As part of our #CostOfFostering campaign, The Fostering Network is campaigning for all foster carers to be exempt from paying council tax in the England.
Not only will this provide foster carers with financial relief, it would also emphasise the Government's commitment to valuing foster carers. They are the backbone of our care system and provide stable, loving homes for some of the UK’s most vulnerable children and young people, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Currently only a quarter of local authorities in England offer some form of council tax exemption, and 16% a full exemption. However, we would like to see all foster carers benefit equally from a national council tax exemption.
We are currently working on expanding the campaign UK wide.
Campaign so far in England
In November 2025, we launched the next stage of our #CostOfFostering campaign, calling for foster carers across England to be exempt from paying council tax.
In July 2025, the UK Government released a consultation which set out the Government’s proposals to review council tax disregards or exemptions. We responded to the consultation asking for all foster carers in England to be exempt.
In the Government’s response to the consultation, it highlighted the ask for foster carers to be exempt however, it stated that individual councils have the power to provide discounts or disregards to certain households where they consider this appropriate. Therefore, unfortunately they will not be providing a national exemption.
However, in the Governments draft guidance for fostering services, under Chapter 3, Supporting Fostering Families, it states that:
“Fostering services should review the financial support they offer annually, including allowances, expenses, wider incentives (such as council tax discounts or exemptions) and the fees they pay to foster carers.”
We are pleased to see council tax discounts and exemptions explicitly referenced within the guidance, marking a significant success for the campaign so far.
We will keep pushing and working with local authorities to lead the way.
Resources for England
Council tax exemption briefing
We have developed a briefing highlighting the benefits of council tax exemptions on the recruitment and retention of foster carers, along with evidence of the positive impact local authorities are seeing from implementing it.