our rewards platform where you can take advantage of fantastic discounts across hundreds of high street names, online stores and supermarkets.
Not only that, you can also save money on days out for all the family too. From London theatre tickets, theme park adventures to the National Trust, Ticketmaster or your local cinema, our discount scheme will help bring down the cost of family fun.
Free Membership of FosterTalk
FosterTalk offers a range of services for our foster parents including an independent helpline, discounted insurances, financial advice, and a discounted tax return service.
Refer-a-Friend Bonus
We know that our foster parents are amazing advocates for fostering. That’s why we offer our approved foster parents a thank you payment of £1,500 when someone you have referred becomes approved (subject to terms and conditions) and another thank you payment of £1,500 after they have been fostering with us for a year. That’s because we really appreciate the support that our approved foster parents offer to those who are new to fostering.
Frequently asked questions
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How much tax do you pay on your fostering allowance?
Foster parents are classed as self-employed and must return a complete self-assessment tax return each year. There may be a requirement to pay some tax, and every person’s situation is unique. However HMRC offers special tax relief (known as Qualifying Care Relief), which means that most foster parents pay no tax at all.
If you’re fostering one child for a year, you could receive:
- Personal tax relief of £18,140
You’ll also receive a weekly tax allowance depending on the age of the child in your care:
- £378 per week for children under 11
- £450 per week for children over 11
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Can I continue to work whilst fostering?
Like a lot of things, there really isn’t a simple answer for this, as it depends on a lot of different aspects. For example if you do want to foster alongside working, you might want to take into consideration things like how flexible your employer is, how many hours you currently work, and whether you foster as a single carer or with a partner. There are times fostering and working can work in tandem, but only if the child’s wellbeing and safety aren’t compromised. For Clifford House and for our foster parents, our main priority is to ensure that our children have every opportunity to thrive and succeed. Having another job is feasible, but you should be available as needed to provide a high level of care; your foster child’s needs must come first.
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How does fostering affect National Insurance?
Everybody who earns an income in the UK is liable for National Insurance contributions.
These contributions fund valuable benefits including Employment Support Allowance, bereavement benefit, maternity pay and the state pension, so they’re important.
If your taxable income is less than your qualifying care relief amount, then your profits are deemed as NULL from fostering and you do not have to pay National Insurance. However, you may still decide to pay Class 2 National Insurance voluntarily to secure your entitlement to state benefits in case you need to claim them in future – this includes state retirement pension, employment and support allowance and maternity allowance.
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Can I still claim benefits whilst fostering?
As a foster parent you are entitled to claim for benefits, just like any other person in the UK. Also like everyone, the benefits you receive, and how much you are paid, depend on your personal circumstances.
If you already claim benefits, it is likely that you will be able to claim the same benefits exactly as before you started fostering. This is because you receive Qualifying Tax Relief on your income from fostering. The only time this might change is if your financial circumstances also change. For example, if you take on another job.
Start your fostering journey here
Download our brochure and discover everything you need to know about fostering with Clifford House
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Whether you’re ready to start your journey or just want to chat to an expert, we are here to talk.
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