North Yorkshire: Emergency support demanded by foster carers

A petition sent by foster carers to North Yorkshire County Council demanded an increase in allowances in line with inflation and recognition for their union the IWGB

Foster carers in North Yorkshire have called for "urgent emergency measures" to avoid being "forced into poverty" by the cost of living crisis.

More than 120 foster carers signed a petition asking for "an increase in fees and allowances" and free school meals for fostered children. 

Support service Foster Talk previously said some foster carers had reached "crisis point".

The County Council said it would contact carers about their concerns.

Foster carers receive a weekly allowance, which is intended to cover the costs of food, clothes, toiletries, transport and other expenses incurred when looking after a child.

Allowances paid for looking after a child aged between five and 10 are £194.89 a week and people who care for a young person aged 11 to 15 are paid £242.45 a week.

The Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain union (IWGB), said a survey it conducted showed 85% of foster carers in North Yorkshire found their allowances did not cover the costs of fostering.

Ann and Gavin Parker who foster in North Yorkshire said they were using their pensions to top up their carer allowances

The Foster Care Workers Union (FCWU) chair, Kenny Milliard, said: "It is unacceptable and unsustainable that dedicated professionals providing 24/7 care for the community's most vulnerable young people are being forced to subsidise the public service they provide."

Mr Millard added: "Investing in foster care is an investment in the future of North Yorkshire and the time to make that investment and sit down to hear carers' concerns is now."

'Above and beyond'

Ann Parker, a North Yorkshire foster care worker, said it was "heart breaking" to be forced into positions where children were "unable to get the attention they need due to immense financial pressures on us that are entirely avoidable".

She said foster carers had called on the council to introduce emergency measures because the young people they were responsible for "need and deserve a basic standard of living".

Tim Larner, who is also a foster care worker in North Yorkshire, looks after a 17-year-old with severe disabilities. He said the cost of living crisis had pushed foster carers to "breaking point".

"We're so close to full capacity, no one knows where new children requiring care will find it - we go above and beyond what would be expected in any normal job to support these young people," he added.

Foster carer Tim Larner said it was time for foster carers to "come together under one voice to demand better conditions"

Mr Larner said he also believed the commitment foster carers in North Yorkshire had to children was "taken advantage of by the council" as an excuse to have carers "operate on the bare minimum, knowing we will always put the wellbeing of the children first".

In a statement Mel Hutchinson, North Yorkshire County Council's assistant director for children and families' services, confirmed the petition from foster carers had been received and thanked foster carers "for raising their concerns".

"We will be contacting the foster carers about this issue and meeting with the chairs of the Foster Carer Association to discuss it further," he said.

North Yorkshire County Council's executive member for inclusion, Councillor Janet Sanderson, added: "We met with representatives from the foster carers' prior to receiving the petition where we discussed their concerns at length.

Ms Sanderson said the council was now looking at whether it could "move forward with some of the suggestions and recommendations".

A spokesperson for the county council said they had "listened to the asks from foster carers outlined in the petition" and would "discuss them with the foster care representatives".