how long did it take? from enquiry to first placement?

[queststarz]

Hi
I am hoping to start looking into agencies/la's next year and i'm wondering if anyone would mind sharing their experiences of how long it took them from first registering interest to getting your first child placement? was it longer/shorter for those of you with la or agency? Did you first do emergency/short term/long term? I will have to give notice at work for when i start (but obviously don't want to give notice and then not get a placement for months). (i know this is something to ask when i contact my local la's/agencies) just wondered what other peoples experiences had been? thanks for sharing :-)

it took us 18 months to get to panel (we took a break for personal reasons) it should have taken about 8.

It was exactly 10 weeks from our official acceptance till we got our first placement. - we are short term carers for one child aged 0-2 which did make it a little harder to get placements. But I think that this is just luck of the draw as there have been other people who have had a placement as soon as they got past panel.

Good luck with it :)

It is a very long time ago now but we applied to our LA in the January and began our assessment and training almost immediately.

We went to panel in the July of the same year and were approved.
We had a phone call from our link worker that afternoon to tell us we were approved and an hour or so later a phone call to ask if we would take an 8 month old the following day.

He arrived next day and was with us for 5 wonderful months.

There is a young man out there who will be 24 this month who has no idea of the impact he had on our lives

Good luck.

Hi. We applied to our LA in Nov 09 and were approved 31st August 10.

We "took delivery" of our first two LO's on the 9th September 2010 and they are currently still with us until at the earliest Jan/Feb.

Our age range is 0-6 and I think like squidy says, placements will happen quicker the more flexible you are on age range. Our LA for example isn't taking anybody on who will only do 0-2 now..

We have not specified short/long/emergency - its just a case of whoever needs help at the moment when we have a 'vacancy'.

You've a journey to travel - its not an easy road to approval, so its wise to do as much research into it as possible - I looked into it and read up on it for almost 2 years before making the call!!

Good luck and I hope it works out for you

We went on the skills to foster course in January and was approved mid summer. We waited until October for our first placement.

The reason we went with LA is because I can continue to work along side fostering (though now I can tell you t'is really hard) , because like you, I couldn't afford to give up work and sit by the phone.

best of luck.