Looking After a Child or Young Person
Finding the Right Child or Young Person for You
When a decision has been made that a child will be placed with foster carers, the child's social worker will contact the family placement team duty worker. This worker then considers the needs of the child being accommodated alongside the qualities and circumstances of carers who have a vacancy. This process is called "Matching". If the family placement team identify your family as a possible placement they will discuss this initially with you. Following this if you agree for the placement to go ahead they will arrange for the social worker to contact you, the foster carer, to further discuss the child or young person. The social worker will share with the carers whatever details are available about the child and the child's situation. Full information must be offered to the carers to ensure an informed decision regarding the placement can be made.
The carers should be given as much warning as possible about an impending placement, although in emergency situations there may only be a few hours to plan. The foster carers must feel free to say no if the placement is not appropriate for them. Whenever possible social workers should try to arrange for the carers to meet the child and the parents before the child comes to stay. This kind of meeting is re-assuring to the child, parents and the carers and there is also an opportunity for the foster carers to ask parents about the child's likes, dislikes and characteristics.
- young person
After a child has been approved for permanence, their name is placed on the waiting list of children registered for permanence. Because it is often difficult to predict how long it will take to identify a suitable family, the foster carer has the difficult task of supporting the child through a period of uncertainty. The carer may be asked to work alongside the social worker to help prepare the child for the changes that lie ahead.
Once a suitable family (or families) is identified, the Service Manager (Accommodation and Aftercare) will send the child's form to the permanent family's worker. At the same time the form on the prospective permanent carer will be given to the child's worker. If there are several families who could be considered the Service Manager (Accommodation and Aftercare) will meet with the child's worker to agree which families most closely match the identified needs of the child. Normally no more than 3 families will be considered by the panel for a particular child.
When the prospective carers have heard about the child, and given an initial indication that they wish to be considered, arrangements will be made for them to meet with the child's social worker and to have full written information about the child. It can also be very useful for prospective permanent carers to meet with the child's current foster carer. Speaking directly to those caring for the child on a daily basis can often make the child come alive for the permanent carers more effectively then written reports or professional accounts.
Foster carer's will be invited to attend the panel that is considering which family the child should be matched with to discuss the needs and feelings of the child to be placed.