Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of (a) weekly minimum payments and (b) other financial support provided to foster carers.

The ‘Fostering Services: National Minimum Standards’ set out the expectations that are placed on foster carers and their agencies at standard 28. The department is clear that no one should be financially disadvantaged because of their fostering role, and we expect all foster carers to receive at least the national minimum allowance (NMA) plus any agreed expenses to cover the cost of caring for each child placed with them. The standards are available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/192705/NMS_Fostering_Services.pdf.

The NMA was introduced by the Labour government in 2007 and has kept pace with inflation over time. The current levels of the NMA are available at: https://www.gov.uk/support-for-foster-parents/help-with-the-cost-of-fostering. The NMA is being uplifted by 3.55% in the 2025/26 financial year. Combined with increases to qualifying care relief, which provides tax relief and is uplifted with inflation every year, this provides additional support for foster carers and the children in their care. There are currently no plans to review the way the NMA is calculated.

The NMA was developed by calculating the cost of caring for a birth child and accounting for the additional cost of caring for a foster child. The criteria for calculating fees and allowances should be applied equally to all foster carers, whether the foster carer is related or unrelated to the child, or the placement is short or long term.

The department knows that many fostering service providers offer incentive schemes as rewards for their foster carers and we encourage the use of these. Discount schemes, free or discounted leisure centre passes, IT grant schemes and council tax exemptions are common examples.