A new national campaign is calling on more people across the East Midlands to consider fostering by showing people they may already have what it takes to become a foster carer.
By highlighting how everyday acts of care, from helping with homework to sharing a meal, and challenging misconceptions about who can foster, the Department for Education’s campaign shows how these moments can help children feel safe, supported and settled, and make a lasting difference to a child’s life.
Across the East Midlands, Foster for East Midlands Councils is supporting the campaign by encouraging more local people to explore fostering. The government-funded regional fostering hub brings together Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council, Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council to recruit more foster carers and provide safe, stable homes for children and young people across the region.
New government research reveals that many people believe they could be good foster carers. However, misconceptions about who can foster may be leading people to needlessly rule themselves out. Around one in five mistakenly believe foster carers must earn above a certain income (22%), own their home (20%) or be married or in a long-term relationship (18%).
Across England, two thirds of people (66%) believe they could be a good foster carer if the practical barriers they perceive were removed. Yet 15% say doubts about their own ability are the single biggest factor that could prevent them from fostering.
The findings reflect attitudes across the East Midlands, where 67% of people said they believed they could be a good foster carer if practical barriers and personal circumstances were removed. Despite this, 63% said they did not know roughly how many children were living with foster carers in the region.
The campaign aims to reassure people that training, guidance and ongoing support can help them develop the skills and confidence they need to foster and encourages anyone considering fostering to find out more before ruling themselves out.
Busting myths about who can foster
Official figures show the number of foster carers fell from 63,890 in 2021 to 56,345 in March 2025, a 12% drop. Yet the number of looked after children has risen by nearly 20% over the past decade.
Misconceptions still persist around the type of person who can foster and how fostering can fit into everyday life, with 43% believing fostering is incompatible with working full time and three in ten (30%) believing previous childcare experience or qualifications are required.
Yet foster carers themselves often challenge these assumptions. Across the East Midlands, people from a wide range of backgrounds are successfully combining fostering with everyday family life.
Sheila, from Nottingham City, has been fostering with her husband Herbert since 2006 and has cared for children and young people aged from birth to 18. Before becoming a foster carer, Sheila had never considered fostering and knew very little about what it involved. Encouraged by a neighbour to attend an information event, she discovered that hearing directly from experienced foster carers helped build her confidence and take the first step. More than 20 years later, she says it is one of the best decisions she has ever made.
Sheila says:
“Try it, because what I always say to people is I wish I’d done it sooner.”
The everyday moments that help children feel settled
While many people focus on the practical aspects of fostering, foster carers often say it is the everyday moments that have the greatest impact on children and young people.
The survey also found that people are more likely to see fostering as different from ordinary family life than similar to it. Four in ten (41%) said fostering was different from ordinary family life, compared with 32% who considered it similar.
But for children and young people in foster care, familiar routines and seemingly ordinary moments can provide important consistency and connection.
Lydia, a foster carer from Nottingham City, has been fostering because she believes every child deserves love, care and safety. For Lydia, some of the most important moments are often the simplest, helping children build everyday routines, gain confidence and feel supported. She says it is these small acts of care and guidance that help children feel safe and prepare them for the future.
Lydia says:
“The children out there, they need care, they need support. They need someone to hug them and they need someone to guide them as well to become a better future.”
With the number of foster carers falling by 12% between 2021 and 2025, the need for more foster carers remains urgent. The Department for Education aims to create 10,000 new foster care places by 2029 to help ensure more children and young people can access the safe and supportive homes they need.
Councillor Paul Hezelgrave, Lead Cabinet Member for Fostering for the East Midlands, said:
“Foster carers play a vital role in helping children and young people feel safe, supported and valued. Many people already have the qualities needed to foster but may not realise it because of common misconceptions about who can apply. Through Foster for East Midlands Councils, Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council, Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council are working together to recruit and support more local foster carers. If you’ve ever considered fostering, I would encourage you to find out more before ruling yourself out.”
Children’s Minister, Josh MacAlister OBE MP, said:
“Fostering changes lives, not just for the children who finally get the stability and love every child deserves, but for the carers themselves, who tell us it’s one of the most rewarding things they’ve ever done.
“Right now, thousands of children need that chance, and that’s exactly what our national campaign is about: cracking fostering open to ordinary people across England who have the values, the commitment and the love to foster.
“This is part of a bigger reset of children’s social care, one that puts loving, stable relationships back at the heart of the system.”
As well as the campaign, this is supported by further reforms to make fostering more accessible and help it fit around busy modern lifestyles. This includes a new rulebook for foster carers that humanises the decision-making process, digital tools to speed up recruitment, and funding for innovative and more flexible approaches to fostering.
Awareness of fostering need remains low
Despite the need, awareness of the scale of fostering need remains low.
Across England, only 3% of people surveyed correctly identified roughly how many children were living with foster carers in their region, while nearly one in four (22%) underestimated the number and the majority (62%) could not name a figure at all.
The government is encouraging people who may have previously assumed fostering was not for them to learn more about the different circumstances, backgrounds and experiences foster carers can have.
Find out more
Fostering may be more possible than you think. Before ruling yourself out, find out more.
Anyone interested in fostering can find out more through Foster for East Midlands Councils by visiting www.fosterforeastmidlands.org.uk or calling 03033 132950. People can also visit fostering.campaign.gov.uk to learn more about fostering and use the postcode checker to find their local fostering service.