Battered by the system?

[cazzmags]

Hi All

God knows I try not to be negative but I'm so weary of trying to work in a broken system.

We have been fostering a few years years so have some experience but I am so tired of social workers who show little or no respect for what we do and who don't communicate with us as professionals. The children's needs seem to get lost in endless waves of bureaucracy and red tape and it just gets harder and harder to advocate and be heard.

How do you all cope?

Hi Cazzmags, I could have written your post myself!!

For the first time in the years I've been fostering I've recently resorted to getting both the children's Guardian and their IRO involved in the day to day running of their case. Things they'd been promised hadn't been done, medicals hadn't been arranged, PEPs had been arranged (by myself and the teacher as SW didn't realise they were needed so often (!)) then not attended by either child's SW... Decisions for unnecessary moves were made, changed, then changed again.

Things improved briefly with their involvement but are now slipping again.

We cope mainly with chocolate.

Hi Scarlet, sorry to hear you're experiencing similar.

Off the back of your excellent advice I'm off to purchase a large bar of galaxy!!

Can I join you as well!

Welcome Wonder, chocolate therapy all round then..... I may even have a cheeky glass of red later cheers!

Who'd be a foster carer eh, we must be mad

My mum once told me that parents were invented so that children could have something to send round the bend. I now think us FC's were invented so that SW's can have something to send round the bend ! Lol. Wine helps !

It was a broken system 50/60 years ago when I was on the receiving end of a social services (who were part of the minority community where I grew up) they did not look, listen or act on the plight of myself and my mother. It seems very little has changed and as the social services move more towards privatisation this will worsen.

Many caring, time served social workers are now left demoralised because of social care cuts, outsourcing etc and the emphasis is being place on top graduate social workers who have little understanding of the needs of stressed vulnerable children and stress caregivers like yourself.

Good luck.

I agree, I've complained about problems with social workers but get no where as they always side with the social worker,they kind of stick together. The families of children in care don't stand a chance if they have a complaint against a social worker. We have been fostering for 14 years but have now become very tired of the system and are now thinking about packing it all in.

This is so frustrating to hear these issues. I am a social worker and at time embarrassed by my own profession. This is why I now work in the private sector! However, if you are unhappy with the social worker you have the right to complain until you get a service for you and the children you foster. If you feel this is not the route to go down, then you have a RIGHT to ensure the child's needs are fully met by engaging an advocate for them. We have done this on a number of occasions and get good results. As foster carers, you are there to be a voice for the child when no one else hears. so help them have their voice and ask for an advocate of they are not getting a service.

if all else fails, social workers are governed by the HCPC. You have the right to make a complaint at this level as well. trust me, things will get moving if you make waves!! Good luck.