- Register with a GP and dentist. Make sure the child is signed up for routine health care and keep appointments for health assessments – they’re essential for planning care.
- Encourage healthy habits. Balanced meals, exercise and good sleep routines make a big difference.
- Look after emotional wellbeing. Offer reassurance, listen without judgment and help them express feelings through conversation, play, or creative activities. Encourage open communication and build trust slowly.
- Celebrate identity and culture. Help the child feel secure and valued by recognising and celebrating their background.
- Work as part of a team. Share updates with social workers, teachers, and health professionals so everyone can support the child together. Ask for help when you need it – supporting a child’s health and wellbeing is always a team effort.
Supporting health & wellbeing
Children who come into care often face big challenges. They may have experienced neglect, trauma, or frequent moves, and their health needs – physical and emotional – might not have been fully met before. As a foster carer, you play a vital role in helping them feel safe, healthy and valued.
Why health and wellbeing matters
Every child deserves the same chance to grow up healthy and happy. For children in care, this means:
- Regular health checks and dental care.
- Support for emotional wellbeing and mental health.
- A safe, nurturing home where they feel cared for and understood.
- A dedicated health plan that sets out how their individual health needs will be supported while they are in care.
Your Role as a Foster Carer
Support for you
You’re not alone. Foster carers get:
- Guidance from supervising social workers.
- Access to health professionals and mental health services.
- Training on trauma, emotional wellbeing, and cultural awareness.
- Support groups and helplines for advice and reassurance.
- Extra help is available if the child has complex health needs, such as a disability or is an unaccompanied asylum seeker.
To find out about how your Council supports foster carers, click the logos below
We’re the choice for people from all backgrounds—single, coupled up, LGBTQ+, renting, or owning—who want to open their hearts and homes to local children and become part of a loved local community.
Fill out this short form and one of our team will reach out for an open and honest chat. Or feel free to call us on 020 8496 3437 or email hello@localcommunityfostering.co.uk.
You’re more ready than you think.