PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(9 September 2026)

The government is committed to improving standards across the foster care sector and is taking steps to improve the recruitment and retention of foster carers, which is critical to improving outcomes for children.

The department’s action plan to renew fostering, backed by £88 million over the next two years, sets out the urgent steps we are taking to reverse the decline in foster carers and reform the system. 14 regional hubs are moving towards end-to-end recruitment from September, backed by £12 million in transformation funding. Our Room Makers programme will provide up to £25 million to add additional capacity to existing loving foster homes. We have launched a £12.4 million innovation programme, and enhanced digital tools and a communications campaign will launch in the autumn.

The government is currently consulting on revised national fostering standards to ensure children and foster families receive consistently high-quality support. Alongside this, the department continues to support and invest in the rollout of the Mockingbird model, while drawing on programme data and feedback from fostering services and carers to assess its impact on children, placement stability and carer support.

We recognise the benefits Mockingbird can offer in building peer support, stability and resilience for fostering families and will continue to promote effective practice across the sector.