1. Introduction
This Statement has been produced in accordance with the Fostering Services Regulations 2011 and is referred to as the ‘Statement of Purpose'.
The aims and objectives of the Fostering Service, and the services and facilities provided by the Fostering Service, are outlined in this Statement of Purpose.
2. Management structure
Overall management of the service is by the Service Manager, Children Looked After. Day to day management is by the Fostering Team Manager. The service structure is attached as Appendix 1 to this Statement.
3. Services provided
The fostering service provides a range of foster care to children and young people who are looked after by Calderdale Council. The following types of placements are offered:
- Short term care - foster carers who care for children until the child(ren)s permanence plan is executed.
- Long term care - foster carers who care for children and young people through their childhood and into adulthood.
- Staying Put- foster carers who have continued to care for young people beyond their 18th birthday.
- Connected care - care by people in the child/young person's network (family and friends).
- Support care - short breaks for children in the care of the local authority, in line with their Care Plan or to support placement stability.
- Support care for children with disabilities - short breaks for disabled children to enable them to remain with their families - in development
4. National legislative and policy framework
- The Children Act 1989
- Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011
- Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2013
- Fostering Services : National Minimum Standards (2011)
- Childrens Act Guidance and Regulations Volume 4 (Fostering Services 2011)
- Care Planning, Placement and Case Review Regulations 2010
- Care Planning and Fostering Regulations (amendments) 2015
- The Disability and Equality Act 2010
- Human Rights Act 1998
- The Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000
- Training, Support and Development Standards for Foster Carers (TSD)
5. Aims and objectives
The service aims to provide a high quality and responsive foster care service to achieve the best possible outcomes for children and young people who are looked after by Calderdale Council.
Service objectives
To ensure that:
- Children are securely attached to carers capable of providing safe and effective care.
- Children are protected from emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect.
- Children receive the education, health and social care they require.
- The services provided are flexible, responsible and supportive of carers.
- Foster carers receive the appropriate training and support to deliver high quality foster care.
6. Principles and standard of care
The fostering service
- Provides family placements with foster carers for all children looked after who require placement.
- Provides a choice of placement for all children looked after.
- Respects the ethnic origin, cultural background, religion and language of children and foster carers.
- Works in partnership with all those involved in the care of children looked after (including children, their families and foster carers).
- Recognises that foster carers provide a professional service.
Foster service team
All Managers and Supervising Social Workers are professionally qualified with a Diploma in Social Work or equivalent. Managers and Fostering Social Workers have a range of experience of childcare settings and are experienced in the placement of children with foster carers and support to foster carers.
- Fostering Team Manager
- 5 full time equivalent Practice Managers
- 12 Full time equivalent Fostering Social Workers
- 1 full time Placement Coordinator
- 1 full time Training Coordinator
- 2 full time business support coordinators
7. Numbers of foster carers and children placed
Calderdale Council currently looks after approximately 300 to 315 children, including asylum seeking children.
As of March 2018, 30 children were being looked after by Connected Carers, 73 children were placed long term with Calderdale Foster Carers and 44 were placed short term with Calderdale Foster Carers.
The service in total has 119 mainstream households offering 219 places as of 31st March 2018.
There were 17 Staying Put arrangements as of the 31st March 2018.
8. Recruitment procedures and processes
The recruitment process has undergone a review within 2017-2018.
Publicity and promotion of foster care is ongoing throughout the year and is detailed in a Recruitment Strategy Plan.
Calderdale Fostering Service aims to recruit and approve sufficient foster carers to meet the range of needs presented by children of different racial, cultural and religious heritages, different ages and children with disabilities and to offer a choice of placement.
It will pro-actively seek foster carers from a range of racial, cultural, religious and linguistic backgrounds. It will not discriminate on grounds of race, colour, ethnic
origin, religion, sexuality or age but will make an assessment of each individual or family based on their ability to meet the needs of children looked after.
While the Fostering Service will not preclude people from fostering on grounds of health or disability, they have a duty to satisfy themselves that foster carers with whom a child is to be placed have a reasonable expectation of continuing good health and will consider:
Calderdale Fostering Service will not preclude people from becoming foster carers on grounds that they smoke but it will take into account the adverse effects of passive smoking when considering the age and type of children who may be placed with them, especially babies and very young children, or children who have heart or chest complaints or a history of asthma.
In accordance with current BAAF Guidelines, the Fostering Service will not approve as foster carers for children under the age of 5 any household in which a smoker resides.
Where a placement is with a Connected Person Carer, the Council may agree to waive this part of the procedure in the interests of the child/children.
An enquirer may contact Calderdale Fostering Service to express interest in fostering, either by email to fostering@calderdale.gov.uk or by phone 01422 266020 to speak to the recruitment team.
If the enquirer wishes to proceed and there are no immediate contraindications to continue with the enquiry, they will be offered an initial visit within 5 working days of enquiry.
Prospective mainstream foster carers must attend the Skills to Foster course, prior to approval. Full statutory checks are undertaken on all applicants and DBS checks on any other members of the household over the age of 18.
Applicants are allocated a Social Worker who undertakes their assessment which is undertaken in accordance with Fostering Service Regulations.
All applicants are considered by the Fostering Panels, who make recommendations to the Agency Decision Maker on the terms of their approval.
The Agency Decision Maker is the Service Manager for Children Looked After or in that person's absence, the Head of Service.
Links between age and health and the continuing good health of the carers for the duration of a placement;
Health conditions or disabilities which may limit foster carers in providing children with a range of beneficial experiences and opportunities or place children at risk through an inability to protect the child from common place hazards.
Connected carers - recruitment procedures and processes
Connected carers are assessed and supported by a connected carers systemic pod, which also assesses and supports Special Guardians.
An assessment of the child's needs, including the need for the child to be looked after must be completed before any decision is made to place a child under Regulation 24 and therefore begin the assessment of a Connected Person. The decision to look after the child must be made by a Nominated Officer or the Head of Children's Social Care.
The assessment of the carers differs only slightly from that of mainstream foster carer applicants. The main differences are the timescales involved and the need for the placing social worker to begin the assessment immediately. Before any placement with a Connected Person who is not already approved as a foster carer is made, the approval of the Nominated Officer is required.
Any such approval can only be given for 16 weeks from the date of the placement. After that period of time, further assessment must be carried out and further approval sought.
These procedures do not apply where a child (under 16 yrs) goes to live with a relative or friend and this is a private arrangement between the parent/person with Parental Responsibility and carer.
If this placement continues for 28 days or more, the child may come within the definition of a Privately Fostered child, in which case the local authority's duties in relation to the placement are set out in the Private Fostering Procedure.
9. Reviews of foster carers
All foster carers are reviewed annually or following a serious allegation or concern. Continued registration is considered by the Fostering Panel at the first review after approval, or if a review is convened due to concerns about carers practice. The review is chaired by an Independent Reviewing Officer.
Reviews include reports from Children's Social Workers, comments from placed children or young people, comments from the carer's own children (where applicable), self-assessment by carers and a report from the Fostering Social Worker. A summary report is prepared after the review meeting has been completed. Review documentation is submitted to the Fostering Panel or if a routine annual review following first review, directly to the Agency Decision Maker.
The Panel make recommendations to the Agency Decision Maker as to the terms of any continued approval or variation to the terms of approval.
10. Training and support
Calderdale's payment scheme is based on a payment for skills model. The payment scheme specifies the mandatory training carers must undertake to progress through the skills level, including regular refreshers to maintain their skills level.
The training programme is published on a 6 monthly basis and training is identified and coordinated by the training coordinator. Training opportunities range from formal training, bite size, e-learning, individual coaching and consultation with Calderdale Therapeutic Services.
There are a range of informal support and training opportunities, including a Foster Care Practice Forum, buddying and an active Foster Care Association. The foster carer's personal development plan is a live document that is regularly updated either through supervision and or the review process.
Foster carers are supervised and supported by a Social Worker from the Fostering Team, and also receive support from the child's Social Worker. Foster carers may access the Virtual School for advice and support to ensure that children's educational achievements are maximised.
Out of hours support is offered by the emergency duty team and Calderdale Foster Care Association.
11. Complaints
The service hopes that foster carers can resolve any issues with either their supervising social worker or their manager. If not, the complaints and compliments procedure already in force within Calderdale Council is followed by the fostering services.
See also: Ofsted complaints procedure.