Fostering in Leicester: Allowances, Training and Panel Tips

Thinking about fostering in Leicester? Great choice. Leicester City Council runs an established fostering service with clear steps to approval, structured training, and a package of payments that covers the child’s day-to-day costs (allowances) plus carer accreditation fees. Below, you’ll find a practical, Leicester-specific guide to what you’ll be paid, how training works, how to sail through panel, and what to expect right after approval.

How fostering works locally in Leicester

Leicester City Council sets out a straightforward five-step route to become a foster carer: initial chat, information session, application/home visit, Form F assessment, and panel (with a final Agency Decision Maker sign-off). That first conversation with the council’s team is the ideal time to ask about the types of fostering most needed now and what support looks like in your area.

The council also explains how fostering payments are structured (child allowances plus accreditation payments), and what extras you can claim for birthdays, religious festivals and holidays, transport, and activities.

Allowances and fees in Leicester: what you can expect

1) The foundation: national minimum allowance (England)

Every April, the Department for Education updates England’s National Minimum Fostering Allowance (NMA). For the 2025/26 tax year (6 April 2025 – 5 April 2026), the weekly minimum depends on the age of the child and your region (London, South East, Rest of England). Leicester sits in the Rest of England band. Here are the national minimums for reference: 0–2 £170; 3–4 £176; 5–10 £194; 11–15 £220; 16–17 £258 per week (higher in London and the South East).

The NMA is a child maintenance allowance—money intended to cover the child’s food, clothing, utilities, school items, transport and everyday activities.

2) What Leicester City Council adds

Leicester City Council’s page explains that carers receive a package: weekly child allowances and accreditation payments (a fee recognizing your skill/time), with additional allowances for birthdays, festivals and holidays. The detail varies by age/needs and by your accreditation level, but the key point is that Leicester pays at least the national minimum and layers local fees and extras on top. If you’re comparing offers, ask the team for a written breakdown that shows (a) child allowance, (b) carer fee, and (c) extras.

Close by, Leicestershire County Council (the shire authority) also highlights 2025 increases and the updated Qualifying Care Relief figures. While not the same service as the city council, it’s a useful benchmark showing the wider local market has uplifted rates and clearer explanations of how packages work.

3) Tax relief that keeps more in your pocket

Most foster carers pay little or no tax on fostering income thanks to HMRC’s Qualifying Care Relief (QCR). For 2025/26, the QCR “qualifying amount” combines a fixed annual amount (£19,690 per household) with weekly amounts per person you care for (higher for 11+). If your fostering receipts sit below that total, there’s no income tax to pay on fostering income; if above, HMRC’s simplified method still applies. Always follow the current HS236 helpsheet or use a tax professional.

Takeaway: Your take-home is typically child allowance + carer fee + add-ons, minus any tax/NI after QCR. That’s why getting the written breakdown helps you compare accurately.

Training in Leicester: from “Skills to Foster” to ongoing CPD

Leicester City Council runs a structured training offer:

• Skills to Foster – a mandatory initial 3-day course for applicants during assessment. You’ll explore safeguarding, trauma-informed care, daily routines, working with schools and social workers, recording, and safer caring.
• Ongoing training & support – after approval, there’s a rolling programme (in person and online) that builds your practice: topics such as attachment/trauma, therapeutic parenting/PACE, safer internet use, de-escalation, education support and recording for court.
• Virtual School support – Leicester and neighbouring Leicestershire run Virtual School support for children in care, including training for carers on educational planning (PEPs), attendance, exclusions, and SEN/EHCP processes. That collaboration helps you work confidently with your child’s school.
• Kinship carers – Leicester’s Statement of Purpose confirms kinship foster carers are entitled to the full fostering allowance and can access core training, with additional kinship-specific sessions. If you’re a connected persons/kinship carer, ask your social worker for the current schedule.

Tip: Keep a simple CPD log (date, course, key learning, how you applied it). It helps at annual reviews and demonstrates reflective practice at panel or during Ofsted inspections.

The Leicester approval journey: Form F and panel, step by step

The assessment (Form F)

Your Form F assessment explores your background, family life, support network, home environment, experience with children, resilience, reflective capacity, and motivation to foster. You’ll also complete checks: DBS, references, medical, health & safety, and (if relevant) pet risk assessments. Keep a small portfolio of evidence (certificates, safer caring draft, home safety updates, any relevant experience). Leicester’s five-step pathway sets expectations and timelines clearly, so stay in close contact with your assessing social worker about any documents outstanding.

What panel is (and isn’t)

Fostering panel reviews your Form F and asks clarifying questions. It’s a professional, supportive conversation—not an interrogation. Common panel composition includes an independent chair/vice-chair, social work professionals, care-experienced members and education/health perspectives. Panel makes a recommendation; the Agency Decision Maker (ADM) gives the final decision. Sector guides explain the flow and typical questions (motivation, boundaries, support network, safer caring, and learning from past experiences).

Panel tips: how to feel calm, clear and ready

1) Know your Form F inside out.
Re-read key sections (motivation, experience, relationships, support network, safer caring). Panel will have read your report and may ask you to expand on certain points. Jot down any areas you want to explain more fully.

2) Bring the child into the room.
When answering, connect your points back to children’s outcomes—safety, belonging, education, health, identity. Panel members listen for child-centred thinking.

3) Confidence in safer caring.
Be ready to describe practical boundaries (bedrooms/bathrooms, visitors, transport, internet/phones), how you’d adapt for different ages/needs, and how you’ll record incidents or concerns. If you’ve drafted a safer caring plan, mention how you created it and how you’ll keep it under review.

4) Education: show you can advocate.
Briefly explain how you’d work with schools and the Virtual School, attend PEP meetings, monitor homework/attendance, and escalate if support (SEN/EHCP, pastoral help) is slow. Cite one or two practical tools you’d use (e.g., visual timetables, reward charts, quiet study corner).

5) Contact and family time.
Panel often checks your understanding of contact with birth family—supervised vs supported, how plans can change, and how you’ll manage transport and emotions around contact days. Keep your answer balanced: supportive of contact and child-centred.

6) Resilience and support network.
Expect questions like “Who helps you if you’re ill or on a training day?” or “How would you decompress after a tough week?” Have 2–3 named supporters, with what they can practically do (school run, tea, sleepovers if approved).

7) Reflective learning.
If something in your past needs context, tackle it with openness and learning (what changed, what safeguards exist now). Panels value self-awareness and growth.

8) Practical prep matters.
Get a good night’s sleep, test your video setup (if remote), bring water/notebook, and arrive early. If you don’t understand a question, it’s fine to ask for it to be rephrased. Sector checklists and blogs underline that panels welcome thoughtful, honest answers—not perfection.

After approval: matching, support and placement finances

Once the ADM agrees with panel, you’ll be approved and can start to receive referrals for matching. Ask your supervising social worker to walk you through:

• Placement matching criteria (age range, number of children, distance to school, known risks).
• Recording and data protection (what to write, where to store it, sharing with school/health).
• Claiming extras (mileage for school runs/contact, equipment, birthdays/festivals/holidays). Leicester’s payments page sets out the types of expenses covered and how to claim.

If you’re a connected persons (kinship) carer, Leicester’s Statement of Purpose confirms you’re entitled to the full fostering allowance and training access—flag any gaps early so the right support is wrapped around your family.

Common Leicester questions, answered

Do I need a spare room?
Yes, in almost all cases. Talk to the council if you’re unsure—there are specific exceptions (e.g., some siblings) but the starting point is one bedroom per child, for safety and privacy.

Can I foster if I rent or work full-time?
Yes, potentially. You’ll need your landlord’s consent and to demonstrate flexibility for school runs, training and meetings. Many Leicester carers work; discuss realistic placement types (e.g., school-age, respite) with your assessor.

What types of fostering are needed now?
It changes over time, but there’s consistent need for teens, siblings, and short-break/respite. The team will tell you what Leicester is prioritising this year and how your profile fits local need.

How often will I train after approval?
You’ll complete core modules annually and choose from a menu of electives (trauma, safer internet, therapeutic strategies, education). Leicester publishes/updates its training offer and links into Virtual School resources.

How is tax worked out on fostering income?
Most carers use QCR. For 2025/26, the fixed household amount is £19,690, plus weekly amounts per person cared for. If you stay below the total “qualifying amount”, no income tax is due on fostering income. See HS236 for the official method.

Your next steps

1. Speak to the Leicester fostering team – book an info session and get your questions answered about age ranges, support, learning and expected timelines.
2. Ask for a payment breakdown – child allowance vs fee vs extras, so you can budget with confidence.
3. Block the “Skills to Foster” dates early – it’s the gateway to panel and a brilliant foundation for therapeutic, trauma-informed care.
4. Start a simple portfolio – safer caring draft, support network list, room plan, training log. It pays off at panel.

Final word

Leicester offers a clear path into fostering, a structured training programme, and a payment package that meets national minimums and then builds on them with local accreditation fees and extras. If you bring curiosity, empathy and consistency, and you’re open to learning, you’ll find the council team, Virtual School and your supervising social worker form a reliable circle of support—from that first phone call to panel day and beyond.