Money Matters and Insurance

Payments made to Surrey County Council foster carers comprise two elements:

• An age-related allowance, which is wholly for the costs of the child's care, is paid to all approved foster carers, including connected person foster carers who have been granted temporary approval;
• A skills level payment for carers at Levels 2 or 3, or for those fostering on a Specialist Scheme.

Details of the current foster carers allowances and skills payments amounts and guidance can be found in the Foster Care Finances document (saved in the Local Resources > Useful Information > Guidance).

Foster carers will be expected to repay any overpayment of allowances. Although every effort is made to ensure no overpayments are made, overpayments do sometimes occur. It is the foster carer’s responsibility to check each fortnightly statement and to notify their supervising social worker if an overpayment has been made. If you have any queries about allowances or if you think you have been under or overpaid, contact the finance team in the Fostering Service as soon as possible on childrensfinance.aandf@surreycc.gov.uk or telephone 01932 794460.

Payments to you are made in arrears, direct to your bank or building society.

Foster Carers should claim expenses via their Supervising Social Worker and attach a claim form and receipts where appropriate. Please use a separate finance claim form per child to claim mileage or expenses from the child's social work team as this will speed up the handling of your claim. Claims should be made as soon as possible, and at least once a month.

Foster Carers must make claims for reimbursement of expenses within the same financial year that the expense was incurred.

When a child comes to live with you, you will receive a weekly allowance for the care of the child, which is linked to their age. This allowance is to be used by the foster carer to cover all but the most exceptional costs of fostering, including the costs directly associated with caring for the child, such as food, clothing, toiletries, hobbies, pocket money, and contributions to household costs and utility bills. It is expected that the whole of the allowance is either used for the care of the child or saved for the child. 

Surrey County Council believes in ensuring that all our Foster Carers develop their skills on an ongoing basis, so they are well trained and equipped to perform the complex tasks that are required of them in their day-to-day care of children and young people. We strive for the highest standards and Foster Carers are rewarded for their skills through a system of payment levels.

The Fostering Skills Payment is paid per child living with you and is dependent on the agreed skills level of Carers.

• Level 1 - Pre-learning level. No skills payment made. Age-related child allowance paid;
• Level 2 - skills for carers who have 10 training credits. (7 credits are awarded for Skills to Foster, recording, and safeguarding training and 3 credits can be earned by completing courses or from other types of learning). Carers will be supported to achieve at least Skill Level 2 by the time they are approved at Fostering Panel;
• Level 3 - skills payment for households that have achieved 15 training credits. To remain on Level 3, a minimum of 5 training credits need to be earned annually by the household and mandatory courses are kept up to date by both registered carers.

In addition, a number of specific fostering roles attract bespoke skills payments, including Mockingbird Home Hub carers, Hope foster carers, TreeHouse Hub (No Wrong Door) carers, Enhanced/One to One carers, Parent and Child carers, and Emergency Duty Carers.

Parent and child carers receive an age-related allowance for the child, plus an allowance and specialist skills payment of £520 for the parent.

Mockingbird Hub Home carers are approved foster carers who are the central point in a network for up to ten fostering families, known as a Mockingbird constellation. A Hub carer will be paid £520 per week.

Hope foster carers provide specialist support to children who have been supported by the Extended Hope service and care for children for 12-16 weeks to support their step-down from tier 4 mental health services or to prevent their admission and enable stabilisation and treatment. Hope foster cares are paid £520 and an age-related allowance whilst they have a child living with them.

Treehouse Hub (No Wrong Door) carers are part of the TreeHouse hub offer and provide care for children who have additional vulnerabilities and risks. They are supported 24/7 from the Hub multi-agency outreach team and work in the Hub when they don’t have a child living with them. They are paid £520 and an age-related allowance whilst they have a child living with them.

One-to-one foster carers look after children who are stepping across from residential care or need foster carers to support them whilst they are waiting for a residential care placement. The one-to-one skills rate is paid for up to six months but is reviewed monthly as the child is expected to make progress within the one-to-one arrangement.

Carers who are wholly available on the EDT rota are paid a skills payment of £520 for all the time when they are on the rota (including rostered rest days) in recognition of their availability to look after a child in an emergency situation and placed outside normal office working hours. They receive the appropriate child allowance when a child is placed. When the Carer is on holiday the EDT payment will cease as they are not physically available. Carers who offer ad-hoc EDT to cover a shortfall in Carers on the rota will receive the full skills payment on a pro-rata basis if they have an approval range of 0-17 years and have no other substantive commitments during their time on the rota in order that they can fulfil the requirements of the role.

Carers, not on the EDT rota, but who agree to look after a child outside of usual office hours in an emergency will receive a one-off payment of £50 per child.

Carers who are available to provide homes for children who need same-day placements referred by the Gateway to Resources team between 3pm and 5pm (referred to as Crisis carers) will be paid a retainer equivalent to the Specific Allowance amount (currently £117.24) for any period they are available.  They will receive their skills payment and age-related child allowance for any period when a child is living with them.

The service recognises that the amount of pocket money provided to a child will vary according to your own household lifestyle, the arrangements for your own children, and whether you pay directly for activities and outings. It is recommended that even very young children are provided with pocket money for them to spend as they wish. This is an essential part of their development. Suggested amounts of pocket money to be given to children are included in the Current allowances and Fees document.

From October 1^st 2020, all Foster Carers have been asked to save £5 per week, per child. This money will come from the age-related fostering allowance paid to each Foster Carer for each child. From 1 April 2023 the savings amount will be taken at source by the Council and invested in the Junior ISA once it is set up or held in a secure client account until that time.  Further information about this scheme and how it will operate for carers and children will be available in the Fostering SharePoint pages

Once a child has been in the care of the local authority for one year, they will also have a Junior ISA, or equivalent account opened for them. The Junior ISA account is monitored by Surrey County Council and will be held for the child until they are 18 years of age. More details about Junior ISAs can be found at www.sharefound.org.

These accounts attract interest and may be the preferred account to deposit savings in the long term.

The equivalent of one week's age-related allowance per child is paid for any child living with you on December 25^th (or another nominated festival date). Payments will be made four weeks in advance. Unless advised otherwise, this payment will be made in respect of Christmas, however if this needs to be paid for another religious festival, please advise your supervising social worker in good time.

A Specific Allowance Payment may be made to foster carers, short break carers, supported lodgings carers, and those carers offering Staying Put care in relation to a child’s specific need or needs relating to a child’s needs in the following Qualifying Factor list below.  If there is more than one qualifying factor the Supervising Social Worker can request payments up to a maximum of two Specific Allowances.

Specific Allowances are granted to provide additional care or to meet costs relating to a child’s needs which are over and above what is reasonably expected for another looked after child of a similar age and what is already provided for by the standard foster payments.  The Specific Allowance is not granted solely on the basis of a diagnosis, but to meet specific additional care or costs required on a day to day basis.

Supervising Social workers make an application on your behalf to a Team Manager. Whilst the specific allowance can be paid for an unspecified period, the allowance must be reviewed on a monthly basis. The allowance should be considered on a case-by-case basis, particularly in the case of a child with a disability/complex health care needs where there is little or no likelihood of change in their needs. Team managers record the decision on LCS, allowing for an audit trail and regular review.  In making an application for a specific allowance, evidence should be provided to explain what support has been offered to the carer, what training and actions the carers have undertaken, and any progress made.

Qualifying factors:

• Child who must be placed alone by the decision of the service (where the carer is approved to care for more than one child);
• Child with complex health care needs (including mental health needs and/or disabilities) who needs a greater level of supervision, support and care than any other looked after child of the same age. (A second payment may be made if there are additional costs arising which are not covered by Disability Living Allowance or other specific benefits, such as night care, specialist clothing, additional heating/electrical equipment needed etc.);
• Child aged 5 to 18 years and out of education (pro rata for each day the child would ordinarily be in education (excluding weekends and school holidays) Payment will be made from third day of absence.;
• Parent and child whilst parent is living in the household (plus up to four weeks after a parent has left);
• Child with enuresis where there are additional costs from frequent laundering;
• Child with significant challenging behaviour beyond another looked after child of the same age giving rise to additional costs or care;
• First six weeks of care for an unaccompanied asylum-seeking child.

Practice Guidance has been developed outlining the principles and circumstances under which additional payments will be made to carers for day care, respite, short breaks and babysitting.  This can be found in the Resources section of this manual.

Foster carers providing short breaks for disabled children will receive allowances on an hourly basis (up to 5 hours), day rate (for over 5 hours) and/or overnight rate.

Where a child is receiving overnight respite care with another foster carer all payments to their main carer will cease and the respite carer will receive the full allowance, pro rata.

Foster carers who are not part of a Mockingbird constellation will receive an hourly rate for day care or tea visits.

The cost of getting birth certificates (and copies), and passports will be met by the (child’s social worker. The fostering service will usually reimburse you for costs of photographs, memory books/boxes etc. – please discuss with your supervising social worker.

Information is also available from the GOV.UK website about passports.

When you are fostering, you will need to be registered as self-employed and file tax returns. See File Your Self Assessment Tax Return Online.

You will be entitled to qualifying care relief which means that you will be entitled to:

If you foster, you may be eligible for National Insurance Credits which count towards your State Pension.

See also: The Fostering Network, Tax and National Insurance and GOV.UK, Carer's Credit: How to claim.

You must inform your Home, Building and Contents, and Car insurance company once you have been approved as a foster carer.

Tell them about the number of children and age ranges you expect to care for. You should ask the insurance companies for written confirmation that they have included foster children in your policies. You should speak to your potential insurers about your occupation to ensure you’re not exposed to any unnecessary risk. The Fostering Network have put together a guide to give you some insight into what questions you need to ask regarding home insurance to ensure you are adequately protected as follows:

10 key questions to ask a potential insurer:

1. I am a foster carer, do you apply any additional restrictions, reductions or exclusions to my policy?
2. Do you cover my foster children’s possessions as contents of my home? Are there any non-standard restrictions, reductions, or exclusions to this?
3. Would you provide cover for any accidental damage caused to my buildings and contents by a foster child in my care?
4. Would you provide cover for any intentional or malicious damage caused by a foster child in my care? If yes, what would I be required to provide as evidence to support my claim submission?
5. Do you require me to let you know as and when I accept new children or foster children leave my care? If so, what information would you need me to provide and how quickly could you confirm if cover is available?
6. If a foster child has a criminal background or a background of causing damage, do I need to disclose this to you?
7. Do you have a cap on how many foster children I can have in my care at any one time?
8. What is your claims process for dealing with foster carer home insurance claims?
9. Do you have a team that understands my role as a foster carer? Do you understand that I will have occupation-related visitors to my home regularly, such as social workers?
10. Am I able to get specific foster home insurance advice at any stage during my policy period?

For further advice and information, see The Fostering Network, Home insurance for foster carers.

Ordinarily, foster carers should claim on their own house or car insurance. Some insurance companies have specific policies for foster carers that also cover malicious damage by children, and foster carers should consider taking out this type of policy if it meets their requirements. If carers need to make a claim that is not covered by their own policy (for example an insurance excess) then the fostering service may be able to consider reimbursement on a case-by-case basis.

Disability Living Allowance

Some children with disabilities or additional needs may be entitled to claim Disability Living Allowance (DLA). It is awarded based on mobility and care needs, not on diagnosis. It is not means-tested.

To be eligible, the child's disability or health condition must mean one or both of the following apply:

• They need more looking after than a child of the same age who doesn’t have a disability.
• They have difficulty getting about.

They must have had these difficulties for at least 3 months and expect them to last for at least 6 months. If they're terminally ill (i.e. not expected to live more than 6 months), they don't need to have had these difficulties for 3 months.

Disability Living Allowance is split into two components: a care component and a mobility component. The care component is paid at three different levels (low, medium, or high) and the mobility component is either paid at high or low.

From the age of 16 (to 64 years) DLA no longer applies, it is replaced by a Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

If the child in your care is in receipt of the higher rate mobility component and placed with you on a permanent basis, you may choose to exchange the payment for a car via the Motability scheme. You can find out more information at www.motability.co.uk.

Please note that Surrey will not be able to assist in financing the deposit for a Motability vehicle and if the child moves from your care, the car goes with them.

What to do if you believe the child you are looking after qualifies for DLA.

If the child in your care is already in receipt of DLA their Social Worker should be involved in discussions with the parent to arrange transfer of the DLA to you (the Foster Carer). The Social Worker needs to advise the parents to notify DWP that the child is no longer in their care. In the same way, if a child moves from one Foster Carer to another, the Foster Carer must notify DWP and ensure any DLA money is transferred to the new carer.

If the child in your care is not already in receipt of DLA, you should, in the first instance, speak to the child's Social Worker to establish if a claim has already been submitted and/or to request assistance with making an application on the child's behalf. As a Foster Carer, you are entitled to apply on the child's behalf with the knowledge of the child's Social Worker. The child does not need to have a diagnosis prior to application.

It is important to submit a claim for DLA as soon as possible as it cannot be backdated. The claim will apply from the date the form is received.

The application and any subsequent appeal process can be lengthy and complicated. Please make your Supervising Social Worker and the child’s Social Worker aware if you need any additional support in completing the application. It may also be possible to gain practical help in completing the documents from the DWP, Citizens Advice Bureau or Contact a Family (a charity that supports the families of disabled children).

Payment Rules

DLA is paid to the child, not the carer but if the child is under 16 the carer acts as an appointee.

The carer is expected to open a separate bank account, in the child's own name, into which the DLA will be paid. The money is not intended to be saved for the child for use in later years as this could result in them being penalised for having large sums of savings. E.g., if a child returns to their parents and there is more than £3000 in an account, this will affect any benefits claimed by the parents. For a child reaching 16, a sum of more than £8000 will affect their claim for income support and housing benefit.

There are no rules set by the DWP as to how DLA should be spent, however, it is intended that the money be used to enhance the child's life. Examples of how the money could be spent are:

• Costly activities; horse riding, swimming lessons, after-school activities;
• Additional equipment needed due to disability and funding above the expectation of a "normal Foster Carer";
• Specialist foods and feeding equipment;
• Provision of an escort to enable social events to be attended;
• Extra helper for an outing or holiday;
• Taxi fares for days out;
• Accessible holidays (could cover the family's expenses once the fostering allowance has been used);
• Mini breaks away to accessible places;
• Individual equipment i.e. computer/communication aids;
• Specialist toys to meet the child's needs;
• Soft play equipment;
• Gardening and specialist gardening furniture and equipment;
• Hairdresser;
• Heating – exceptional;
• Laundry medical – incontinence;
• Maintenance and provision of additional specialist equipment or furniture;
• Medical expenses;
• Private personal care;
• Private cleaner;
• Subscriptions to disability related groups.

This list is not intended to be exhaustive nor prescriptive, but to provide foster carers with a guide as to the responsible use of their foster child's disability benefits. It also aims to provide foster carers with some flexibility in how they may meet the additional needs and disability-related costs of each child, which may not be covered by other sources of funding or fostering allowances and payments.

Foster carers who are considering spending/committing large amounts of money in relation to their foster child must discuss the matter first with their supervising social worker and childcare social worker.

Carer's Allowance

If you are the main carer of a disabled child for more than 35 hours a week and the child is in receipt of DLA at middle or higher rate care component, you are eligible to apply for carers allowance (as long as you earn less than £110 a week). Your fostering allowances are not taken into account.

For more information and to apply, please call 0345 608 4321 or email: cau.customer-services@dwp.gsi.gov.uk.

Blue Badge Scheme

If you are in receipt of DLA and aged 3 or over, you may be entitled to a Blue Badge.

The Blue Badge scheme helps those with severe mobility problems, who have difficulty using public transport, to park close to where they need to go. Charges and entitlement rules for the Blue Badge scheme vary across the UK.

For more information: GOV.UK, Blue Badge Scheme.

Apply online on the GOV.UK website or contact your local council.

Retainer payments can be paid to Foster Carers in order to allow for a planned move for a specifically identified child. The payment may be offered to prevent the placement from being taken by another child and allows the Foster Carer to maintain their allowance in the interim period. The same process will also be adopted for 1:1 carers.

All such requests and the circumstances should be discussed with a Service Manager from the Fostering Service with each individual decision being made on a case-by-case basis.  

Foster Carers who are in their first year of their Fostering career can claim £25 towards childcare costs when attending any level one courses from the training programme.

From the second year and thereafter can claim £25 three times a year towards childcare costs.

You cannot pay your partner to provide childcare, but the person providing your childcare does not need a DBS, or to be a registered childminder, it is your responsibility to choose an appropriate person to provide childcare. These payments are to cover the cost of looking after a child/children in your care and not your own children.

Please complete a claim form and send it to your Fostering team for processing.

The weekly allowance is expected to be used to cover all but the most exceptional costs of Fostering. However, the general principle is to make sure that we refund Foster Carers for out-of-pocket expenses not normally covered by the allowances.

All requests for exceptional payments must be made to the Service Manager in advance of spending, unless deemed an emergency, and are subject to approval.