council v private fostering

JuneBow

I have just found out some people I know are to start fostering. They are doing it via a private agency rather than the council.
I think that private fostering pays more than council fostering. Is that right? Are there other benefits/disadvantages of private fostering.
How can private foster agencies pay more than the council? I would have thought it would have been the other way around.

Bella-Bubble

Because its all about the money people get for doing it...:mad:

Surely looking after a vulnerable child is much more important than how much it pays.


Don't really know or care who 'pays' more.

cheepskate_2

Why are you so interested in how much they get.

MissKeith

cheepskate wrote: »

Why are you so interested in how much they get.

I'm assuming because having kids is bloody expensive and every little helps?

jackyann

Different councils (and different agencies) offer different terms & conditions, as well as different rates.
So often it is about what kind of help & support, or respite, that makes foster parents make the choice.
In my experience, some councils (and I have not worked widely, so not representative) take foster carers for granted. For example, expecting a disabled child to be taken for regular appointments at 9am, meaning the carer had to leave at 7.30am, and make arrangements for her own children to get to school. Another council did nothing to expedite psychologists' appointments for very disturbed children, leaving the family coping on their own for 3 months. The agencies I have dealt with employ their own psychologists and have an emergency (24 hour call) service.

thorsoak

Does it matter whether these people that you know are acting as foster parents through the Council or through a private agency?

As long as they are GOOD foster parents, they will be giving much-needed security to children who need it. Good for them!

coinxoperated

A foster carer's 'payment' actually has allowances built into it for individual childrens needs. Such as school, food, clothes, holidays, pocket money and savings.

If you intend to foster young children (Under 5's), Local Authorities are your best bet.

If your happy to take on looked after children aged 5+, then I would personally go for a private agency.

There are 5 main areas you should consider when intending to foster:

• Age of a child you would take

• Don't do it for the money.
Are you aware that fostering is a professional role and it is not just 'here have a child, don't muck it up'. You are normally signed up to agree a certain amount of attendance to training, along with the CWDC (changing to an NVQ) within the first 12 months. Dependant on if you go private or local authority, you can have supervision with a supervising social worker once a month, sometimes more. It's likely a child will have contact with birth parents or family 2-3 times a week. Its relatively rare in the scheme of things to find a child who has no contact with any family.
You will be responsible for transportation to school and back, and if the childs ill while your out, you have to drop everything and go and be the 'parent'. A foster carer I knew once described fostering as 'being a mum, without them knowing you are'. Although, fostering is not like having your own child and in many cases it will be much more challenging than having your own child has ever been or will be.

• Private or LA - Private agencies tend to have more support available for foster carers, but obviously, do your research whoever you go to. LA's seem to be pretty down on staffing at the moment, but I don't know about them all, so like I said, research, research, research!

• The assessment process can take a long time and is very intrusive. It will talk about EVERYTHING you never wanted to talk about again and bring everything up. Obviously, a childs welfare is the only thing we should all care about, so you should be open and honest at every opportunity. The assessment isn't a process for someone secretive or someone who doesn't want to 'drag up the past'. A variety of statutory checks will take place, including CRB's, references etc.

• Saying goodbye to a child. If you do go on to have a placement, a child may be with you for days, months, years or longer. These children may become very attached to you, or they will resent you entirely. Be prepared as much as you can. Never rush into this. Some agencies have a visit to your home at the initial enquiry stage, some don't. The ones that do will usually answer your questions in full and they will see if you will need to make any changes to your home.

Good luck!

coinxoperated

thorsoak wrote: »

Does it matter whether these people that you know are acting as foster parents through the Council or through a private agency?

As long as they are GOOD foster parents, they will be giving much-needed security to children who need it. Good for them!

It matters who they go with because to be a good foster parent, you need support. These children have at the very least attachment issues or are suffering with loss. Nobody knows all the answers and there are many more questions with a foster child than a birth child.

NoAngel

Well some people do it for a career and are still helping the children and care a lot about them, but the money is an important aspect.

I think it's better to go through the local authority as from what I understand the private agencies often end up with children that are more difficult to place and these aren't as easy for an inexperienced foster career to look after when they first start out.

sweetilemon

Things to concider would be things like training given to carers cope with children / young people with various behaviours, depending on the child. Also support network to help with the care of the child, respite offered etc. Not sure if some councils/companys allow the main carer to work but some their only 'job' is caring. Fostering should never be taken on for money as it is a 24/7 dedication to a child. Various companys and councils pay differently, some dependant on the child, some seperate the wage and the childs living allowance, some dictate what should be spent where and others leave you to manage your own finances as long as the childs needs are met. Are you thinking of fostering?

miamoo

A friend of mine is a foster parent and she works for a private agency.
She told me that the local council get the child first, and they place all the children that they can with familys that are working for the council.
Difficult/hard to place children are then sent to the private agencys to place, and this is why they are paid a slight premium.
I dont know if this is accurate, but she had been fostering for 10yrs so I assume she knows what she is talking about.