Fostering a disabled child

Fostering a child with disabilities is a rewarding vocation and viable career change for people who can provide love, care and attention to vulnerable children. When you foster with us, you will become part of a supportive community experienced in the care of children with additional needs including physical disabilities, learning difficulties, complex medical needs, sensory impairments and autism.

Unfortunately, children with disabilities who end up in care are more likely to have experiences of abuse or neglect than their non-disabled peers. In fact, research has found that disabled children are four times more likely to experience abuse or neglect than non-disabled children.

For this reason, we need families with the availability to foster long term, or to provide short term or respite care to come forward in order to continue to safeguard and promote the best outcomes. For example, research has found that children with disabilities who are placed in long-term foster care are more likely to achieve educational qualifications and have better employment outcomes as adults than those who experience multiple foster care placements or enter residential care.

Children with physical disabilities will have challenges that affect their mobility, stamina and dexterity, which could be as a result of an injury due to accident infection or disease, or a condition that has impacted them since birth. For this child, this may mean that they require mobility support to get around, for example through the use of a wheelchair or walking frame and may need other interventions such as regular physiotherapy.

Children in care with physical disabilities will benefit from families who have made mobility adaptations to their homes (such as stairlifts, wheelchair ramps and wet-rooms for bathing) or have ground floor facilities and bedrooms to offer for their foster child. They may also own a mobility adapted vehicle. Fostering Together are keen to speak to you if you have an adapted space, or we can support you if you are looking to adapt your home environment.

Children with medical needs will benefit from compassionate carers who can maintain the young person’s dignity alongside meeting strict medication routines. Carers with backgrounds in health or personal care roles are especially desired, building on established skills and knowledge to at home in a new way.

Where specific medical training is needed in the care of a child, Fostering Together will source bespoke and specialist training to ensure you as a carer are fully equipped to care for the child.

Children with sensory impairments, including visual or hearing impairments, will have challenges in accessibility in the wider world. Children may be sensorily impaired as an effect of a related condition or disability.

Children with sensory impairments will benefit from carers with extensive knowledge of accessibility requirements or some awareness of alternative communication, such as British Sign Language. Appropriate sensory stimulation, such as where carers provide space using music, lights, textures and smells can be exciting for children with impairments, allowing them to decompress and build concentration.

Children with autism spectrum conditions such as Asperger’s Syndrome can experience social communication and interaction challenges and struggle with sensory processing.

No child with autism is alike another, though they may benefit from knowledgeable and patient carers who can provide them with consistent routines. Carers of autistic children should be open in their thinking, able to understand or empathise with thinking that may not be ‘neurotypical’. Autistic children can give carers a new perspective to life and you can learn just as much from them as they do from you.

Children with learning difficulties and ADHD are the highest population of children with disabilities entering care. A learning difficulty or disability include conditions that impact a child’s ability to learn and develop compared to the expected level for other children of their age.

The impact for this child means that they are likely to require extra support at school, and at home can be delayed in meeting milestones in their development, including communication. Children with learning disabilities will benefit from compassionate and patient carers who are open and able to become their advocate, speaking up and becoming their voice to ask for the help that they need. Knowledge of alternative communication methods, such as symbols and signs in Makaton and PECs can help the child’s confidence to take an active part in their learning and social life.

Laura, who is a qualified special needs teacher, and her husband Alex became foster carers in 2017

"The first time we saw our first foster child smile and laugh we both near enough cried. The fact that we have made him happy and comfortable is one of the best things ever.

Fostering changes children’s lives and you should be thankful when you have the ability to do that."

Before fostering, Julie was a learning disability nurse and Robin supported disabled people in a residential home

Julie and Robin have been fostering since 2008. They care for three children on a long-term basis, supporting their complex needs and ensuring they live a happy family life.

In their video you will learn from Julie and Robin about their journey into fostering, how it impacts on their lives and the lives of the children they care for, why they chose to foster with Fostering Together, the support they receive, and their quality of life being disability foster carers.

We have the expertise to support families caring for children with complex needs

Our team has extensive experience in supporting disability foster carers and their families. When you foster with Fostering Together, you also benefit from our established network of specialists and experts. Together we strive to provide the best possible support to our foster carers in their important role caring for children with the most complex of needs.

Discover more about becoming a foster carer...

Whether you are new to fostering, wanting to learn more about this challenging and rewarding role, or an experienced carer considering transferring to a supportive provider which shares your principles and values, please get in touch today.

Leave your details below for a FREE fostering information guide as well as access to our 25 minute video presentation: Discover a Rewarding Career & Fulfilling Lifestyle Fostering a Child with Disabilities where you will discover a comprehensive summary of our supportive service and how we work with you to create positive futures for children with disabilities.

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