Fostering Solutions - has anyone used them?

[Zoeee88]

Hi, I am looking into fostering, I've never done it before. I have my initial home visit/assessment from the LA on Monday, but after looking on some threads on this board I'm now concerned that it's not going to be financially do-able on an LA allowance so I'm looking into independent agencies. Has anyone used Fostering Solutions in Cheshire?

That's a real shame Tinkerbell but to be honest I'm not that surprised. In spite of what Jacob says, LAs simply cannot afford IFA placements as they are struggling with severely depleted budgets. Also they are in such a bad financial state that they are having to leave children at home whereas they might have asked permission of the court to remove them in the past. Shocking I know but that's the consequence on this govt slashing the budgets of all public services.

Would you consider changing to the LA. Can I ask how IFAs approve you in terms of age range - I think a lot of them just use the entire age range 0 - 17 but we always used to approved people for a specific age range, though we did often ask them to take a child out of their approval from time to time.

Why don't you talk to the LA and see what their views are - or maybe find some LA foster carers in your area and get their experiences. Unless of course Jacob returns with an offer for you to foster for his agency where you will be sure to get a placement!

Maybe it depends where you live. We are with Fs and had our first little one 3 weeks after approved, when they left the next was within a couple of weeks, between the two we refused placements as they didn't fit in with our family. ( age too close to BC).
One LA social worker told me that they get a pile of files of carers when they are looking for someone to place a child with , I suppose it just depends who's nearest the top and meets requirements.!
If it were me I would accept respite as this may ease you in and also give you se hands on experience.
We were approved for age 0-17 so that we didn't have to change age every year at panel as our preferences would change as our own children got older. We simply refuse anyone we feel who's age is too close to our own. We have never refused due to distance from home or behaviours .

Thanks all for your comments. I started coming on to this group as a way of assisting some carers with an honest view of the IFA sector, in part because there are so many negative views. I made the decision to do this anonymously, so Jacob is not my real name and I do not intend to say which agency I manage. So to be up front, I wanted to state this. You may then choose to believe me or not when I give you the facts, but they are correct as I see them from my Registered Managers position.

I can see that I have raised further points so will address in order and by person unless already covered.

NanaNina –

The use of the term “sell” can be misleading to those not in the industry, hence my comments. Yes, we do see our services but we do not sell our carers.

My comments in regard to business is about efficiency. As a business, we look at every cost in and out. The amount of money the LA waste is astronomical in my view. If we ran our business in the same way the LA operate, we would not last a month. I can give lots of examples if you wish but I suspect you know what I mean.

The legal issues I have noted are correct, as is your comment. However, when LA’s have attempted to move in house, we have successful blocked them on numerous occasions. I cannot give examples due to confidentiality. However, we have used an advocate and paid for legal advice, threatened LA’s with a judicial review and all the children have stayed.

We do charge £800-£900 a week as do many agencies. Due to the current economic climate, we have not increased our fees in 6 years. Almost every LA we deal with we have a commissioning arrangement where they drive down costs. To verify this information, you can do a FOI request to a number of LA’s. Ask what their lowest, highest and average single fee paid to an IFA is for fostering per week, per child. Some agencies do charge more, but they will be therapeutic agencies with various assessments by other professionals thrown in as well as on going work with the child.

scarlet5tyger –

We do receive this amount of referrals. I did not say we place this many.

What needs to be understood, is the majority of other agencies will also receive the same referral if the are on the framework for that LA. Some LA’s tier depending on cost, so we may get the referral first, we may not. Our highest referral amount was 896 in August 2012. We obviously do not place this many children, and some of the children are re referred depending on Court outcomes, various assessments or they cannot find a family fist time around.

I do not hear LA carers have many empty beds to be honest. I deal with about 40 LA’s in London and the South East. Every LA is struggling to place children in house.

Tinkerbell1934

As a foster carer, you have the right to choose who you work for. If you are not getting placement, may I suggest you look at other agencies. We do huge amounts of work to get on frameworks wither various LA’s and groups of LA’s. if your agency is not on a frame work, they will not get referrals. Ask fostering solutions which LA’s they are preferred providers. If you look else where to other agencies, then this should be something you should raise.

We do approach carers with referrals, they say yes and then the placement does not happen. It may be in house is found. However, it may be another carer from another agency is chosen. At the moment we are finding many Court Orders are not granted and the children go home.

NanaNina

LA’s will use IFA’s when they cannot place in house. This may well be a last resort and of course this makes sense. However, it does not take away that many LA’s are placing which is reflected in the referrals we receive.

I hope that answers all the questions, but happy to comment further.

If you start looking at other IFA's - avoid Orange Grove (based at Ellesmere Port) They talk the talk but their SW's have a habit of placing completely unsuitable placements with newly approved or inexperienced carers - Why anyone would think (let alone a sw ) placing a teenager with ASD and attachment issues into a family with three other demanding teenagers (all very close in age) was a good idea is beyond me.. Said carers had been fostering for less than 6 months at the time. Needless to say, ASD teenager didn't get the extra attention required and the end result was a very negative outcome for everyone involved (everyone blamed each other when the questioning started later after the placement had exploded)

Not the first time I've heard of similar situations with this agency either (more than one SW and set of carer's involved) They don't give a monkey's about the kids involved

Oh I know lots about Orange Grove and the bloke show started it up - got very rich and sold it. The letter heading used to say "Orange Grove - where children grow and flourish" ......... and all the office furniture was orange, including the cups and saucers!

When IFAs first started up (and I remember that time very well) they only used to take on experienced carers and then they began recruiting brand new carers. I can't imagine anyone placing 3 demanding teenagers with one family in any even, let alone practically new carers, but then to add a 4th with ASD is sheer lunacy. How many children do these IFAs approve people for. In the LA I worked in we always started carers off with 1 child/yp - maybe 2 if sibs......and then as they gained experience we would sometimes alter their approval, but it seems like IFAs are just approving carers for 0-17 and 3 (or 4) at any one time.

Mind I'm not surprised because IFAs are businesses and like all businesses their main motivation is profit (and please Jacob don't come back telling me this isn't the case, because I know it is) A teenager with ASD is going to be a "heavy end" placement and would need to be placed with very experienced carers without any other teenagers. Any social worker who was committed to acting in the young person's best interests would simply not have agreed to place this young man in that placement, not in any circumstances but IFAs like to be able to place any child/yp referred to them, for their reputation and for the profit involved.

I saw some very similar situations in the area in which I worked especially when the IFAs started recruiting entirely new carers. Fostering like any other job is something that you learn as you go, by experience and gradually building confidence, learning the best way to hand difficult situations etc., so it's ludicrous to be placing very difficult children/yps with brand new carers, be they IFAs or LAs. Mind having said that maybe LAs don't have that luxury any more as demand always outstrips supply where foster care is concerned. Pity really because if it didn't there wouldn't be any need for IFAs making money out of vulnerable children.

As a carer it is ultimately upto me who I invite into my home.
Sometimes when referrals come into the office the social worker who phones you does not have much if any knowledge about your family and experience . I know carers often complain if they don't get a phone call . Only you know your family dynamics and what will or won't work so it's down to you in the end.
Also LA social workers make the decision on where and who to place their child with and I don't know if it is always the case but in our experience all of the children placed with us have come with their social worker . So any problems should at least be picked up at this time.
Some carers when they have had empty beds for a while may take on more than they can cope with.
So I think there is blame to be placed on a lot of different people in some instances.
I don't know if the other teenagers were BC but I would never accept a placement so close to my own child's age, no matter how long I had empty beds or how 'good' the child was. It would not work for us or the child and this would not be fair to all involved.

NanaNina - I am unsure why you have such negative views about IFA's let alone propagate on a forum where people may not know any different.

Just to balance the argument again - IFA's are governed by the same Fostering Regulations 2011 at the Local Authority. The Regulations make it perfectly clear how many children carers can be approved for. Placing more than three children is not fostering (comes under childrens homes REGS) unless they are part of a sibling group. This is no different if it was a LA or IFA.

In most circumstances carers are only approved for one child unless the they have experience working with children or can offer something exceptional. Only after a year, where they are presented back to panel, do we look at changing this. Depending on the carers experience, we approve for a specific age range, but at times this may be 0 - 18 (not 17) as this may be appropriate.

IFA's do not approve carers. Under the same Regulations, an independent panel is convened who make a recommendation to approve. This is then discussed with the decision maker using Hofstata and Barnet model as evidence of good practice.

NanaNina - you have clear and strong views about IFA's of which you are entitled too, but before making comments, please ensure they are accurate so everyone has all the knowledge to make their own views. Not all IFAs are the same and not all LA's are the same. Good and bad practice can prevail in both.

My advice to everyone is seek knowledge about fostering and make your own mind up.

KNOW of LA's who will be hoping too double there foster carer's in the coming 12 months, so think the general census is moving away from private care, some LA's have also started specialist service foster care as existed several years ago for disabled children and hard too place children, sort break services also.

Nananina I haven't had a placement since I was approved at panel. Really disappointed with how things have turned out. It's nothing like what your lead to believe by the agencies. I hear adverts on the radio everyday from various IFA's wanting people to become foster carers to "desperately waiting children". It's so unfair and misleading when there are many carers like myself ready and waiting to foster.

JacobMalloy I have seriously thought about changing but having to go through the whole process of Form F and training etc puts me off. It means not only having to go through everything again but also spending another 6 months of your life on something that has so far done nothing but disappoint. I've wanted to foster for decades and now when finally I was in a position where I could, it hasn't worked out. Thinking of going back to work in an entirely different setting. Fed up of waiting and not being able to do or plan anything just in case I get a call from agency about a referral.

I just wish IFA's and LA would be honest and tell the carers that there may be a high chance that they could be waiting for a placement for months. Everyone I spoke to before deciding on which organisation I wanted to work with made out like they were inundated with referrals and there was a huge shortage of carers so take the holiday and do all you want before you go to panel as you may not get the chance to enjoy a family holiday after approval. :(

fasparent - most LA's and IFA's want more carers. despite planning for this, the reality is very different. It is so hard to recruit good carers these days. I think the LA wanting to double their foster carers in 12 months is a little unrealistic.

Tinkerbell1934 - its a real shame that you feel this way given their is such a shortage of good carers. I would only suggest meeting with your agency and discuss your concerns and perhaps looking at your matching criteria. Good luck what ever decision you take.

May be, but think there are reasons for dramatic sounding announcements
Yesterdays figures for example Children missing from private foster care
was up by a MASSIVE 47% over 7500 children, Main reason given wanted too be near home , family's and friend's.
THINK SAY NO MORE. THESE CHILDREN ARE AT RISK of all kinds of abuse
Missing from council care 22% .

I read the same article too but then thought about it for a moment. Maybe the percentage of children missing from IFA's was because LA mostly only use IFA when they are finding it difficult to place children with their own carers. My understanding was that these children are either older, have more issues/difficulties to deal with etc. I'm playing devils advocate here but wouldn't that explain or be a major reason for why more IFA children go missing than babies and younger children which the LA place with their own carers?

Interesting figures and good points Tinkerbell1934. I have not seen the article, is there a link?

I meant is there a link to the article?

Tinkerbell1934 don't think you can't make a real difference to someone's life by doing respite foster care.

Sometimes it is the smaller interactions that make an impact.

Dress it up as one likes but is FACT and just the tip of the iceberg, Police reported in one city over 20,000 REPORTED CHILDREN MISSING FROM CARE reported too police 85% were out area from their homes in private care, and sadly are not the responsibility of the LA Area they are placed, but is responsibility of the LA,s who place them there'
Think I am right LA's will be moving more into specialist care, will be paying more too their carers will be less expensive cutting out the middle private org's, will take time , training, Lots of LA's are now pursuing this route along with Family interventions as can be seen in the family courts
with the 47% drop in recent court judgment's. And the vast reduction in approved adoption's again around the 40 or so %.

fasparent - its interesting times in the LA and in fostering at the moment. I guess we watch this space. did you have a link to the article or can you point me in the direction of where I may find it? sounds like an interesting read.

I am waiting for my first home visit via FS and feel a little concerned that i will have my life put under a microscope for good reason only to find I will have empty beds should I be approved! I'm still very much in the 'gathering & receiving of information' stage of my application and I will certainly put forward some of the points mentioned in this thread. I too tried to go via my LA but nobody got back to me even though I chased up several times!

I found this thread extremely interesting as I will be going to panel very shortly after registering with an IFA. I am though somewhat concerned that I may be in a position of having large amounts of time in between placements. However the IFA I am a fostering applicant with is highly rated with Ofsted and their recently approved foster carers have been offered placements very quickly. One of them was offered 2 who she refused as being unsuitable for her family set up and was quickly offered (and accepted) a 3rd - a mum and baby placement. I'm hoping that this is a pattern (if I am approved) that I will see myself as I have in effect changed my life to train as a foster carer and of course been turned inside out for the Form F Assessment. Thanks for so many valuable contributions to this thread, its been very enlightening.