The National Foster Carer Qualifications
Become part of a new generation of qualified skilled foster carers providing high standards of care in nurturing, knowledgeable, trauma-informed homes.
Foster Carer Qualification enhances your skills to provide better outcomes for the children/young people in your care.
NFCQ Creating positive sustainable change for the lives of children in care
The National Foster Carer Qualification (NFCQ) are complete qualifications to promote positive sustainable change for children in care and recognise the skilled role of the foster carer.
Authors with decades of experience in fostering and related fields have written the course with the benefit of first-hand experience within the National Minimum Standards (NMS) guidelines.
You can learn while you are working, and fit around your current work or your fostering commitments giving you the ability to learn at your own pace with the flexibility to study when it is suitable to you.
NFCQ Foundation, Intermediate and Advanced Associate courses will enhance your skills level to empower you with the knowledge to help provide better outcomes for the children and young people in your care. It will cover all areas and aspects of fostering from trauma-informed care to safeguarding and how to set up as a self-employed foster carer.
Why Foster Carers choose the NFCQ pathway?
- Join a new cohort of foster carers leading the way in excellence
- Written by top experts, underpinned by regulations
- Build the skills and knowledge to create wide ranging lasting change to young lives
- Brings foster carers together in the NFCQ Reflective Groups, to share experiences, knowledge and practice
- NFCQ put children first, creating more stable, loving, skilled and permanent homes, raising standards and outcomes
- Flexible working hours to suit your needs
- Flexible learning from any location at a speed the student dictates
- NFCQ puts trauma informed relational care at the centre of foster carer’s work with children
Why Fostering Providers choose the NFCQ pathway.
- They have confidence in an education pathway underpinned by NMS & Regulations
- Their foster carers will lead the way in excellence
- Aid retention and recruitment
- Pioneering NFCQ Groups creating a myriad of unique benefits for foster carers, fostering families and providers
- Cost and efficiency savings - no more multiple training purchases or in-house development, one standardised education pathway, in one place, one price
- Written by top-qualified experts in fostering and related fields
- Create more stable, loving, skilled and permanent homes for children and young people.
The positive impact of the NFCQ on children in care
- Children in care will benefit from a new generation of qualified, attuned and trauma informed foster carers, who are confident and educated every aspect of their role.
- Improved stability with fewer placement breakdowns, increased permanence, less moves, improved mental health and positive futures.
- NFCQ qualified carers understand the impact and importance of culture, heritage, diversity and identity, contact, maintaining important relationships and honouring children and young people’s life stories.
- NFCQ foster carers have the child-focused standards and values required to secure and deliver positive welfare, health, educational and emotional outcomes, in safe loving family homes.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Please find links to our frequently asked questions by foster carers, local authorities and agencies.
NFCQ Qualifications
Foundation course in fostering
This course contains the child-focused standards and values required by foster carers to secure positive welfare, health, educational and safeguarding outcomes for children and to deliver trauma-informed care.
Intermediate course in fostering
Currently in development, this intermediate course will build on the foundation course and will develop your skills and knowledge further and provide a more in-depth study into complex areas such as trauma-informed care.
Advanced course in fostering
The advanced course in fostering will build on the intermediate course and foundation course skills. This course will explore the social impact and implications of foster care, the wider fostering sector, social inclusion and equality.