Setting

London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team Inspection report for la fostering agency

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SC040284 Unique reference number 20 September 2010 Inspection date Jill Marriott / Karen Malcolm Inspector Key Type of Inspection

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Email

London Borough of Hackney Registered person Sheila Durr Registered manager Sheila Durr Responsible individual 7 March 2008 Date of last inspection .

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Email

This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Email

You can obtain copies of The Children Act 2004, Every Child Matters and The National Minimum Standards for Children's Services from: The Stationery Office (TSO) PO Box 29, St Cripins, Duke Street, Norwich, NR3 1GN. Tel: 0870 600 5522. Online ordering: www.tso.co.uk/bookshop

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About this inspection

The purpose of this inspection is to assure children and young people, parents, the public, local authorities and government of the quality and standard of the service provided. The inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcome for children set out in the Children Act 2004 and relevant National Minimum Standards for the establishment.

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The inspection judgements and what they mean

this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is strong Good: this aspect of the provision is sound Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is not good enough Inadequate: 3 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010

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Brief description of the service

The London Borough of Hackney Social Services Department provides a comprehensive fostering service as part of its overall service provision for children looked after by the local authority. The fostering teams are an integral part of Children and Family Services.

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Brief description of the service

The primary role of the fostering team is to recruit foster carers from the local area and to find suitable placements for children. A diverse group of foster carers is sought from a range of social, ethnic and religious backgrounds that match the needs of children and young people in the care system. Foster carers are provided with ongoing training, information, support and seminar days. Supervising social workers are responsible for monitoring and supporting carers and children in placements. The staff in the fostering service come from a range of professional backgrounds and reflect the ethnic make up of the local community.

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Brief description of the service

Children's services in Hackney are being transformed to enhance the support available to children. Social work teams are being changed into social work units. Each unit includes professionals from health, education and social work backgrounds. The fostering service is one of the last to transfer to the new system. It is envisaged that the changes will enable children and carers to gain easy access to a range of professional support without experiencing a lengthy referral process

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Summary

The purpose of this announced inspection was to assess the service against the key national minimum standards and review the issues highlighted at the last inspection.

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Summary

The fostering service is judged to be good. The service is led by an experienced management team supporting skilled and experienced social workers and foster carers.

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Summary

The service provides easy access to a range of health and education professionals who are able to support placements as required, forgoing lengthy referral processes. Foster carers are trained to encourage and support children to maintain contact with their families where appropriate.

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Summary

Effective systems are in place for ensuring consultation, and carers are trained to encourage and support contact arrangements. There is a proactive Children in Care Council which is consulted on issues affecting all children in care.

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Summary

Support groups and social events are organised by the service and foster carers have access to an out of hours phone line and an emergency duty team. Carers are encouraged to become members of the Hackney Foster Carer's Association and/or the Fostering Network.

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Summary

Carers and staff understand their roles and responsibilities with regard to promoting equality and diversity. There are systems in place to support trans-racial placements. Carers working with children with complex and specialist needs receive training and support to enable them to provide appropriate care.

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Summary

The areas of improvement identified are based in the organisation section of the report. Improvements required relate to the Statement of Purpose which does not include specific information required by legislation. The children's guide, although well thought out, is not 4 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010 written in an appropriate format for younger children. Information is not always recorded on appropriate files. Records are not monitored consistently and do not all contain accurate information. For example, training schedules are not up to date and the foster carers register included incorrect addresses. The overall quality rating is good. This is an overview of what the inspector found during the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The two requirements and three recommendations made at the last inspection have been reviewed. In general, plans for children now include information about social work visits and carers confirmed that they are informed of visit dates unless these are unannounced. The fostering service holds all files and records on computer, including information about allegations and complaints. These records were printed for the purpose of the inspection. They contained dates and details of events. The policy related to the foster panel has been reviewed and includes details of the procedures for use when issues arising cannot be agreed. One recommendation about the children's guide is repeated as a result of this inspection. The improvements made within the fostering service ensure that panel members, staff and carers have access to information that supports them to work effectively.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. The service ensures that carers have a clear, easily understandable health care plan for each child at the time of placement, or within 24 hours of an emergency placement. The plan details how children's specific and general health issues are to be addressed. It includes the roles and responsibilities of key others. Health issues related to children's ethnicity, race, disability, sexuality, faith or belief are identified and addressed. Carers confirmed that all areas of children's health needs are discussed with them at the beginning of each placement.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children's health and care needs are monitored and promoted through the child care review system and through supervising social work visits. Creative ways of engaging children and young people about health issues are successful. These enabled them to be aware of their own needs and make positive choices about their health. For example, one child said they receive reward points for healthy eating. In this particular case, this has been a simple but successful way of addressing issues related to a healthy diet. The social work structure in children's services has been changing over the last three years. Children's social workers work in units alongside health and education specialists. This joint working arrangement avoids long waiting lists for specialist services and supports children and foster carers as required. Access to specialist health support, such as the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service, sexual health specialists

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Helping children to be healthy

and looked after children's health professionals, has improved as a result of the change in service delivery.

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Helping children to be healthy

Foster carers receive comprehensive induction and ongoing training (specialist where necessary) to support them in identifying and addressing health needs. They receive additional training if children with special health care needs are placed with them. Carers are confident about their responsibilities and the respective responsibilities of other professionals involved. They confirmed that they understand the new working arrangements and believe that these encourage a closer working relationships with health professionals. 5 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are placed with carers who are appropriately prepared and supported to meet their needs. Services for children are personalised and they have information about accessible services such as independent advocacy. Older children are able to access a range of confidential support such as counselling and drug and alcohol services. Carers are assessed and receive induction and ongoing training to ensure that the welfare of each child placed is safeguarded. Particular attention is paid to the matching process in relation to each child's ethnic and cultural background. Where an appropriate match is not possible support is arranged to ensure the placement can meet overall individual need. Carers are informed about each child's health, their behaviour and their family backgrounds. Where necessary, carers are supported to acquire specific equipment or adaptations needed to support a placement. The policies procedures and

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

information available to carers assists them to provide safe care. Specialist help and treatment is available to support placements and to minimize the effects of any previous significant harm suffered by children or young people.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The service works in partnership with the local safeguarding board, children, families and other agencies, to ensure that children are safeguarded. The fostering service has a good range of policies and procedures related to safe care, child protection, bullying and behaviour management. There is written advice and information regarding how to deal with allegations and complaints, and how to report children absent without authority. Carers confirmed that they receive comprehensive, compulsory safe care and safeguarding training and regular follow up refresher courses. The foster carer's handbook includes safe care policies and procedures and useful information and phone numbers. This allows easy access to advice and support. Children said they are listened to, their views about their own safety and risk to themselves are taken seriously and considered central to a safe service.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

All professionals are sensitive to and aware of the effects of bullying on children. They recognise that children who appear different (including being fostered) may be at risk of bullying. Foster carers confirmed that bullying, and how to deal with it, is incorporated into their initial and ongoing training. They are aware of the procedures in place to identify problems, and confirmed they are fully supported by the social work units to work with any issues raised.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Managers, staff and carers are demonstrably safe and suitable to work with children and young people. Recruitment practices are comprehensive and thorough. Staff and carers are clear about their respective roles and responsibilities with regard to safeguarding. This results in good safety outcomes for children.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Foster panel members are recruited appropriately and are required to provide references and undertake a Criminal Records Bureau disclosure. The panel serves children well and can demonstrate good outcomes. It is well managed with effective members who understand the needs of children. The panel chair confirmed that panel members receive sound preparation and training. The training includes child protection awareness and up to date knowledge about best practice in assessment and placement planning. The panel considers matches, exemptions and extensions to placements, the initial foster carer's approval and first annual review. Where required, the panel also considers issues identified during the assessment and review process. There is a clear procedure in place for dealing with disagreements. The agency decision maker is provided with the details and is responsible for making the final decision. 6 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. The fostering service ensures that equality and diversity is promoted and is incorporated into work practice. This begins at the application stage for prospective foster carers and ensures that opportunities are available to all local community groups. The service undertakes targeted advertising and recruitment and this ensures under represented groups are successfully informed. The diverse range of foster carers enables the service to make appropriate culturally matched placements in most cases. Staff spoken to said that equality and diversity is an integral part of their work practice. It is clearly linked to safeguarding and understanding the needs of individual children and young people. Foster carers are supported and encouraged to ensure each child and young person develops skills to deal with all forms of discrimination. This is also covered in preparation and training for foster carers.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The fostering service gives a high priority to meeting the educational needs of each child and young person in foster care. Foster carers contribute to the assessment of each child’s education, ensuring that at each stage of planning and review the central focus is on the child or young person. The fostering service helps foster carers to contribute to the delivery of any personal education plan (PEP). The virtual school for ‘looked after children’ is well established and provides excellent support for children, young people and their carers. The main focus of the school is on raising the attainment level for children in care. This is achieved through various forms of support and advice such as, one to one support, e-learning and mentoring. There is additional input from other professionals such as an occupational therapist. The virtual school ensures that children remain the central focus of all support. Foster carers are provided with

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

training on ‘promoting educational achievement’. This training covers engaging children, and supporting carers to deal with challenging and difficult situations. Learning mentors provide targeted support to under 5s and older children undertaking GCSEs and equivalents. Learning mentors are particularly valued by foster carers. The service is aimed at supporting foster carers with tools and skills to develop the learning capacity of children.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children and young people are supported by foster carers to attend a range of out of school activities. Opportunities to attend sporting activities and after school clubs, such as cubs, brownies, guides and theatre groups, are available. Young people are happy with the activities and after school support provided for them.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The service does not provide a direct short-term break service, but includes a respite care service for all carers within the system. The scheme works well and is adequately supported.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. There are clear arrangements for children and young people to remain in touch with family and friends and this is promoted by the service. Contact is arranged at the initial placement planning meeting and is constantly reviewed and monitored at the six monthly child care reviews. The fostering service ‘reclaiming social work’ strategy, places emphasis on children being supported to live within their family and community.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The fostering service is linked with ‘action for children’, an independent visiting service. This is valued by children, young people, carers and social workers. It is easily accessible and no referral is necessary. Foster carers have access to initial and refresher training related to talking 7 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010 and listening to children. There are clear systems in place to enable children and young people to have their say about the care and support they receive.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The Hackney Pledge for looked after children and young people was created by children, young people and Hackney staff, supported by the Corporate Parenting Board. The pledge covers all aspect of a child’s life, needs and support whilst in care. Young people have taken ownership of the ‘pledge’ and feel proud of it.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children and young people are encouraged through various groups within the looked after children’s service to voice their opinions. The main group is the ‘children in care council’ known as ‘Our Voice, Our Choice’ (OVOC) which has provided excellent support to children in the care system.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Social workers are accessible to children and young people. They are able to text, drop-call or email anyone with the unit and their calls are always responded to. In general children and young people are consulted about their care. Their views are listened to and taken seriously. Young people said that they would approach their social worker or their foster carer if they wanted to make a complaint.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The provision is good. Children and young people are encouraged to achieve in their placements. They receive appropriate support from foster carers to reach an appropriate level of independence prior to living independently in the community. There are systems and pathway plans in place to ensure that young people are supported by the service through the transition period to independence and beyond.

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Achieving economic wellbeing

The fostering service has strong links with the leaving care service, and the units work together to support young people to access appropriate accommodation and support. The leaving care service works with young people to ensure they are able to achieve independence. Carers are committed to supporting young people placed with them to realise and achieve their goals and attain an appropriate level of skills for adult life. Foster carer's receive training and support to enable them to provide effective guidance to young people.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. There is a Statement of Purpose that sets out the aims and objectives of the service. It includes details of the facilities and services to be provided for foster carers and children. A range of different types of placements are included. However, the Statement does not include all information required by regulation. The children's guide has been reviewed it includes a summary of what the service sets out to do for children. It includes details of the complaints procedure and how to contact independent advocates. The guide is available in one format which is acceptable for older young people. There is no separate guide for younger children which means that not all children will understand what to expect from the service. The guide can be translated into different community languages on request.

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Organisation

The service is managed by those who are suitably qualified and experienced. There are appropriate recruitment procedures in place. Where vacancies have arisen they are appropriately 8 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010 covered by agency staff. All new staff undertake an induction programme and a six month probationary period which is reviewed as part of the supervision process. A training plan is available and personal development and training needs are incorporated into annual appraisals. Policies and procedures related to the service and those related to the wider local authority are easily accessible on the intranet.

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Organisation

The fostering team has an adequate number of staff who are skilled and qualified for their roles. Hackney has been reorganising their children and young peoples services since 2007 under the banner of "Reclaiming Social Work". The fostering service is one of the last sections to change from social work teams to social work units. It is envisaged that the change will have a positive effect on the service, to avoid delay in service delivery and ensure easy access to specific health and education professionals.

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Organisation

There is a clear strategy and policy in place aimed at recruiting a range of carers to meet the needs of children and young people in the care system. Carers confirmed that they see their supervising social worker regularly. They said they have access to a range of training including the Children's Workforce Development Council training. Over 30 carers have completed the course and others are in the process of completion. There is a training schedule for carers which covers all training undertaken. However, this document gave different information from that included on foster carer's files and therefore it is not clear exactly what training has actually been undertaken. Future training opportunities may be missed as a result of recording errors.

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Organisation

Support groups are held monthly and carers are encouraged to attend. There is an out of hours support service and contact details are available in the foster carer's handbook. Carers confirmed that they receive appropriate information about the children placed with them. The approval of each fostering household is reviewed annually and reports are available to the Fostering Panel.

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Organisation

Children case records are satisfactory and they are located on an electronic recording system. The system has been used since April 2007. Records seen were difficult to read and information was recorded differently on individual files. Staff said that the running records tell the child's story. One file showed inconsistent running records. There were gaps of up to three months without any recordings. During this three month period, a pathway planning meeting and a statutory child care review had taken place but these important details are not mentioned on the running record. They were recorded in a separate section of the file. Individual records kept by carers are inconsistent. One record seen was comprehensive, another was limited, and one was not available. Limited foster carer records reduce the information that will be available to children when they leave care.

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Organisation

In general separate records are kept for staff, carers, children, allegations and complaints. However one kinship carer's file is blank. The information regarding the carer is incorporated into the file for the oldest child in placement. Administrative records and case records are not always correct. For example the foster carers' register is out of date. Information regarding addresses is not recorded correctly for all carers. The recording and monitoring systems for the fostering service do not fully meet the national minimum standard required. The recording policy describes family files (for kinship placements) where information is recorded centrally on one of the children's files, and this does not meet the required standard. Looked after children files are recorded separately. 9 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010 Kinship care is promoted by the local authority. Where possible the first choice is for a child to

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Organisation

be placed with family or friends. The service also promotes Residents Orders and Special Guardianship Orders as an alternative to placing a child in foster care.

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Organisation

The promotion of equality and diversity is good. The fostering service recruits staff and carers who reflect the ethnic and cultural backgrounds of the children they support. Staff and carers understand their roles and responsibilities with regard to promoting equality and diversity. Every effort is made to place children within their own cultural, racial, linguistic and religious communities. Where this is not possible, plans are developed to ensure children's cultural needs are fully met. Children with disabilities are placed in an environment that promotes social inclusion and recognises and caters for their individual needs.

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • review the Statement of Purpose and children's guide and ensure these documents meet the required national minimum standards and regulations (NMS 1.(4)(5)) • ensure that an accurate record of training is kept for the purpose of the foster carer's review of approval (NMS 23.8) • ensure that the written policy on case recording meets the national minimum standards (NMS 24.2) • ensure that carers understand the need to keep information about children safe and are provided with the necessary equipment for this purpose (NMS 24.7) • ensure that in all cases separate records are kept for carers and children (NMS 25.2) 10 of 10 Inspection Report: London Borough of Hackney Fostering Team,20 September 2010

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