Contact: Gill Horrobin 01962 847263 [email protected]

1 Summary

1.1 National Minimum Standards for Fostering Services require that the registered provider (in the case of a local authority, the elected Members) formally approves the statement of purpose of the fostering service, and reviews, updates and modifies it where necessary, at least annually.

1.2 The aim of this report therefore, is to present the updated Statement of Purpose of Hampshire's Fostering Services (see Appendix 1) for approval by the Executive Member, highlighting the key parts of the document that have been revised since it was last presented in 2006.

1.3 Provision of fostering services in Hampshire supports the Corporate Priorities and enables and encourages all children and young people who are looked after by Hampshire Children's Services to stay safe, be healthy, enjoy and achieve, provide a positive contribution, and achieve economic wellbeing, in line with the Every Child Matters five outcomes (Children Act 2004).

2 Recommendation

That the Executive Member for Children & Families approves the updated Statement of Purpose of the Fostering Service

3 Background

3.1 The Fostering Services Regulations (2002) state that `The fostering service provider (in this instance, Hampshire Children's Services Department) shall compile, in relation to the fostering service, a written statement, referred to as The Statement of Purpose, which shall consist of:

i) A statement of the aims and objectives of the fostering service; and

ii) A statement as to the services and facilities to be provided by the fostering service.

3.2 The fostering provider is responsible for providing a copy of the Statement of Purpose to Ofsted (previously the Commission for Social Care Inspection), the body which inspects the fostering services, and the following key stakeholders:

i) Any person working for the purposes of the fostering service;

ii) Any foster parent or prospective foster parent of the fostering service;

iii) Any child placed with a foster parent by the fostering service; and

iv) The parent of any such child.

3.3 A children's version of the Statement of Purpose is also available in two age appropriate booklets provided to all the children who are looked after.

3.4 The proposals in this report are expected to support the County Council's corporate priorities as follows:

"Making Hampshire safer and more secure for all" - by enabling as many of Hampshire's children as possible, who are looked after, to remain in their local communities and to fully participate in and contribute to the life of those communities.

"Maximising well-being" - by ensuring that Hampshire's children who are looked after are provided with good quality family based care placements that meet their needs and enable them to move successfully through their transition to independence.

"Enhancing our quality of place" - through provision of high quality services that target those children who are the most vulnerable.

3.5 Provision of fostering services, as described within the Statement of Purpose, supports all five outcomes of the Children Act by ensuring every child or young person who is looked after in Hampshire is securely attached to a carer who has the skills to meet their needs and encourage each child to reach their full potential.

4 Revisions to the Statement of Purpose

4.1 The fostering service is now operationally led by a County Services Manager who also manages other County services. The Strategic Service Manager's post for Family Placement has changed and has been replaced by a strategic post for children living away from home. Both these changes formed part of the restructuring of Children's Services.

4.2 There has been an increase in the number of foster carers (from 490 to 510) since the publication of the last Statement of Purpose in 2006 (excluding family link carers). Of the current population of 510 carers, 152 are family and friend's carers who are registered to care for specific children. In addition, there are currently 126 family link carers, which is a slight increase of 6 over the last year.

4.3 There has been a reduction in the number of children placed with Hampshire's foster carers (from 590 to 544) and this is commensurate with the decrease in the overall children in care population in Hampshire.

4.4 In January 2008 all enquiries from members of the public, who may be interested in becoming a foster carer, will be received by Hantsdirect (Hampshire County Council's Contact Centre). Calls will be answered by specially trained staff who will be able to respond quickly and efficiently. Staff training is currently taking place (provided by the recruitment team) and a specialist advisor, from the recruitment team, will be available at the Contact Centre for the first 3 months after the transfer of this service takes place. The current published telephone number will remain the same for the foreseeable future.

5 Consultation

5.1 The fostering service in Hampshire prides itself on the level of consultation that takes place on an ongoing basis with key stakeholders. Liaison with the Hampshire Fostering Network (HFN) for example, referred to in the Statement of Purpose, is regular and ongoing to ensure that any developments take foster carer's views into account. General comments and compliments are always welcome from foster carers and are fed back through household reviews of carers, via Family Placement Social Workers, through children's social workers or children themselves. All feedback assists the department in building on good practice and developing the service.

6 Legal implications

6.1 None.

7 Financial implications

6.1 None.

8 Personnel implications

7.1 None.

9 Impact assessment

9.1 A race and equality impact assessment has been considered in the development of this report and no adverse impact has been identified.

10 Crime prevention issues

None.

11 Views of the Local County Councillor

11.1 Not applicable. This report refers to a service which is Countywide and there are no specific issues relating to any one Councillor's Electoral Division.

12 Conclusion

12.1 Ongoing work is taking place to develop Hampshire's fostering services and the Statement of Purpose will be revised at appropriate times in order to reflect these developments.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background documents

The following documents discuss facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and have been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB: the list excludes

1. Published works

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

3. None

Appendix 1

Hampshire Fostering Service Statement of Purpose

Aims and Objectives and Principles of Care

Hampshire County Council Children's Services Department has a family placement service which covers the whole of Hampshire. The purpose of the family placement service is to provide a range of good quality family based care for children of all ages in Hampshire, who are unable to stay in their own families, either within our own resources or through independent fostering agencies in the Hampshire area.

Families are provided for children and young people who need to be cared for, for short or long periods of time, or for a planned series of short breaks. Where possible a child will be "matched" with a family who is from the same cultural or religious background, and who has the skills and training to care for the child, including children who have specific health, dietary, educational, physical or emotional needs.

Where this is not possible training, advice, equipment, and access to specialist help is arranged to support foster carers and children.

Structure of the Service

The service is operationally led by a County Services Manager for Fostering. Under this role, there is a county wide recruitment team and 3 district teams. The fostering recruitment team receives information about specific children requiring family placements, and general information about children's needs, in order to achieve a strategic approach to recruitment.

The three area teams are located in offices across Hampshire. Each team covers the following geographical areas:

North & East Area - Basingstoke, Alton, Aldershot and Petersfield

South East Area - Fareham, Gosport and Havant

Western Area - New Forest, Eastleigh, Romsey, Andover and Winchester

These teams receive information about children and young people who need to live in a family setting, on a short or long term basis or about children who need a family to offer regular short stays to a child with a disability, in order to support that child and its family. This is the family link scheme which is partly paid for by the Primary Care Trust in Hampshire.

Family and Friends Carers

The district family placement teams will work with the child's social worker, in the first instance, to see if anyone who is in the child's extended family or kinship network could, with support and financial assistance, look after that child. Such a person, if suitable, could care for the child as an approved foster carer.

Only when that is not possible, will the family placement social worker look for suitable placement with an already approved foster carer, or ask the recruitment team to try to recruit a foster carer specifically for that child. The foster carer may be a Hampshire foster carer, or may foster for an Independent Fostering Provider (IFP).

Recruitment of Foster carers and the Fostering panel

The Fostering service recruits and assesses foster carers, offers training and advice, and operates the fostering panels, of which there are six in Hampshire. These each meet monthly and they recommend on the approval of foster carers, and oversee regular reviews of foster carers, to ensure a high quality of care. They also approve the quality of plans made for children who need permanent care away from home. Fostering panel membership is strictly regulated.

From January 2008, any enquiries from the public about fostering, including enquiries from people who may be interested in becoming a foster carer, will be received by staff at Hantsdirect (a Customer Contact Centre). All calls will be answered by specially trained staff who will be able to respond quickly and efficiently. Staff training is currently taking place (provided by the recruitment team) and a specialist advisor, from the recruitment team, will be available at the Contact Centre for the first 3 months after the transfer of this service takes place. The published number (0845 6011895) will remain the same until the end of 2009, after which callers will be advised of the new number via an answering machine.

Supervision and Support

Foster carers, on approval, receive regular supervision and support, during the working week from the family placement social workers, social services assistants and foster care support workers. There is also a Service Level Agreement with an external organisation to provide independent support for carers in the event of an allegation/complaint made against them (see Comments and Complaints).

Out of office hours support and guidance is available through foster care support workers and Hampshire Out-of-Hours Service.

Hampshire Fostering Network

Hampshire foster carers have a local network of support groups represented on a central committee, which receives a small grant to enable it to support foster carers in consultative roles or to provide representation on working groups around the County. The Committee meets monthly with managers and family placement staff, and the chair and deputy have quarterly meetings with the Deputy Director (Children and Families), Head of County Services, and Family Placement Service Manager to ensure that issues of mutual interest and importance are addressed. The Fostering Network is also integral to the recruitment of new foster carers.

Information and Training

Access to specialist information is available to all Hampshire foster carers through the Hampshire Social Services library and a programme of specific training is also available, enabling foster carers to progress through several "skill levels". Foster carers are also supported in accessing the NVQ3 in childcare. A specific trainer ensures that foster carers receive the training they require. With the implementation of the Children's Workforce Development Standards (CWDC), whereby increased requirements for carers training are being implemented, this role has become even more crucial.

A foster carers' website has been developed so that foster carers can access information more easily. There is also a website for looked after children, which links to the foster carers website.

The Fostering Handbook, which has been updated (an ongoing process in order to reflect service developments), provides a comprehensive guide for all foster carers in the county, including providing access to all relevant procedures and guidance.

Staffing

1 Head of County Services

2 service managers (one operational/one strategic - Children Living Away from Home)

4 team managers (3 of whom are full time)

3 senior practitioners

36 qualified social workers (22 of whom are full time)

1 training officer

1 marketing co-ordinator

1 commissioning officer/panel adviser (at Team Manager Level)

10 social services assistants (9 of whom are full time)

10 family link co-ordinators (3 of whom are full time)

15 foster care support workers (all of whom are part time)

Administrative support staff

Please see staffing chart attached.

Foster carers

There are 510 foster carers registered with Hampshire Fostering Service (of whom 152 are family and friends carers), and around 126 family link foster carers. About 10% of foster carers are not fostering at any one time, due to personal or family circumstances. This reflects the national position.

There are 544 children placed with Hampshire fosters carers (as at September 2007), which represents a reduction of 46 from just over a year ago. Of theses 544, 172 children are placed with Family and Friends carers. There are another 138 children who are placed with independent fostering providers, and in the region of 120 children receiving regular respite care with the Family Link service.

Comments and Complaints

All foster carers are aware of the Hampshire County Council Comments and Complaints procedure should they need to use it. If foster carers wish to complain or comment to an outside body they are invited to contact Ofsted on 023 8082 1300.

All children who are living in Hampshire foster care placements are provided with information about how to comment or complain about any aspect of their care or supervision.

In the last year, 39 complaints were made against foster carers which were all investigated. Hampshire have an Independent Support Service for Foster carers who are the subject of a complaint or allegation, in recognition of the fact that such an experience can be very stressful for the whole family. The number of complaints has risen slightly in the last year, and foster carers have increasingly used the complaints support service

Allowances and Fees

All foster carers and family link carers receive an allowance to meet the expense of caring for a child which is based on national minimum rates. These rates are reviewed annually, and published in order that all foster carers are notified.

A growing number of foster carers and family link carers also receive a fee in recognition of their skills, the aim being to develop the workforce in line with government strategies.

Hampshire Fostering Service - Who is Who?

Head of County Services - Vanessa Courtney