Fostering Service Statement of Purpose

Recruitment, assessment and approval

The responsibility for recruiting and preparing mainstream foster carers is shared by the regional recruitment hub, Foster with North East, and the Stockton Fostering Service. The Fostering Service has sole responsibility for the recruitment and preparation of supported lodgings hosts and the assessments of mainstream and kinship foster carers. This work is primarily undertaken within the Family Placement Recruitment and Assessment Team.

We aim to place children within the Borough and within their own communities, unless it is determined this is not in the best interests of the child or young person.

We endeavour to find foster families for children who best reflect and manage the child's assessed needs in terms of emotional, ethnic, racial, cultural, linguistic and religious needs, as well as any needs relating to disability, gender or sexuality.

We are committed to ensuring that children and young people are securely attached to carers capable of providing them with safe and effective care for the duration of their childhood, and as far as is consistent with their welfare, to promote the upbringing of children and young people within their own families or networks.

In situations where foster families are not available to meet all the needs of the child or young person, support and information is made available to the carers to help them develop their skills and knowledge to meet the needs of the children.

Recruitment strategy

Foster with North East (FwNE) is the regional recruitment hub for all 12 Local Authorities in the North East of England. They work collaboratively with Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council to lead larger scaled activities in the region, including digital, outdoor, radio and TV campaigns. This is supported by the Family Placement Marketing and Recruitment Officer with an ongoing programme of targeted campaigns for the residents of our Borough to recruit specifically for Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council. This is detailed in the marketing plan and activity planner. The call to action on all marketing materials directs to the recruitment hub, who are the first point of contact for all new fostering enquiries.

Throughout our recruitment strategy we aim to use, wherever possible, the services of existing experienced foster carers and supported lodgings providers as ambassadors by, for example, attending information sessions. The voice of birth children of foster carers and children in our care will be integrated within our recruitment activity, for example using testimonials and social media.

Recruitment and assessment journey

The process of becoming an approved foster carer is governed by legislation and practice guidance and has three clear parts. We aim for the recruitment of new foster carers to follow the most efficient path, and the following sets out the recruitment and assessment pathway. The fostering service aims to complete stages 1 and 2 of the assessment process concurrently where possible, however, in some circumstances a decision in respect of progressing to Stage 2 will not be made until all Stage 1 checks have been received and reviewed. Stockton aims to complete assessments of prospective foster carers within 24 weeks.

Assessment of mainstream foster carers

Preliminary stage - seeking information

The expression of interest is completed by the FwNE hub and an initial assessment visit booked within one week of receipt.

The expression of interest is shared with the Assessment Team Manager and Marketing and Recruitment Officer and a social worker from the Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council recruitment and assessment team is allocated to jointly complete the initial assessment. The Family Placement Team recognise the importance of this early relationship building with the enquirer and opportunity to provide detailed information about Stockton's fostering offer.   

A decision regarding acceptance of an application from the enquirer will be made within 2 working days of the visit by the Recruitment and Assessment Team Manager and will be communicated to Fostering with North East, who will send all relevant application documentation to the applicant.

Once Registration of Interest forms are received back from the prospective carers and accepted, stage 1 checks will be progressed.

Stage 1 process

Following receipt of the applicant's Registration of Interest Form (RIF) confirmation of acceptance will be confirmed within 5 working days.

The RIF includes consent for statutory checks for all relevant people in the household. References are taken up with all relevant agencies as well as personal referees and current

employer. In most circumstances contact will be made with previous partners who have shared a family relationship, adult children and previous employers where the applicant has worked with children or vulnerable adults. An enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service application (DBS) will be made for all household members over the age of 18 years. Medical examinations are carried out by the applicant's GP using the CoramBAAF Medical Form and returned to Stockton's Medical Adviser, for comments and a recommendation.

Applicants will be invited to attend a two-day Fostering Preparation Training Course, which is facilitated by Foster with North East. And a one-day 'Welcome to Stockton' information session. Applicants are encouraged to attend preparation groups; however, it is acknowledged that there may be extenuating circumstances for some applicants, therefore, this will be considered as part of the overall preparation process. Evaluation and feedback is completed by the applicants and training facilitators, which contributes to the overall assessment process.

Stage 2 process

Stage 2 of the suitability to foster assessment is a complex and robust assessment, which focusses on the prospective foster carers' capacity to safeguard and meet the needs of any child placed in their care. The assessment consists of a minimum of six to eight sessions, including individual sessions for each applicant. The topics covered include personal background, history, experiences, parenting experiences, birth children's views, the home environment, health and safety (including pet safety) and the applicant's reflection and understanding of material presented from group sessions. In addition, interviews will be completed with two personal referees as well as former partners and adult children of the applicants.

When all the necessary material is available, the assessment report is completed by the social worker, using contributions from the applicants themselves at appropriate points. The report is quality assured by the Family Placement Registered Manager and is presented to the Fostering Panel, which normally meets every two weeks. Applicants are invited and encouraged to attend the Panel Meeting where the assessment is discussed. The Panel considers the report and makes a recommendation regarding the application. Panel can recommend that applicants are approved, not approved or defer for further information. The recommendation is then approved (or not) by the Agency Decision Maker (Head of Service Children in our Care and Care Leavers). Applicants informed verbally of the decision within 2 working days and notified in writing within 5 days.

If applicants are recommended as not suitable to foster, they then have 28 days from the qualifying determination made by the Agency Decision Maker to accept the qualifying determination, make representation to the fostering service or to apply to have their suitability to foster considered by the Independent Review Mechanism.

Assessment of kinship (connected) foster carers

Definition of a 'Connected Person'

• a relative of the child, for example grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt, whether full blood or half-blood or by marriage or civil partnership or a step-parent, as defined in section 105 of the 1989 Children Act
• a friend of the child
• a person connected with the child who may be someone who knows the child in a more professional capacity such as a child minder, a teacher of a youth worker, who would not fit the term relative or friend but who may be an appropriate person with whom to place a child because of the pre-existing connection

Where consideration is being given for a child to be placed in foster care with a connected carer, the child's social worker will undertake a Viability Assessment which should consider both the current and the anticipated future needs of the child and how viable it is for the proposed connected person, with the provision of appropriate support, to provide for this child's needs. Where possible, a social worker from the Family Placement Recruitment and Assessment team will support in completion of the assessment to ensure that the connected person is provided with detailed information about the application, assessment and post approval processes and expectations.

Where a Viability Assessment recommends that a full fostering assessment should be completed, the child's social worker will make a referral to the Family Placement Recruitment and Assessment Team, who are responsible for completing the suitability to foster assessment. The assessment stages will be completed concurrently in line with the process outline above.

In some instances, it is necessary to place children with a connected person in an emergency; in these circumstances a brief assessment will be completed by the child's social worker and agreement sought to place the child under Regulation 24 of the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010. Where agreed, the connected carer will be given temporary approval as a foster carer for a period of 16 weeks (which can, in particular circumstances be extended for a further 8 weeks). It is the responsibility of the Recruitment and Assessment Team to complete the full suitability to foster assessment and present it to Fostering Panel and Agency Decision Maker within this period of temporary approval.

Assessment of supporting lodgings providers

Supported Lodgings are a form of temporary supported accommodation for young people who are not ready to live independently for a variety of reasons. The young people requiring supported accommodation will be care experienced young people and young people aged from 16 years (and have left school), to 21 years who are either Looked After and or vulnerable young people, who are unable to live in their home environment.

Supported Lodgings Recruitment strategy

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council aims to recruit and maintain a sufficient number and range of supported lodgings hosts, to ensure appropriate placement choice for each young person who needs family based supported accommodation. This includes proactive marketing and recruitment activity, succession planning and retention of the supported lodgings host workforce. In some circumstances a young person may be placed with a connected person who has been assessed and approved as able to offer supported lodgings to that specific young person only.

As well as events in the community and publicity via the media (combined with fostering marketing activity) quarterly information sessions will be held with a specific focus on supported lodgings. This will be facilitated by the Marketing and Recruitment Officer, a social worker from the Recruitment and Assessment Team and, where possible, an approved Supported Lodgings host. The focus of the session will be to provide enquirers with information about the assessment and approval process, training and the needs of the young people needing a placement.

We aim for the recruitment of new supported lodgings hosts to follow the most efficient path, and the following sets out the recruitment and assessment pathway.

Preliminary stage - seeking information

Supported lodgings enquiries can be made by telephone or an online enquiry form via the Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council website.

The expression of interest is shared with the Assessment Team Manager and Marketing and Recruitment Officer who will allocate two social workers to undertake an initial assessment. The initial assessment should be booked with the enquirer within 1 week of the initial contact. The Family Placement Team recognise the importance of this early relationship building with the enquirer and the opportunity to provide detailed information about Stockton's offer.   

A decision regarding acceptance of an application from the enquirer will be made within 2 working days of the visit and the allocated social worker will send all relevant application documentation to the applicant.

Once the application form is received back from the prospective hosts a full assessment of the applicants will commence.

Assessment of Supported Lodgings Providers

It is a requirement that supported lodgings hosts have the capacity to offer each young person a bedroom of their own that is furnished and maintained to a good standard. They will also be expected to offer support and guidance to the young person when required and to help him or her towards independence by assisting the young person in a variety of areas, for example to budget, cook, clean and access education or training.

Whilst the process for the assessment of Supported Lodgings Hosts is not set out in legislation it is recognized that as regulated providers of Supported Accommodation under the Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 a robust assessment is required. Stockton Borough Council mirror the assessment process for mainstream foster carers for all prospective supported lodgings hosts as set out earlier in the Statement of Purpose.

Recommendations in respect of the suitability of supported host applicants to offer supported lodgings are made by the Fostering Panel and a decision made by the Agency Decision Maker (Head of Service Children in our Care and Care Leavers).

Where a qualifying determination is made by the Agency Decision Maker that the prospective host is not suitable to offer supported lodgings, the application can make representations via the Agency but will have no recourse to the Independent Review Mechanism (which is an external Panel limited to fostering only).