Fostering – EMPT London

Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children research and guidance information

Evans Management and Professional Training — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 16:26:59 +0000

Main Legislative Framework and Guidance

The Children Act 1989 places a responsibility upon Local Authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people living in their area. When children in need are identified, an assessment of their needs should be undertaken.

A major factor for unaccompanied asylum seeking children is that the burden of proof is placed upon the applicant to evidence his or her asylum claim.

The Hillingdon Judgement and Local Authority Circular (2003) 13

All UASC should, on arrival, be supported under S20 of the Children Act 1989, until an assessment of needs has been completed.

Based on assessed need, most UASC including 16 and 17 year olds who require accommodation should be provided with S20 support.
The majority of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children will be entitled to leaving care services.
S17 can be used to support Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children in exceptional circumstances where an assessment of needs identified that to become looked after would not be in the UASC’s best interests – for example if the young person strongly expresses aversion to becoming looked after.

Research by the refugee Council

Recent research by the refugee council shows that 88% of unaccompanied children applicants were male and 90% of unaccompanied children were aged 14-17. This research also highlighted that unaccompanied children who have reached the age of 18 are much more likely to have their asylum claim refused. This involves children who have reached the age of 18 having a refusal rate of 70% in 2013.

The refugee council research also highlights that a new category, UASC leave, was introduced in 2013 and is now used in cases where the only reason for giving leave is that the applicant is a child who cannot be returned, and this means there are now far fewer grants of discretionary leave than in the past’.

In terms of finding the families of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children the Kent’s Law clinic publication (2014) shows that even when an accompanied child claims asylum in the UK the Home Office has a duty to endeavour to trace the child’s family.

All Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children should be supported by the appropriate Local Authority. The National Asylum Support Service and Coram Children’s legal centre also provide some useful services for Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children.

Health and social care training and the use of reflective functioning

Evans Management and Professional Training — Sun, 27 Sep 2015 12:57:40 +0000

Reflective functioning is described by various researchers to involve both a self-reflective and interpersonal components in which an individual grasps the complex interplay between their own feelings and those of others.

One way of trainers/teachers manifesting the characteristics of reflective thinking is through models of training and/or teaching delivery. For health and social care training it is important to give social care workers working in settings such as foster care and other residential child care, the opportunity to reflect upon the internal experience of the children they are caring for .

This includes promoting the basic principles of how children and young people from all ages form attachments and promoting the understanding around how these attachments affect their development, and the impact of interrupted development, trauma, separation and loss.

The training, support and development standards (5.1 a-c, 5.2 a, 5.3 a-c, 5.4 a-c) covers some basic foster care practising standards around promoting attachments and stages of development. Adoption & fostering quarterly journal by BAAF (Volume 9, 2 July 2015: 145-158 explores reflective functioning in foster carers using the Parent Development Interview.

Training and Development

Evans Management and Professional Training — Tue, 09 Jun 2015 12:04:32 +0000

The Education and Training Foundation (website) released a set of aspirational standards in May 2014. The Professional Standards provide a framework for teachers and trainers to critically appraise their own practice and improve their teaching through Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Almost 1,000 sector professionals were involved in the development of the standards to ensure they accurately reflected practitioners’ needs.
To download your copy click here

Some aspects of training and the Fostering National standards (2011)

Evans Management and Professional Training — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 10:12:19 +0000

National standards in foster care

NMS 3.8. Foster carers must receive training in promoting positive care and control of children, including training in de-escalating problems and disputes
NMS 4.6. Foster carers must receive training around appropriate safer-care practice, including skills to care for children who have been abused
NMS 6.7. Foster carers must receive sufficient training on health and hygiene issues and first aid
NMS 12.3. Training provided for foster carers should include appropriate training and support to foster carers caring for young people who are approaching adulthood
NMS 15.1. If a fostering household is considered to be a potential match for a child, if gaps in training are identified in the foster carer/s development, the fostering service should work with the responsible authority to ensure the placement plan sets out any additional training, resource or support required
NMS 20.2. All foster carers, including all members of a household who are approved
foster carers, are supported to achieve the Children’s Workforce Development Council’s Training, Support and Development Standards for Foster Care
NMS 20.4. Foster carers must maintain an ongoing training and development portfolio which demonstrates how they are meeting the skills required of them by the fostering service
NMS 20.5. Foster carers’ personal development plans set out how they will be supported to undertake ongoing training and development that is appropriate to their development needs and experience
NMS 20.6. The reviews of each carers approval must include an appraisal of performance against clear and consistent standards set by the agency, and consideration of training and development needs, which are documented in the review report. The foster carer’s personal development plan is reviewed and the effectiveness of training and development received is evaluated
NMS 20.8. Support and training is made available to foster carers, including hard to reach carers
NMS 20.9. Appropriate training on safer caring is provided for all members of the foster household, including young people of sufficient age and understanding, and ensures that foster carers understand how safer caring principles should be applied in a way which meets the needs of individual children
NMS 20.10. All training fits within a framework of equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practice and is organised to encourage and facilitate attendance by foster carers
NMS 20.11. In cases where a foster carer moves to a new fostering service, details of the development and training which he or she has undertaken, and of the extent to which the agreed training and development standards have been met, are made available on request to the new provider, and the foster carer is able to take their training and development portfolio with them
NMS 23.1. There is a good quality learning and development programme, which includes induction, post-qualifying and in-service training, that staff and volunteers are supported to undertake. The programme equips them with the skills required to meet the needs of the children, keeps them up-to-date with professional, legal and practice developments and reflects the policies, legal obligations and business needs of the fostering service
NMS 23.2. The learning and development programme is evaluated for effectiveness at least annually and is updated where necessary
NMS 23.3. New staff and volunteers undertake the Children’s Workforce Development Council’s induction standards, commencing within 7 working days of starting their employment and being completed within six months
NMS 23.4. All social workers and other specialists (e.g. medical, legal, educationalists, psychologists, therapists) are professionally qualified and,where applicable, registered by the appropriate professional body. They are appropriately trained to work with children, their families and foster carers, and have a good understanding of foster care and the policies and purpose of the fostering service.
NMS 23.5. Assessment and appraisal of all staff involved in fostering work takes account of identified skills needed for particular roles and is used to identify individuals’ learning and development needs.
NMS 23.6. Any staff involved in assessing the suitability of persons to be foster carers are social workers, have experience of foster care and family placement work and are trained in assessment. Social work students and social workers who do not have the relevant experience,only carry out assessments under the supervision of an appropriately experienced social worker, who takes responsibility for the assessment
NMS 23.9. Each person on the (panel) central list is given induction training which is completed within 10 weeks of joining the central list
NMS 23.10. Each person on the central list is given the opportunity of attending an annual joint training day with the fostering service’s fostering staff
NMS 23.11. Each person on the central list has access to appropriate training and skills development and is kept abreast of relevant changes to legislation and guidance