The Government launched the Foster Carers’ Charter in March 2011. The Charter has been jointly produced by Government, fostering organisations, charities and children. It is part of the Government’s wider programme of reform to improve the entire care system – including reducing barriers and delays to adoption and improving the quality of children’s homes. The overall aim is to make sure that all children in care have greater stability, less upheaval and a better chance at a stable family life.
Children’s Minister Tim Loughton said:
Foster carers are the unsung heroes of our care system. They do a fantastic, selfless job helping often vulnerable children build stable relationships that can endure into adulthood. Too often I hear stories about foster parents feeling isolated, unsupported, and facing endless red tape when all they are trying to do is enjoy everyday activities with their foster child – like taking them on holiday or even for a haircut.
The new Charter will help to change that. It underlines the huge value we place on foster carers. Not only as role models to the children who look up to them, but also as pushy parents who put those children first. The Charter sets out clear principles of what support should be available and what foster carers can expect.
I hope every local authority and fostering agency will sign up to the Charter. I particularly want local areas to sign up to the spirit of the Charter and build on and develop it in their own way to reflect the needs of the local community.
The new Charter sets out clear principles on how foster carers should be treated, recognises their invaluable work and aims to encourage more people to sign up to be foster carers. The Charter is backed up by new slimmed-down fostering regulations and guidance which came into force April 2011. These make clear to fostering services what their statutory duties are, and reduce the burdens placed on them.
What next
The Fostering Network have produced a note which includes advice on how to put the Foster Carers’ Charter into practice and some ideas for discussion when developing local charters.
The associated resource section includes the Foster Carers’ Charter that has been produced jointly by Government and fostering organisations, charities and children. This version can be edited to include contact details for those who have signed up to the Charter’s commitments and space to include additional commitments important for your fostering service and foster carers. Also included are an A3 poster of the Charter and an A3 poster version with the ministerial foreword.
Please let us know if you have signed up to the Foster Carers’ Charter. We would also love to see your examples of how the Charter is being used so we can share good practice. These pages will be updated to show the local authorities and fostering agencies who have signed up to the Foster Carers’ Charter and examples of good practice.
Contact details
If you would like to tell the Department that you have signed up to the Charter, or let us know what you have been doing then please contact Louise Lawrence in the fostering team at louise.lawrence@education.gsi.gov.uk
The Minister also wants to hear about what works and what doesn’t and what changes the Government should be considering to make the system better. If you have views on this please visit our Tell Tim page.
