Having recently completed an almost 2year process from initial application to board approval, (single parent approved for 5-10year old either sex children), I would say that if this is the first SW you have met, then this will most certainly NOT be the one you have to work with any further.
I am with a LA, so things may be different, but the general way things go are:
You make an application.
A 1st line assessing SW visits your home, has a chat, makes a decision there and then whether you fit the ?profile? they are looking for ?
If you pass this initial test, then you are invited to attend the ?skills to foster course? ? usually 6 x 4 hour sessions, but ours were compressed into 4 weeks with 2 x 10-4 Saturday sessions then 2 x 6-9 week day evening sessions over 2 weeks whereby you will be further assessed for suitability.
You will then see the ?compliance? assessor ? another social worker that makes sure that you have filled in all the forms - CRB, every address since birth, immediate family information, 3 referees info etc correctly.
After that, assuming you pass/decide to continue, you will be allocated another social worker who will go through all the Form F process with you ? this is a very detailed and fairly invasive look at your life from birth upwards and reasons why you want to foster. This person is the most important one you will meet ? it will be solely their opinion of you/your life story that the board will take into consideration when it come to approval.
Once this is complete, you will get an appointment with yet another SW who is sent as the ?fresh eyes? to make sure that certain details of the Form F have not been overlooked due to the very strong relationship that is often formed between the Form F assessor and the applicant due to the nature and length of time usually required to complete this processes.
Then you are invited to attend an interview by the Fostering Panel ? you do NOT have to attend and apparently non attendance will not have any detrimental effect on your application.
In my case, the board interview consisted of 15 panel members, my Form F assessor and I. I was asked 3 questions ? why I wanted to foster ? how my birth child (8) feels about fostering and what my preferred name was (I have first and middle name ? some call me by my first name and others call me by my middle name ? seemed to cause some confusion with them)?.apparently, the number of questions asked by the panel is determined by how complete and detailed your Form F assessment has been.
After all that, you will THEN be allocated your Key worker?then introduced to the child/rens SW before placement takes place ? initial placement planning meeting then several ?getting to know you? meetings will happen before you get your placement?.so, I would say that you have many more SW?s and invasive questions to get through, but the worst case is always going to be presented to you as the ?norm???..face it, MOST of the children brought in to the care system haven?t been take away from loving parents who gave them all that they could/put their needs first, so they are most likely to be broken in some way ? sadly, this is more likely to be due to severe neglect and/or sexual abuse ? you do need to think about these things and how you think you would handle them ?no matter how unpalatable this may be to you.
But on the up side, your Key worker should also ?buddy? you up with another one of her/his foster carers in your location.
As mine said to me, ?you can?t bitch about me to me?.but you can to ?so there is some out let for your frustrations against the system ? if not, I?m sure the Fostering boards on here can help you out.
Hope this helps to clarify things for you, but as I said, each case is different [along the route], but I believe the outset is the same for all prospective foster carers ? very daunting and worst case!!
Happy to help further if you like. x