Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether (a) his Department and (b) each of its arms length bodies offers employees who are foster carers (i) flexible working, (ii) paid time off for (A) training and (B) settling a new child into their home and (iii) other support.

Employees have a statutory right to request flexible working which applies from the first day of employment. Employees can make two statutory requests for flexible working in any 12-month period. This will include requests to support employees who undertake foster caring outside of their employment. In addition, foster carers may apply for flexible working when settling a new child into their home. Foster carers can also receive an additional 5 days of paid or unpaid leave in a 12-month period at the discretion of their line manager. This leave can be used for meetings, training, unforeseen emergencies related to their fostering role, or to accommodate emergency placement. At the start of a planned permanent placement, foster carers can receive up to 10 days of discretionary special paid leave in a 12-month period. If both parents are employed, one parent would receive up to 10 days and the other up to 5 days. Foster carers are also eligible to claim pre-school and school-age child support for childcare. These provisions are designed to support foster carers in balancing their professional responsibilities with their fostering duties. Employees also have a statutory right to take unpaid time off work to deal with an emergency involving a dependant.