Private foster care

Information on private foster care, including who can be a private foster carer, how you become one, and support you can get.

This advice applies to: England and Wales

If children’s services are involved in placing the child with you, or a social worker is saying that they are unable to return a child to their parents, this is not private fostering. You will need to be assessed, paid an allowance and supported as a kinship foster carer.

Parental responsibility

Parental responsibility (sometimes called PR) is the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which a parent has in relation to a child and his or her property.

Whatever your circumstances as a kinship carer, it’s important to understand what decisions you can make and what rights the child’s parent has.

If you don’t have parental responsibility, it can make everyday decisions difficult depending on your relationship with the parents. You might struggle to come to agreements with the parents, or need regular contact to get their consent, such as for school trips.

Read more about obtaining parental responsibility for the child you are caring for.