Source: 
www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk

​A BBC report has highlighted the prevalence of ‘golden hellos’ offered to local authority foster carers by large commercial profit-making agencies to transfer.

Whilst FCC fully supports the banning of these pay-outs, we need to be clear that companies offering these incentives are in fact commercial profit-making fostering organisations, rather than a number of ethical, not-for-profit fostering agencies that exist in the UK. 

Fostering Through Social Enterprise (FTSE), which represents charitable and not-for-profit fostering agencies, met in January to agree on a new term to describe its members: NFP Fostering Providers (not-for-profit fostering providers).  There was a general frustration amongst members that all independent fostering providers were being ‘tarred with the same brush’. 

It is extremely important that local authorities, as well as the general public, recognise that NFP Fostering Providers plough surplus income after office and support expenses, back into providing more support for their carers and children.  By doing so, these organisations are able to offer more support and more training – which can only benefit the children placed within these agencies.

FCC would also like to echo the point made by Harvey Gallagher, chief executive of the Nationwide Association of Fostering Providers, that the calculations for the cost of foster care within local authorities does not include the additional running costs faced by independent providers.  FCC cannot speak for other organisations, but as a not-for-profit provider with a clear ethical approach to fostering, operating costs are minimal.

The full report can be read here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-36975478

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk

The government has been urged to crack down on ‘golden hellos’ - offered as an incentive for foster carers to transfer from local authorities to commercial profit-making fostering agencies.

Dave Hill, president of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS), said that carers had been offered up to £3000 to transfer – and reported that in some instances the carers were sold back to local authorities for a much higher fee.

Ian Brazier, FCC’s Executive Director, said: “We fully support Mr Hill in his criticism of incentive payments for carer transfers – which artificially raises the cost of care. 

“As with many not-for-profit fostering providers, we are grateful for the support of dedicated and generous foster carers – unique people who define themselves by the care and love they provide to vulnerable children.  We all consider this approach to such an important task to be demeaning and distasteful.”

FCC pride themselves on a fully transparent not-for-profit approach to foster care, resulting in increased support and training for their foster carers.

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk

We were featured in The Times yesterday (7th June).  The article is about the contribution made to the UK economy by co-operative businesses and organisations.  It also highlights the amount of co-op members there currently are in the UK.

The section we're featured in reads:

Ian Brazier is executive director of The Foster Care Co-operative, based in Worcestershire, which has 350 members across the country.  He was not surprised that the co-operative model was expanding, he said, because his company offers flexibility, making the value-based model even more attractive to employees.

"The values are built in," he said. "A co-op is in many ways founded on the principle of we are all working together for each other, and the point I make to our members when we travel around the country is that they don't work for me - I work for them. It's my job to facilitate for them their skills for the co-op."
​

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk

Corporate Watch have published an article highlighting the amount of commercial profit made by some foster care organisations.

As foster care is paid for using public money, FCC believe any surplus income after running costs should be re-invested back into an organisation to provide more support for the children.

This is not about the standard of the provision of care being offered. It is about the proper use of limited local authority money allocated to childcare – particularly at a time when that funding is at the mercy of so many cuts.

You can read the article here: https://corporatewatch.org/news/2015/dec/15/foster-care-business
This follows on from meetings with FTSE (Fostering Through Social Enterprise) this week, where it was agreed that not-for-profit fostering organisations should refer to themselves as NFP Fostering Providers (not-for-profit fostering providers) in order to rightly distance themselves from those that make a commercial profit from foster care.

Independent providers of foster care have previously been referred to as IFAs (Independent Fostering Providers) – an umbrella term used to include both profit making and not-for-profit organisations, particularly by local authorities.

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk/fostering-with-us/news-and-events/foster-care-for-children-not-profit/

FCC’s executive director, Ian Brazier, attended a meeting with FTSE (Fostering Through Social Enterprise) on 6th January. It was a very positive meeting, and it has been agreed that we, along with other not-for-profit fostering providers, should refer to ourselves as NFP Fostering Providers (not-for-profit fostering providers) rather than IFA’s (Independent Fostering Agencies).

‘IFA’ is a general term, and it refers to both profit and not-for-profit making fostering agencies. FCC is very proud to be able to differentiate themselves from those that commercially profit from the fostering services they provide and so reduce the level of funding available for the care of children.

FTSE was established in 2007 and represents the views, perspectives and experience of a number of charitable and not-for-profit fostering providers.

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk/fostering-with-us/news-and-events/not-for-profit-fostering-agencies-to-be-called-nfp-fostering-providers/

The Fostering Network Wales has launched a report into the views of foster carers regarding what they believe is needed to raise the ambitions and educational outcomes of the young people in their care.

The report, entitled What is Needed to Enable Looked After Children to Achieve in Education? was commissioned by Welsh Government and follows consultations and a survey with foster carers carried out by The Fostering Network.

The report highlights the role of foster carers as first educators for the young people they are caring for, and the desire of foster carers to be increasingly involved in their fostered children’s education. Other findings of the report include:

•Foster carers believe additional funding is needed and that they should be more involved in deciding how the existing Pupil Deprivation Grant is used.
•Extra tutoring, professional support for emotional issues, and access to activities should be available to looked after children in all schools and provided flexibly to avoid stigmatising the child.
•Foster carers need to be encouraged to access training and other forms of support which might include peer support.
•More training about the needs of looked after children is required for education professionals who should also be encouraged to take up existing opportunities to better understand the needs of looked after children.
•The impact of instability on children needs to be fully recognised and taken into account when decisions are being made about placements, changes of school, and respite care provision.
•The importance of recognising the status and authority of foster carers within the children’s workforce.

Maria Boffey, from The Fostering Network and one of the report’s authors, said: ‘Raising the educational outcomes of fostered children and young people is a priority for The Fostering Network, and it is critical that foster carers be consulted and engaged with any process or policy reform which seeks to do this. The Fostering Network Wales has expertise and experience in engaging with foster carers and looked after children to inform policy development, and we are delighted to have been commissioned by the Welsh Government to produce this report which will help shape the future of the education of looked after young people in Wales.’

Source:
http://www.fostercarecooperative.co.uk/fostering-with-us/news-and-events/how-children-could-achieve-in-education/