4.2.3 Permanent Foster Placements

Procedures for Homefinding
Making Permanent Placement
Procedure for an Inter-agency Placement

1. Procedures for Homefinding

The decision that permanent separation for a looked after child from his / her family needs to be made formally at a permanency planning meeting and/or looked after review. All decisions can only be made after a full assessment of the child's needs and situation.

A representative of the Fostering or Adoption Team should be invited to a review where a permanent placement for a child is being considered. Where adoption or long term fostering is the plan a member of the adoption section will attend.

Family finding will involve careful deliberation and determination of which worker will do what. Any one of the following may be likely:

Linking of families approved or likely to be approved by the London Borough of Bromley Family Placement Service.
Advertisement for specific child/ren in Adopt UK, Be My Parent, Foster Care, national and specific publications.
Sending fliers to other Adoption and Fostering (Local Authorities) Agencies
BAAF search
Approach to independent Fostering Agencies
Presentation to the Placement Panel for funding for inter-agency fees.
Assessment of family/friends as foster carers.

The needs of the child will determine which of the above action is required immediately. Very young children and those approaching their seventh birthday or above require urgent attention. It may be necessary to consider a dual-pronged approach with fliers to other adoption agencies together with advertisement in the most suitable press. Children with special needs or from an ethnic minority group may require a different approach with advertising in specific journals, direct approach to community groups etc.

Once a plan for permanency has been agreed the planning needs to be monitored regularly and at not less then three monthly intervals. A planning meeting should be convened to look at the progress made. At six monthly intervals these planning meetings will coincide with the looked after child review.

Where the plan is for adoption and this has not been achieved within one year (or other agreed timescale) the plan should be revised to consider permanent foster placement. This decision may occur earlier with older children.

2. Making Permanent Placement

Selecting a family

When a possible family or families are identified the process of selecting a family is complex. The following process provides a model that could be used

A permanency planning group is probably already established from the above process and will most likely consist of social worker, Group Manager - Fostering, family finding worker, supervisory worker, foster carer / residential worker.
The Form F's are read by the child(ren)'s social worker, the Group Manager - Fostering, the family finding worker. Some families may be excluded in this process. (Note some agencies do not allow duplication of their Form F's)
The foster carer(s), residential workers and any other participant should be provided with a précis of the Form F's of those families worth pursuing.
Additional information may be obtained from the agency/family placement worker.
The permanency planning group in a matching meeting should then decide which application(s) should be explored. The views of any of the professional workers and foster carers are equally valid. Whilst the children and families' team have ultimate responsibility the advice and views of other workers or foster carers should be taken seriously.
Visits should be made to prospective carers. Foster carers should where possible attend those visits with the child's social worker. The family finding worker may also attend or offer advice as to further questions and issues that should be raised. Further visits by any of those persons may be necessary for further sharing, confirmation of ideas etc.
The final decision if required and not made above particularly for small children) as to whether a match will be presented to the Adoption of Fostering Panel should be made in a further permanency planning meeting chaired by the Group Manager - Fostering or Adoption. Where possible a consensus opinion should be arrived at, though the final decision is that of the chair of the meeting.

Arranging a placement

After the selection of a family and presentation at Adoption/Fostering Panel the following action may be required.

Inter-agency meetings
Work with existing carers to assist child(ren) move on.
Planning the introduction to the new family
Information to birth parents
Proposed date of placement

Equipment

Whenever possible, a child's own belongings and significant objects / toys should go with the child into placement in order to provide continuity.

Written information about the child and his/her background and the placement proposal.

For all children going into permanent placement carers should be provided with full written information about their background in order to:

Inform carers of all the facts relating to the child and his / her background
Enable carers to share with the child his / her background throughout their life
Allow the child to have direct access to written information as s/he gets older

Background information should be full, detailed and written in clear, understandable, non-discriminatory language. It should aim to provide answers to all the questions which the child and his / her permanent carer may ask now and in the future. Certain facts will need to be worded carefully. The information should be truthful and accurate and should seek to present the child's background as positively as possible.

Written information must be given to the carers even if the proposed permanent carer is the current temporary carer.

Written information should include health information about the child.

Carers should be provided with a written proposal about the purpose of the placement, contact expectations, and confirmation of the Department's support

Information for the child

The child must be informed in advance of the proposed placement. The child should be told what information has been shared with the prospective carers and older children should have a written copy.

Notifications of the placement

Before the child is placed with permanent carers regulations require the following notifications of placement to be sent:

The Child's worker is responsible for notifying:

Area Education Department of the proposed placement if the child is of school age or has a disability,
The current school
Where the prospective carer lives in another local authority area, that local authority
The relevant health authority
Those people with parental responsibility

The medical adviser to the agency will send to the carer's G.P a written report on the child's health history and current state of health.

At the time of placement a Change of Circumstances form must be completed by the child's social worker.

The child's social worker is responsible for ensuring that the new carer has the following documentation

The child's birth certificate, medical card, any examination certificates etc.
The child's passport
Copies of any court orders
Copies of any other documents relating to the child
Copies of LAC forms, Essential Information Part 1 & 2, Placement Plan Parts 1 & 2, Care Plan

3. Procedure for an Inter-agency Placement

Before the matching is agreed

The viability of the proposed match should be discussed by the family's worker and child's worker within the permanency planning group and where appropriate the matching meeting.
BAAF Forms E and F should be exchanged by the agencies. The information within these forms remains confidential to the agency that compiled the reports and is shared on the understanding that only those people with direct case responsibility will have access to the information.
The family's worker should discuss the information about the child with the proposed carer.
If parties are willing to proceed after reading and discussion a meeting should be arranged including the proposed carer, their worker, the child's worker, the family finding worker. The purpose of the meeting is to:

Assess the carer's ability to meet the needs of the child

Provide information to decide whether to take the interest further
Further discussions and meetings should take place where necessary. The proposed carer should be provided with the opportunity to meet current carer, parents, medical and other professional advisers as appropriate.
A matching report should be written by the family finding social worker and the child's social worker where it is proposed to recommend the match.

Panel consideration of the inter-agency match

The child's worker should arrange the Panel Meeting date with the Clerical Officer, Fostering Service.
The child's worker should provide the Clerical Officer, Family Placement Service with the Child's BAAF Form E. Where the Form was written more than six months previously it must be updated. The Child's medical assessment which must have been completed within the last year, a current school report and assessment and psychological reports as appropriate.
The family finding worker should obtain the proposed carer's current Form F, which must be updated if approved more than 12 months previously, medical reports and the Agency's panel minute and copies of references.
The Matching Report.
A representative from the Family's Agency must attend the Adoption or Fostering Panel along with the child's worker and family finding worker.

After the match has been agreed

A meeting should be arranged as soon as possible after agency approval has been given to the match in order to draw up the Interagency Placement Agreement and to plan the Introductions and Placement.

Interagency Placement Agreement

An inter-agency meeting should be attended by representatives from both agencies of sufficient seniority who can make decisions on behalf of the agency. In Bromley's case this will be the Group Manager, Fostering. The Agreement aims to:

Clarify the roles and responsibilities of the different agencies and social workers.
Confirm arrangements for the child's agency to pay the inter-agency fee to the family's agency. Setting up costs, introduction costs, legal costs where appropriate and fostering allowances.

End