Adoption &Fostering, Ahead of Print.
England has seen a progressive decline in the number of approved fostering households, whereas the number of children needing foster homes has increased. To address these disparities, this research explored whether an inclusive approach is taken to encourage Disabled people to become foster carers. The two-year co-produced project was part of the Disability Research on Independent Living and Learning (DRILL) initiative, funded by the National Lottery Community Fund. Led by the University of Worcester, the authors worked with four fostering organisations. The methodology comprised an online survey to gauge the level of disability awareness in these organisations, followed up by a customised training session for each site. Findings from the training days and a further workforce survey indicated that fostering social workers recognised that disability and foster care were not mutually exclusive, and that Disabled people could provide a valuable part of the workforce, although they were not routinely recruited. For Disabled people to be afforded equal opportunity as foster carers, it was acknowledged that non-discriminatory practice must become standard practice, necessitating significant changes at both institutional and professional practice levels.Plain Language SummaryThere is a great need for more foster carers in the UK. The lack of foster carers means that children who need foster homes have less choice about where they might live, often meaning they are not fostered near to their families and schools. In recent years, foster care organisations have recruited more and more foster carers from ethnic minorities, single foster carers and non-heterosexual foster carers. However, Disabled people do not seem to have been reached out to as potential foster carers. This research study set out to explore why Disabled people have not been recruited, especially as many would be likely to have the types of skills that fostering requires.The research study was designed and carried out by academics and Disabled people. Surveys, training events and interviews were all used to try to get a wide range of views from staff and Disabled people about the lack of Disabled people who are foster carers. Four fostering organisations volunteered to take part in the study, although one dropped out part way through when a new manager did not think the project worthwhile. A small number of Disabled people who had become foster carers were also interviewed, as were several who had not been assessed or had been turned down during the assessment process. The Disabled foster carers were able to give examples of successful fostering careers, and staff also gave examples of how their Disabled foster carers were equally as effective as non-Disabled foster carers. The research uncovered discrimination in recruitment processes, a lack of Disabled foster carers being featured on websites, and an absence of knowledge or training among fostering staff about the Equality Act 2010 and its requirement for ‘reasonable adjustments’ to be made to accommodate Disabled people. Key recommendations were for staff training on disability, reasonable adjustments in assessment processes and that Disabled foster carers should be championed.