By Jane Butler, CEO Foster Care Fortnight, led by The Fostering Network, aims to raise the profile of fostering across the UK, showcasing how it changes the lives of thousands of children and young people. The theme of this year’s campaign is ‘Change a Future’, and over the next two weeks we’ll be sharing some real life stories from children and young people whose futures have been changed by our foster carers. Team Fostering is a proud advocate of Foster Care Fortnight, with an ambition to help increase the number of foster carers at agencies and services across the country. We know that more new fostering families are needed to look after children who have a range of individual needs and the Fostering Network has highlighted that, in particular, the UK needs foster homes for older children and teenagers, sibling groups and disabled children. If you would like to know more about fostering, give us a call and our friendly team can answer any of your questions and talk you though the role. We are a not-for-profit agency which allows surplus funds to be invested into competitive carer payments, comprehensive support and innovative training opportunities, and our latest Ofsted report saw us awarded Outstanding in all areas*.
This month is particularly special to me, marking my 2 year anniversary at Team Fostering. I am proud to lead such a committed team of staff who support our dedicated foster carers. I love the opportunities I have to join in activities and events with our foster families as I can see first-hand the positive difference we are making to their lives. We hope this year's Foster Care Fortnight encourages more families to join us. * November 2018 (available here) Source: www.teamfostering.co.uk Putney SW15, flexible working options £40,000 - £45,000 pa depending on experience 37.5 hours per week - occasional evening and weekend work may be required About Us
St Christopher's is a leading charity for children and young people. Our vision is for every child and young person to be safe, loved and happy, to achieve their potential and have a bright future. We do this by providing children’s homes, fostering, homes for care leavers and specialist support services, all designed for young people in care, on the edge of care, or leaving care. We support them to make positive relationships which give them the confidence to succeed. We are looking for an experienced Head of Fundraising and Communications, in order to grow the fundraising department at St Christopher’s. We have big ambitions in our organisational strategy to provide brighter futures for double the number of young people by 2023 and fundraising will play a big part in helping us to achieve this. In 2020 we will be celebrating our 150th birthday and we are planning our fundraising appeal, as well as lots of exciting activities to celebrate our proud legacy, raise our profile and expand our donor base. We are a strengths-based charity and seek to promote the brilliant achievements our young people make to show donors how their investment and support contributes towards this success. About The Role As Head of Fundraising and Communications, you will be responsible for the development and growth of the fundraising and communications team, in order to bring in restricted and unrestricted income for St Christopher’s, in line with budgeted expectations. The department’s activities will include targeted applications to grant making trusts and foundations, developing the donor base and the development of corporate fundraising. The successful candidate will have:
In return we offer:
This is an exciting opportunity to step up into a challenging and strategic role. It will appeal to a self-starter, with the drive and creativity to make a role their own, as well as an interest in the strategic side of fundraising and being part of a developing and growing team. If you’re ready for the challenge and think you have the skills and passion to drive St Christopher’s forward, then we would love to hear from you. Recruitment Process At St Christopher’s we are committed to the safeguarding of all children and young people in our care. During the recruitment process you will be expected to complete an online application form to ensure we capture essential information to meet legislation, best practice and vetting requirements. To be considered, your on-line application must include a full supporting statement addressing the criteria stated above. For the full Job Description for this role and more detail about what will be required, please click here. If you require any further information, please contact us on 0208 780 7800. Closing Date: 27th May 2019 We advise to apply as soon as possible as applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and this opportunity might be filled before the stated closing date. St Christopher’s is committed to equal opportunities and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. Full details and application documents here Location: Northants Salary: £33,561 (Pro Rata PA) + £1,500 Out of Hours Allowance Closing Date: 23/05/2019 Interview Date: 31/05/2019 Hours: 35 Hours Per Week Senior Supervising Social Worker
Senior Supervising Social Worker - Fostering Full Time, Office Based Position Fixed Term for 6 Months with potential for Permanent Appointment TACT, the UK’s largest fostering and adoption charity now has over 500 dedicated carers, who look after over 600 children and young people across the country. Our reputation and growth rests upon our strength in providing successful placements. As a charity, we do not have shareholders who receive profits and we invest all of our surplus income into fostering services, staff, carers, and children’s development. Our vision is to provide better lives for our children and young people. The overall purpose of this role is to recruit, assess, train and support a diverse range of foster carers and placements. The TACT East Midlands Team are seeking an enthusiastic and committed Senior Supervising Social Worker for this full time office based role. The successful candidate will be supporting and supervising foster carers across the region so the ability to travel is required. In addition the successful candidate will provide support to other less experienced members of the social work team. The post will be offered on a fixed term contract for 6 months initially with the possibility of being made permanent thereafter. The successful candidate will have the following :
You will be required to be on an out of hours’ rota and you will be eligable for an out of hours’ allowance of £1,500 per annum once participating in the rota and in addition TACT offer an excellent employee benefits package including:
Please see the job information pack for further information. Closing: Midnight on Thursday 23rd May 2019 Interviews: Friday 31st May 2019 at TACT East Midlands (NN15 7HH) TACT reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so we advise you to submit your application as early as possible to prevent disappointment. Apply here Location: Head Office Contract Type: Permanent Closing Date: 28 May 2019 Salary: £40,000- £45,000 Specific Hours: 37.5 St Christopher's is a leading charity for children and young people and we are proud of our history for providing fostering, children's homes and a range of innovative leaving care services across the UK & Isle of Man.
We currently have an exciting opportunity for a Company Secretary ideally from a charity or not for profit background to join our administrative and governance team working closely with the Chief Executive Officer to contribute and help create an inspiring place to work by ensuring regulatory requirements are met and to manage the delivery of Council business for St Christopher's and its subsidiaries. Compliance responsibilities for data protection, health and safety and quality assurance. Additionally the post holder will manage a small team responsible for providing a professional, customer focused and cost effective data management, reception, administration and secretarial services at Head Office. The ideal candidate:
Key aspects of the job will be:
The role will appeal to a creative self- starter with positive high energy levels, enthusiasm and a real can do attitude, looking for greater autonomy and a sense of ownership. If you’re ready for the challenge and think you have the skills to drive St Christopher’s forward we would love to hear from you. For the full Job Description for this role and more detail about what will be required, please click here. To be considered, your on-line application must include a full supporting statement addressing the criteria given in the Person Specification. If you require any further information, please contact us on 0208 780 7800. Closing Date: 28th May 2019 (Please bear in mind that applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. This post is subject to a DBS check) St Christopher’s is committed to equal opportunities and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. Full details and application documents here. Location: Family Placement South East & London Contract type:Permanent Hours: 37 Salary : £28,631.52 - £37,414.60 FTE Closing Date: 17 May 2019 Interview Date: to be confirmed This is a Social Work role in our Family Placement service (Fostering & Adoption) and is responsible for providing a social work service to foster carers/adopters and children/young people to ensure that the best outcomes for children and young people is achieved at all times in line with all statutory and regulatory requirements, alongside Barnardo's policies and procedures.
The role will also contribute to the development of the service by working collaboratively with Family Placement colleagues undertaking such activities as recruitment and training and supporting the wider Barnardo's Family Placement agenda. An on call allowance is paid. About Barnardo's At Barnardo's we believe in children – no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role. Barnardo's is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce for staff and volunteers. We actively encourage applications from disabled, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic and male candidates as they are under-represented within Barnardo's. Our basis and values Full details and application documents here Fostering staff at Together Trust, a Cheadle-based charity, were delighted to receive a ‘Good’ rating following a recent Ofsted inspection. The charity, which supports young people, adults and families across the North West, has been running its fostering service for over 20 years. They also provide care for children and young people through their residential homes and short-break services. The Ofsted report heaped praised on the charity’s foster carers, emphasising the positive relationships they have built with the children in their care. It stated: ‘Children live in nurturing, safe and stimulating homes. They enjoy loving, reliable and trusting relationships with their foster carers. They develop a strong sense of belonging and very much feel part of the family.’ ‘A child said, “My foster carers have been amazing and given me the childhood I never had. They are kind, caring and treat me like their actual son, as part of their family.”’ Ofsted report The report went on to commend the charity’s management team for their devotion to ensuring the best outcomes for both foster carers and the children in their care. It noted the ‘inspirational’ and ‘forward-thinking’ approach of the service’s team, as well as their ‘ambitions and high aspirations for every child’. Despite the positive outcome of the inspection, Ian Uttridge, Head of Children and Family Services at Together Trust, spoke of some of the challenges facing the charity. Ian said: “Together Trust’s fostering service receives hundreds of referrals a month for children and young people in need of stable homes. But unfortunately the number of people coming forward as potential foster carers continues to drop. “We want people from all walks of life to consider becoming foster carers, if not now then in the future. There are lots of myths and misconceptions around fostering, what’s involved and the young people in foster care. We’d urge anyone who is passionate about making a difference to children and young people’s lives to get in touch with our team for an informal chat.” You can find out more about fostering with Together Trust by visiting https://www.togethertrust.org.uk/be-foster-carer We are searching for new talented inspired people to join our crew.
As a small community-focused fostering charity, exciting things are happening, and we’re look for new crew members to join our expedition. We’re propelled by our values and our beliefs to explore new ways to realise young people’s potential and achieve our mission. We currently have posts for Supervising Social Workers or Senior Supervising Social Workers in Gloucester and Royal Wootton Bassett. £27,900 - £36,000 pro rata, plus car allowance and other benefits. 30 hours or 37.5 hours Closing date: Sunday 12 May 2019 Interview date: Wednesday 15 May 2019 Please Note We employ robust and thorough safer recruitment procedures. To find out more about these exciting charity opportunities, to read the recruitment packs and grab an application form, visit: www.communityfostercare.co.uk/about-us/job-vacancies Hi, I’m T. I am 18 and I have been in care for the last 4 years, recently moving into semi-independent living in Rotherham, just before my 18th birthday. This is my story. Coming into care was scary, we all have different reasons for being a looked-after child, but it is for the best if our circumstances at home aren’t great or we are at risk of harm. Our first steps into our new home for a few months or years are scary, we don’t expect it to be easy and it isn’t, but we eventually overcome that feeling thanks to the support we get. I personally think that the hardest part is leaving care and leaving the home we spent most of our time in, Christmas, bonfire night, Halloween and many more memories we make. We make a bond with our foster carers that is unbreakable at times, but sometimes they aren’t as strong due to reasons that are from both sides. Our first thoughts are, ‘are we going to have someone to talk to?’ The answer to that daunting question is yes you do get someone to talk to, you get a decent amount of support, there is always support and a person that you’re able to talk to when you need to. Staff at Team Fostering are only a phone call away, your foster carers are only downstairs. Teachers at your sometimes new school are always very supportive of your move to your new home, and maybe your parents if you still have contact. My experience of being in foster care is that it is scary, the problems from your birth home may follow you to your new home, but there is always a solution and there is always help if you need it and support. In my time at my previous foster carer’s home I experienced some problems, for example my foster mother became critically ill and she was in a coma, but she had numerous operations that in the end saved her life☺️YAY! I was supported and helped to cope with these problems, everyone at Team Fostering made sure I was safe and wasn’t worrying about anything! At Team Fostering they held so many activities for children to keep them happy. There were activities such as Diggerland, Drayton Manor, Lightwater Valley, laser tag, swimming, ice skating, and many others. We even have a residential that kids are able to go on to learn life skills, making our own food, having our own room with responsibly to keep it clean, different activities throughout the weekend. At all of these activities there are new children to talk to, interact with and bond with! They are all so sweet and polite and they all make you feel wanted and welcomed! Leaving care was scary but we all have to do it one day! The feeling of responsibility can be horrible but at the same time it sounds great! It’s hard living on your own, bills, budgeting so we have enough money to sort out our bills and food. But, the thought of finding my own place and starting my life and children is an amazing thought and feeling and I love thinking about it! My journey towards my independence started at supported housing in Rotherham. Here I am provided with a key worker, she supports me with budgeting (I’m not very good at this), attending appointments, cooking, workshops and many other things. There are staff there 24/7 for support and to make sure every child and young adult is safe and feels safe. There are also numerous other accommodations that you can choose from once you leave or are ready to leave care. Personally I LOVE TEAM FOSTERING! Being a care kid has changed my life and changed my views on everything in life! Source: www.teamfostering.co.uk |
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