Fostering in Bolton

For many children, coming into care can be a difficult and uncertain experience. Having someone who listens, provides reassurance and creates a sense of belonging can make an enormous difference. Foster carers help children develop confidence, achieve at school, maintain important relationships and build the foundations for a brighter future.

At Action for Children, we're looking for people from all parts of Bolton who can offer local children the safety and stability they deserve. Whether you live in a busy town neighbourhood or one of the surrounding communities, fostering gives you the opportunity to make a life-changing difference while helping children stay connected to their local area.

You don't need to have worked with children before to become a foster carer. What matters most is your commitment to supporting young people and your willingness to provide a caring, nurturing home.

If you have the space, patience and desire to help a child succeed, fostering could be one of the most rewarding decisions you ever make.

We understand that fostering is a professional commitment as well as a rewarding opportunity to change lives. That's why we provide financial support designed to help foster carers focus on providing the highest standard of care.

Our fostering payments are made up of a weekly allowance and a fostering fee. The allowance helps cover the everyday costs of caring for a child, including meals, clothing, transport, activities and general household expenses. The fee recognises the time, commitment and skills required to be a foster carer.

The level of financial support available will depend on the type of fostering you undertake and the needs of the child placed with you. Additional funding may also be available for important events, educational opportunities and experiences that contribute to a child's wellbeing and development.

We want foster carers to feel confident that they have the practical support needed to provide stable and positive family environments.

By helping to reduce financial pressures, we enable carers to focus on building strong relationships and creating opportunities for children to flourish.

Providing a safe and nurturing home is easier when you have the right support around you. That's why we ensure every foster carer has access to guidance, advice and encouragement throughout their fostering journey.

When you foster with Action for Children Fostering, you'll have a dedicated supervising social worker who will provide regular supervision, practical assistance and professional advice. We take the time to get to know our carers so that support can be tailored to their individual circumstances.

We also believe that foster carers benefit enormously from connecting with others who understand the role.

Foster carers in Bolton receive:

• Dedicated support from an experienced supervising social worker
• Regular supervision sessions and support visits
• Access to foster carer support groups
• Opportunities to build connections with other carers
• Specialist advice and professional expertise
• Emergency and out-of-hours support when needed

Many carers tell us that learning from others who foster helps them develop confidence and feel less isolated. Being part of a supportive fostering community can make a real difference.

Our aim is to ensure every foster carer feels valued, supported and equipped to provide exceptional care.

Children in care often have individual experiences and unique needs. To help foster carers provide the best possible support, we offer a comprehensive programme of learning and development.

Training is available before approval and continues throughout your fostering career. All courses are provided free of charge and are designed to help carers build the skills and confidence needed to support children effectively.

Skills to Foster

This foundational training introduces the fostering role and covers key topics such as child development, attachment, safeguarding, communication and understanding the experiences of children in care.

Therapeutic Parenting

Many children entering care have experienced loss, trauma or instability. Therapeutic parenting training helps carers understand the impact of these experiences while developing supportive approaches that promote emotional wellbeing and resilience.

Safeguarding

Safeguarding training provides vital knowledge around child protection, online safety, health and wellbeing, and recognising potential risks that could affect children and young people.

Ongoing Professional Development

As your experience grows, you'll have access to additional learning opportunities that help you strengthen your skills and develop specialist knowledge relevant to the children in your care.

Our training programme is designed to help foster carers feel informed, capable and ready to support children through all stages of their development.

Many people assume that fostering is only suitable for certain types of households, but foster carers come from a wide range of backgrounds and life experiences.

You may be able to foster if you:

• Are over the age of 21
• Have a spare bedroom
• Have the right to live and work in the UK
• Can provide a safe, stable and supportive home

We welcome enquiries from:

• Single people
• Couples and partners
• Parents and people without children
• Homeowners and tenants
• Full-time workers
• Retired individuals
• People from all cultural, faith and ethnic backgrounds
• LGBTQ+ individuals and couples
• People living with disabilities

Children need a diverse range of foster carers and positive role models. There is no single profile of the "ideal" foster carer.

The qualities we value most are empathy, patience, commitment and the ability to help children feel safe and supported.

By becoming a foster carer in Bolton, you could provide a child with the stability, encouragement and opportunities they need to build confidence and look forward to a brighter future.

Contact our Bolton fostering team today to learn more about becoming a foster carer and how we can support you every step of the way.