The Fostering Network calls for national leadership to solve the crisis in fostering
We have seen the difference that clear national leadership has made to adoption in England, with the Adoption Leadership Board and Strategy driving performance improvements and creating clear leadership within the sector. Given that 71 per cent of children in care in England live with foster carers, similar levels of leadership and resource must now be directed to the fostering sector, which is under huge pressure. Our chief executive, Kevin Williams, explains.
Westminster Hall debate
On 21 April, Kate Osborne MP will lead a debate in Westminster about the recruitment and retention of foster carers in England. I look forward to hearing the contributions from MPs and, in particular, to hearing from the Children’s Minister, Will Quince MP, about his plans for foster care in England.
Recruitment and retention crisis in fostering
Our State of the Nation survey confirmed what Ofsted figures suggest - a recruitment and retention crisis in fostering.
71 per cent of children in care in England live with foster carers, therefore it is vital we give more national, regional and local focus to this crucial service for the children who are currently in foster care and those who will benefit from foster care in the future. We must ensure there are sufficient placements of the right type and in the right places to provide children with safe and loving homes that meet their needs.
National Fostering Strategy
I have written to the Children’s Minister calling for the same level of commitment as adoption by the government to the fostering sector. The evidence in the Competitions and Market Authority’s (CMA) children’s social care market study, published last month, supported this message.
The CMA have called for greater national leadership over fostering to support commissioning as well as other areas of practice. The report recommended that governments make clear what minimum level of activity must be carried out, making the case for regional collaboration and a requirement for local authorities to have a key role in needs-led and targeted recruitment.
We know that foster carer recruitment is best done locally; enabling local recruitment of foster carers with the right skills to meet the needs of children in their communities. But this must be supported by national awareness raising and a coordinated strategy to address some of the longstanding issues within the sector, as highlighted by our State of the Nation report.
National Fostering Leadership Board
We are calling on the government in England to introduce a fully funded National Fostering Leadership Board to drive forward action to solve the recruitment and retention crisis and to develop the much-needed national strategy. This should be done in co-production with foster carers, fostering services and the whole fostering sector, so we can work together to ensure that foster care is the best that it can be.
Role of the Board
A national leadership board for fostering could provide an oversight mechanism for the sector and encourage a more co-ordinated and collaborative approach across both the regional and local level. It could assess the strategy needed to address sufficiency issues as well as actively planning for future projected need with much more efficiency.
As well as creating a national strategy, the board could drive good practice by measuring the impact and outcomes of fostering and identifying innovative practice in specific areas, bringing them to the mainstream. This would help to create a more consistent experience for foster carers. Currently there is wide variation, for example in the training foster carers receive and whether they get fee payments or not. A leadership board could provide a strategy to create standardisation for fostering to remove the postcode lottery of the experiences of foster carers.
The board could tackle the issues being faced in commissioning, with local authorities facing a wide range of challenges trying to find a place for a child in care - finding a match to meet the unique needs of each child, understanding the options available at any given time, competing with other local authorities for limited places and the pressure of time to secure a suitable option. A national board could set the direction needed in relation to opportunities provided by regional commissioning, being able to use collective bargaining power and block contracting can help to shape and manage the market.
Foster carers must be valued, respected and supported
At the heart of the recruitment and retention crisis is the need to treat foster carers as equal and valued members of the team around the child and a key part of the children’s social care workforce.
Foster carers told us in response to State of the Nation that their voices are not being heard when advocating for the child they are looking after. Over a third end up out of pocket, as the allowance they receive does not meet the full cost of the child’s care. Insufficient support, lack of status and poor pay continue to be key issues for foster carers, exacerbated further by the cost of living crisis. These issues have a big role to play in the major challenges surrounding the recruitment and retention of sufficient and high-quality foster carers. Urgent action must be taken at local, regional and national level in order to bridge the gap between the needs of children in care and the number of foster carers with the skills to meet them.
Next steps
We know that Ministers in the Department for Education will be listening carefully to MPs on 21 April and looking at the recommendations of the Care Review over the coming months as they think about the future of the children’s social care system. I will be urging them to take forward a National Leadership Board for Fostering to develop a national fostering strategy, so we can start to work together to solve the critical issues in the sector and ensure that children in foster care get the childhood they deserve.
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