At Orchard Fostering, we’re committed to building brighter futures for all children. Every foster child brings with them unique challenges that you, as a foster carer, can help them manage or overcome.
When children come in to foster care they come with their own unique needs. Sometimes these may include more complex needs or disabilities. Read on to find out more about fostering children with disabilities or additional needs, and how Orchard Fostering can assist you on your fostering journey.
What is fostering a child with disabilities like?
Fostering a child with disabilities is the exact same as fostering any child – you are required to provide a safe and stable environment in which your foster child can flourish. You invest time and energy into your foster child’s wellbeing, helping them develop and grow over their time with you.
Of course, if you are fostering a child with disabilities, you may be required to delve a little deeper into your reservoir of time and energy. Every child comes with their own unique set of care needs – some aspects of disability care may include feeding, dressing, and bathing. As such, caring for a child with additional needs can be challenging – but utterly rewarding.
Finding a suitable foster family for any child is a complex process, but finding a suitable family for a child with disabilities can be even more challenging. As such, by opening your home to a foster child with disabilities, you are offering a vital care service to a person in need.
What type of person makes a good foster carer for children with additional needs?
As we’ve said many times, the main requirements for becoming a foster carer are kindness, compassion, and a desire to help others. As well as these traits, we find the following are vital if you want to foster a child with disabilities:
- Patience – fostering a child with disabilities can be a trying experience. Great foster carers have bottomless patience for their foster children.
- Vigilance – fostering a child with additional needs requires you to constantly on the alert. If an issue arises, you need to be there to deal with it. Safety is a prime concern for children with disabilities, so vigilance is a great trait to have.
- Advocacy – your foster child needs you in their corner as they face the challenges the world throws up to them day-by-day. If you’re willing to fight the good fight for your foster child, you’ll be an indispensable asset to their future and wellbeing.
Most importantly – if you are considering becoming a foster carer for children with disabilities, you are likely the type of person we are looking for at Orchard Fostering.
What services do Orchard Fostering provide for assisting foster carers fostering children with disabilities?
Orchard Fostering offers a great wealth of support to all our carers. We offer a wide range of services, each designed to deliver the best possible experience and outcome for our carers and foster children.
As an Orchard Fostering carer, you have access to a dedicated social worker; a 24/7 on call service; locally-run support groups; foster trainings; etc. You also can avail of our play therapy services, our theraplay practitioners, and our other internal supports.
How do I become a foster carer for children with additional needs?
If you’re interested in becoming a foster carer for children with disabilities, contact us today. You can learn more about becoming a foster carer here.
Fostering a child can be a rewarding, but difficult, journey. By fostering a child with additional needs, you are embracing a great challenge – but a challenge that pays off a thousandfold.