The Compass Community
Your fostering agency. A wider community behind it.
When you transfer to Compass, your approval and day-to-day support sit with Compass Fostering.
You’ll have access to an attentive local fostering team, dedicated supervising social worker, comprehensive training and wrap-around support.
Compass Community adds something else, too: a shared sense of purpose across children’s lives, with specialist expertise your fostering team can draw on when needed.
Because children don’t go through life in neat, isolated categories — and neither should we.
Home affects school. School affects confidence.
Confidence affects emotional wellbeing. Emotional wellbeing shapes how children experience family, relationships and the world around them.
Confidence affects emotional wellbeing. Emotional wellbeing shapes how children experience family, relationships and the world around them.
You foster with Compass Fostering. You become a Compass Community Life Changer.
Compass Fostering
A safe place to belong.
Compass Schools
A place to grow, learn and achieve.
Compass Children’s Homes
A home when fostering isn’t an option.
Compass Family Assessment
A path forward for families in need of support.
Therapeutic expertise
Additional therapeutic expertise when it can help.
In some cases, children need specialist understanding of trauma, relationships, behaviour and emotional wellbeing.
Compass Fostering can draw on relevant therapeutic support from across our community.
Compass foster parent story: community in action
Rosie and James
“We have an incredible hub of local foster parents that provide support for one another and create opportunities for our children to make friends together. Compass Fostering is a great therapeutic agency that thrives by having a child centred approach and making sure all their fostering families are cared for.”
Will things be different?
Changing agency should give you something better.
Support you can actually reach
Available 24/7, 365 days a year.
A local team that knows you for a change
A supervising social worker who knows you, your family and the children you care for.
Training that builds on your actual experience
Build on the skills you already have.
More expertise at hand
A wealth of therapeutic knowledge at your disposal.
Allowances that reward your hard work
Up to £800 per child, per week.*
A fostering community you can really be part of
Connect with people who get it — and can lift you up.
Your allowance will depend on your circumstances and the care you provide. Talk to us and we’ll explain what could apply to you before you make any decisions.
New Transfer Reward
Moving to Compass? Get Rewarded
If you’re an approved foster parent thinking about transferring your registration to us, we want your move to be as smooth and rewarding as possible.
As part of our commitment to foster parents who choose to transfer to Compass, we offer a fast-track assessment, with regular check-ins from your local management team and a transparent review of your financial package. During this review, we’ll talk you through any incentives or rewards you might be entitled to.
Every foster parent’s situation is unique, so the support and incentives available to you will vary based on personal circumstances and experience.
Get in touch with our team today for a friendly, no-obligation talk. We’ll walk you through exactly what’s involved, including any reward figures that could apply to you, and help you understand what a move to Compass might look like in practice.
Come and meet us
Don’t just take our word for it.
Changing fostering agency is a personal decision. Come and meet the people who would actually be there for you.
Ask them what truly matters:
- Who will my supervising social worker be?
- What happens out of hours?
- What training is available to experienced foster parents?
- When and how are allowances paid?
- What kind of support is available through Compass?
- What exactly is the local community like?
Meet your local team before you decide.
Transfer carer story: what moving to Compass was like
Christopher
“We were impressed with the empathetic, sensitive assessor who made time to get to know our birth child and hear their voice during our transfer. Our induction and welcome to Compass has made us feel very respected and supported. It really provides us with peace of mind for when a child is placed. We have found communication (whether it be support groups, carer ambassadors, social workers or operational managers) excellent and we know we can trust these professionals to help us therapeutically meet the needs of any child placed in our care.”
The transfer process
We’ll make the process clear from the start.
1
2
Compare Compass
Take the time to decide if we’re right for you.
3
Notify your provider
Tell your current provider you intend to transfer.
4
If a child lives with you
Attend your transfer meeting
If a child lives with you, their local authority will usually arrange a transfer meeting. Together, we’ll consider their wishes, stability, relationships, care plan and the practical timing of your transfer.
You won’t navigate it alone.
5
Complete your Compass assessment
You’re already one step ahead
You’ll complete a Compass transfer assessment and the required safeguarding checks — but you’re not starting again from scratch. Your fostering experience, training and strengths all count.
6
Get your Compass approval
Your assessment goes to panel.
Panel makes its recommendation before the Compass Agency Decision Maker makes the final decision.
7
Resign formally
Only after Compass confirms your approval.
Once your Compass approval is confirmed, we’ll explain when to resign from your current provider. A 28-day notice period will usually follow.
8
Join Compass
Welcome to Compass Fostering — and the wider community of Compass Life Changers.
Your transfer is complete. Your Compass Fostering team becomes your day-to-day support.
Your questions answered
Frequently asked questions about transferring
Will my current agency know I’ve spoken to Compass?
An initial conversation with Compass does not start the formal transfer process. If you proceed, there will be a point when your current provider — and, where relevant, the responsible local authority — must be informed. We’ll explain when.
What happens to my approval while I transfer?
Your existing fostering approval doesn’t simply move across to Compass.
While we complete your transfer assessment, you remain with your current provider. We won’t ask you to formally resign until Compass has confirmed your approval and we’ve explained what happens next.
Can I transfer from my local authority?
Yes. If you foster for a local authority, you can explore transferring to Compass Fostering.
What happens if I currently have a child in placement?
If a child lives with you, their needs come first.
Their local authority will usually arrange a transfer meeting so everyone can consider their wishes, stability, relationships, care plan and the timing of any transfer. We’ll explain the process and support you through those conversations.
What if I don’t currently have a child in placement?
The process is usually simpler because there is normally no child-specific transfer meeting.
You’ll still need to notify your current provider and complete the Compass assessment and approval process.
The Compass Transfer Promise
Know what you’re moving to before deciding to leave.
We don’t want you to take a leap of faith.
Before transferring to Compass, you should be clear on who’ll be supporting you, what you can expect and how your move will actually work in practice.
Someone to call, whenever you need us.
A dedicated local number, available throughout the year.
Clarity on support and allowances.
We’ll explain the fostering allowance likely to apply to you, how and when it will be paid, and the level of support you can expect from Compass.
Meet the people who’ll be cheering you on.
Talk to the local Compass team who will support you before deciding to transfer.
Know where you stand.
We’ll keep you updated on your transfer, where things stand and what happens next.
Support through the important conversations.
If a transfer meeting is required, we’ll explain the process and be right by your side.
No pressure to resign.
We’ll explain when formal resignation should happen and won’t ask you to do it until the time is right.
Compass foster parent story: support you can actually reach
Alison
“The social worker I’ve had until recently has been absolutely amazing. I’d have a visit at least once a month, always at the end of the phone. If my SSW was off, I’d just have to ring the office and there’d be somebody there to help me. They’d get back to me within probably less than an hour.”
Ready to transfer to Compass Fostering?
Come and see what moving to Compass could look like for you.
Tell us where you foster, the care you provide and what you want to be different.
We’ll show you what you could be paid, who would support you and how the transfer would work — before you decide.
No pressure to move. Call 0800 254 5240 for a friendly talk with our transfer team — just the information you need to make a proper comparison.