Respite fostering

Respite care is carefully planned to ensure the child’s best interests and needs are met. Wherever possible, we encourage respite Foster Carers to get to know the children ahead of their first stay, so they can begin to establish a positive, trusting relationship.

You could start your journey as a Foster Carer by offering respite care, then consider moving to another type of care further along your fostering career.

As with all types of fostering, carers for West Sussex County Council receive full training, ongoing support and competitive pay of up to £182.47 a month for a 2-night stay.

Carole joined our fostering family in 2022 and offers respite care for one young lady once a month and takes another for day care. She told us, "I’ve had seven children in the last year, who have all been delightful. The matching is really important and the young people have played to my skills. They have been challenging in their different ways, but they have taught me an awful lot. The training is good, but it’s nothing like gaining experience! Sometimes a child highlights for you the fact that you need a different kind of a training, such as how to get a child to open up who is very shut down. I want to understand why a child might be like that and find a can opener really in terms of trying to open them up. I know the children’s full-time carers pretty well – we talk a lot. That dynamic is really important, so that we have that wider pool of understanding and can share experiences. It’s important to feel part of something."

Caz is one of our amazing full-time carers and values the support that Carole provides: “The respite care that Carole offers once a month is a life saver for me. The young person I care for is extremely complex and Carole’s support gives me the chance to recharge and rest for a couple of days. We have the same Social Worker which helps immensely as she knows us both well and trusts us to organise things ourselves, we just have to let her know what we have arranged. The young person benefits as well – it’s like a little holiday once a month, having different experiences with Carole and learning how to engage with someone else.”