Supported lodgings

Do you have a spare room? Would you like to make a positive difference in a young person’s life? Then supported lodgings might just be the type of foster care you’re looking for if you’re interested in becoming a foster carer.

What is supported lodgings?

Supported lodgings is when you share your home with a young person, giving them an opportunity to live in a safe, family environment where they can gain more independence and learn to live on their own. Most young people that need the help of supported lodgings are 16 to 19 years old.

Instead of becoming a foster carer, you could become a supported lodgings host.

What is a supported lodgings host?

 As a supported lodgings host, you will provide a young person with practical skills such as cooking, cleaning and budgeting which they will need when they move into independence.

Like fostering, you would be expected to support the young person to access education or training. Some of the young people may be unaccompanied asylum seekers and you would also be expected to support them with any immigration or legal appointments.

Who are the young people that need help with supported lodgings?

Foster for Staffordshire needs supported lodging hosts to help young people between the ages of 16-19. Each young person that you would welcome into your home would have a social worker that understands their background. This helps to find a placement for them that best suits their individual needs.

We ensure that we’ve researched both yourself and the young person to make the best match possible. Therefore, we’ll spend time researching you and the accommodation that you can provide.

Why would a young person require supported lodgings?

There are many reasons that may require a young person to need help with supported lodgings:

        Have been fostered in the past, and need a home now they’re older

        Had a breakdown in the relationship with their family

        Instability at home so they need somewhere more stable

        Be a young asylum seeker

        Need a home and support for a few days

        Behavioural, drug or alcohol issues

Supported lodgings payments and support

The young person will have their own social worker and/or personal advisor.

As a host, you will receive access to financial support and training:

        On-going regular support from our supported lodgings coordinator.

        A placement allowance of £189 per week plus additional contributions that the young person pays. 

        Training opportunities. 

Read Alex's Story and find out what it’s really like to be a supported lodgings host.

Are supported lodgings payments taxable?

It depends on your total taxable income.

Your payment should be added to your taxable income for the year, so you will have to pay income tax if your total taxable income is greater than your tax allowances.

Can I become a supported lodgings provider?

Yes! There’s no ‘typical’ supported lodgings provider and all sorts of people become great supported lodging hosts.

Children of all ages and backgrounds need your help, and we accept people from all walks of life to become Foster for Staffordshire supported lodging hosts.

        You don’t need to have a big house but you do need to have a spare bedroom.

        You could be a parent, but you don’t have to be.

        There are no age barriers.

        You could be from any ethnic or religious background.

        You could be married, single, in a civil partnership or living in a settled relationship.

        You can be working or not working.

As long as you’re committed to helping a child to realise their potential, you could be what we are looking for and we would love to hear from you.

Some supported lodging providers are former foster carers that are looking to still help out with the fostering needs of Staffordshire, or have a preference for working with teenagers.

Other supported lodging providers do not have any previous experience with young people but feel the need to do their bit and help a young person to become independent.

Supported lodgings appeal to some people as it allows you to offer support to young people who need your help, just like fostering, whilst maintaining a more flexible lifestyle.

Ready to take the next step or looking for more information about supported lodgings?

Enquire online now or call 0800 169 2061 today and we’ll help answer your questions about fostering and supported lodgings.

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You can read our Supported Lodgings Statement of Purpose.