We're posting the following statement on behalf of Credo Care.
As the Director of Credo Care, referred to in this Thread. I am grateful to MumsNet for allowing me the right to reply to the subsequent development, albeit many years after the last post.
I do not feel the need to, and neither can I, defend the existence of Independent Fostering Agencies, because the sad fact is they are increasingly needed, and because it is true there are some huge agencies operated by solely profit driven shareholders and increasingly by finance houses and other corporate entities which have been and are still being investigated by the Government, because of monopoly concerns and the effects on service provision. Neither will I respond to the anonymised comments by someone who may, or may not, have been a former employee of Credo Care. We have plenty of employees and carers who tell a different story.
However, in addition to the Finance Company 'Super-sized' agencies, there are many smaller agencies motivated for other reasons - many positive and with good intentions. As co-founder of Credo Care 21 years ago our agency has a track record of sticking to our original vision and altruistic motives.
"NanaNina", refers to my comments on the now deleted thread, namely: "Re the Feb thread - yes I can see that even an IFA placement is going to cost less than a residential placement (but they are no longer used for children, almost all of these large residential homes are now closed down as these children are fostered these days) so I don't see why this director is making that point. Also patients are admitted to hospital if there is a clinical need and so disabled children would not be "placed" in hospital unless there was a clinical need. He is talking of days gone by, and I distrust this director I have to say as he is trying to make a rationale for the high costs he is charging LAs. I don't honestly think a LA would make a long term placement with an IFA for a child with disabilities, as there are LA foster carers who foster children with a disability on a long term basis."
Two simple internet searches using the words "number of children in care homes in the UK" or "bed blocking in hospital by disabled children" reveals that, unfortunately far from being something in "days gone by", the points I made, were and still, are relevant. It is also true that there is, and has been for many years, a national shortage of Foster Carers and Local Authorities in particular struggle to recruit carers for disabled children and the high levels of specialist support needed.
There were 2,209 children's homes, of all types, on 31 March 2018. This was a net increase of 3% from the same time last year, and follows the patterns of previous years. There is nothing to indicate this has slowed or stopped despite the Pandemic.
Source: socialcareinspection.blog.gov.uk/2018/08/22/the-changing-picture-in-the-childrens-homes-sector/
And there is also increasing numbers of disabled children being detained in hospital for non-clinical reasons.
Source: www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/health/learning-disability-autism-hospital-detained-nhs-health-service-a9237006.html%3famp
Credo Care has consistently offered successful long term alternative care to disabled children and young people and those with complex medical care, who otherwise might be placed in residential care or hospital, and I was not being misleading or false in stating this.
We have. what I believe to be, an unrivalled breakdown placement rate of under 2% in the private sector and over the past 98% of our placements have been exactly what they were intended to be when the child or young person was placed, mostly long term. Few have ever been taken back "in house" by Local Authorities.
Obviously everyone is entitled to their opinion, and clearly the anonymity on threads such as this encourage the sharing of personal opinions, but to state "I distrust this director" (namely me) in a public forum is extremely unhelpful, especially when the commentator's own "authoritative" comments are based upon their own incorrect opinions and assumptions and now that the original thread and my comments were deleted completely out of context.
Damien Mead