Social Services seeks more foster carers |21 September 2013

The Social Services has been running the foster care programme for several years.  At one point we had up to 12 foster carers.  Sensitisation is being done now to enable recruitment of new foster carers.

Potential candidates are screened, assessed, trained then registered as foster carers.  The training provides insight into what to expect from children, to facilitate handling of children such as those with challenging behaviours, provide them with parenting tips, etc...

Fostering provides children with a safe environment to enhance their well being.

When there is dysfunction in the child’s original family necessitating removal, alternative placement is sought.  Foster care is one of them.  Research has shown that children thrive better in homes than in institution, hence the need to have more foster parent is vital.

What is fostering
-    Fostering is about caring for a child or children of whom you are not the biological parent.
-    When you foster, you agree to look after a child on behalf of the Social Services, from a few days to several years.  You have to be trained and placed on the foster register.
-    The time in foster care depends on how soon a child can safely be reunited with his family.  If this is not possible, then it depends on how soon a permanent placement can be made.
-    Becoming a permanent foster carer means the child remains with you until they reach adulthood, but you are still caring for them on behalf of Social Services.
-    The difference between fostering and adoption is when you adopt a child, you become the child’s legal parent and the child remains with you on a permanent basis.
-    The Children Act 1982 Section 28(1) makes provision for foster care.

Who can become foster carers?
-    Foster carers can come from all kinds of different backgrounds.  The only specific barrier is to those with certain types of criminal record.
-    The most important thing is that you care about children, have parenting skills and that you can work with the Social Services.

Why children need fostering?
-    Children need to be fostered when their families are unable to look after them.
-    They have often been abused, neglected or abandoned by their parents or guardians.  Sometimes there is also a temporary breakdown of family relationship and parents can ask the Social Services to look after a child.

Contributed