When you become a foster carer, you will receive an allowance. However, you will also have to update the household budget. Taking care of this is non-negotiable because if you don’t have a solid grasp on your financial situation, it will be impossible to fulfil your obligations as a carer. Here are five tips for any foster carer thinking about money.
1. Understand Your Allowance
The first step is to take a look at what you will receive in terms of a foster care allowance and really sit down with the numbers. Once you have a better understanding of how much money you will have coming into the bank every month, you will be able to plan ahead in a more precise way. Take a look at your typical expenses over the course of a monthly period, and then you can start to make the necessary adjustments and arrangements.
2. Use the Training
There will be a lot of training around what you can expect to have to pay out for when it comes to looking after a foster child. This means you will have all of the necessary information to decide where the money will be best spent and how much you will have left over after each financial period.
What Are Typical Costs For Foster Carers?
Things you might face as a foster carer include extra food, clothing, bills, and days out or enrichment activities. These may not seem like majorly expensive things in isolated incidents, but they can end up costing a fair amount when added up.
3. Make a New Budget
Once you have established all of the facts, it is time to work through a new budget from start to finish. This should detail all of the projected costs you are about to face and leave you with a leftover amount once all of the essentials have been paid and factored in. This document can be a highly flexible thing because some months you won’t have to pay for things that you do at other times and so on.
4. Meal Plan
Simple activities like meal planning can really help when it comes to managing money. With an extra mouth to feed at the table, the costs can soon rise. It is great to have provisions in place to manage these changes, and strategies for the daily meals are the best way forward. Think about every meal from breakfast to evening dinner and factor in snacks as well. It is vital that foster children have a healthy and balanced nutritional provision every day, and it will be a primary focus for your role, too.
5. Use Your Discount
Foster carers have access to exclusive discounts and vouchers, and you should absolutely take advantage of these offerings. It is not just a smart move, but a helpful one as well. The savings you will see can be exponential and incredibly helpful. You can find discounts for days out, basic essentials like clothing, and even on your supermarket bill as well.
Planning your foster care budget should be a top priority because it is such an important part of daily life.
