Frequently Asked Questions

While we do not insist that all carers can drive, the reality is that it is challenging if you don't have access to a car. There are meetings to attend, and children often need to be transported to school. In addition, there are activities and access visits with their birth family. If you do not have a driving licence, you will need to show that you can meet the transport needs of placement in some other way.

We require children in care to have their own bedrooms. However, children who are part of a sibling group and of the same gender can share a room up to 12 years old.

As part of the fostering assessment, we will carry out some checks on you and your home. These include:

• Garda clearance checks
• Tusla and Overseas child protection checks
• A standard safety check on your home
• Employment references
• School references
• Personal references
• Overseas address checks
• Financial stability checks
• Health checks
• Ex-partner reference

We believe all couples living together are partners in fostering, so you will both need to take part in the assessment process. If you have a partner but live separately they will still need to be involved as they are likely to be frequent visitors to your home. Children who foster also have a hugely important role, so we will need to carry out checks and get to know all of your children and Garda Vetting will be required for children over the age of 16 years.

Not necessarily. It all depends on the nature of the offence. It is crucial that you are open and honest about past criminal behaviour. A Garda vetting is conducted, and the equivalent for any country you have lived in for more than six months. Some convictions prohibit you from becoming a foster carer, such as any convictions relating to children and any violent convictions.

Whilst some children will enjoy having pets at home, others may be frightened or not feel comfortable with this. We will conduct a health and safety check on any animal living in the house to ensure that they don't pose a risk to a child in care.

Transferring to become a foster carer with Origins Foster Care is very straightforward. Our team will work with you to make the transition as smooth as possible. Please get in touch with us.