Half of Practising Christians Would Foster If Their Church Stepped Up

Home for Good and Safe Families UK Launch Foster Care Fortnight Campaign as Government Targets 10,000 New Households and Teenagers in Care Go Unsupported

Britain's foster care system is buckling, and Christian charities are stepping in. A new joint campaign from Home for Good and Safe Families UK, launched during Foster Care Fortnight 2026, has revealed that 51 percent of practising Christians are willing to become foster carers, compared with just 28 percent of the general population.

The British government is currently trying to expand the fostering network by 10,000 households. The Christian community could supply most of that gap if mobilised.

UK Foster Care Fortnight Highlights Christian Willingness to Step Forward

The joint report, Growing Together: Insights to Shape the Future of Fostering and Support, exposes a striking shortfall in the system. While 27 percent of children in care are aged 16 to 18, only 14 percent of current carers support that age group. 79 percent of carers cite the desire to "change a child's life" as their primary motivation. 84 percent say peer support groups make them feel understood.

Foster couple Tom and Christina: "We have stepped into stories containing pain, and witnessed God bring life and joy to His precious children." Care experienced adult Zara: "My carers stuck with me. They made such a difference to my life." Churches can support through friendship, meals, childcare, prayer, and community engagement, while pushing for better social worker relationships, therapeutic support, and respite care.

The Crusader's Opinion

The British state cannot solve its foster care crisis without the Christian Church. Half of practising Christians are already willing to foster. If churches mobilised their families, the 10,000 household gap could be closed in a single recruitment season. This is one of the highest leverage Christian ministries in modern Britain. Every parish should be running monthly fostering information events. Every pastor should know which families in his congregation are open to foster. The orphan and the vulnerable child were the very heart of biblical religion (James 1:27). Britain's children are waiting.

Take Action

• Donate: Home for Good or Safe Families UK
• Foster: Investigate fostering through your local authority or independent agency
• Pray: For the 10,000 vulnerable British children in need of a home
• Read: The Growing Together joint report on fostering in Britain
• Share: The 51 percent Christian willingness statistic with your church leaders