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
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Together Trust, a Cheadle-based charity that provides care, special education and support services across the North West of England, are on a mission to get more people to consider becoming foster carers.

Their new digital advertising campaign, developed in collaboration with Manchester-based agency Creative Concern, hopes to show the public that they could provide a young person with the stability they need to succeed in life. Highlighting the support the charity can offer its foster carers, it demonstrates how this translates into better outcomes for the child or young person in foster care.

​There are over 70,000 children in foster and residential care across the UK. Fostering agencies receive hundreds of referrals each week but are unable to provide homes due to the shortage of foster carers, particularly in the North West.  

Together Trust’s fostering service specialises in finding foster homes for children aged 10 years and over, sibling groups and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Lisa Grundy, Fostering Manager at Together Trust, said: “We’re looking for people who can offer stability, warmth and guidance to children and young people who, through no fault of their own, may not have had the best start in life.

“Even in 2018 there are still a lot of misconceptions around fostering and who can be a foster carer. Young people come in all shapes and sizes, and so do foster carers. We want to encourage people from all walks of life to consider it. If not now, then in the future.

“If you’re interested in fostering but think you might not be eligible, or if you have questions about fostering, get in touch so that we can give you the information you need.”
 
You can find out more about Together Trust’s foster carer recruitment campaign at https://www.togethertrust.org.uk/thinking-about-career-fostering

If you’d like more information about becoming a foster carer, call 0161 283 4800 or email fostercarer@togethertrust.org.uk.

About us
​At Together Trust we believe everybody deserves an equal chance in life. There are no exceptions. We provide a wide range of support services including fostering, residential, community and family support. We also provide specialist educational support through our schools and colleges.

The children and families who use our services live in safe, stable placements with individual assessments/person-centred plans supported by a highly experienced, committed and specialist staff. Our Foster team ensures safe, caring homes for children who need them. This could be for a matter of days, weeks, months or years. They help children and young people experience new things, build their self-esteem and grow and develop into young adults.

As our supervising social worker in Fostering you will…
Work closely with colleagues and local authority service purchasers overseeing all current and prospective foster placements. Be professional and supportive from recruitment and selection of foster families to getting to know the children and making a suitable and sustainable match. To be wholly involved in this incredibly rewarding role; from management of the placements to delivery of the service that has a child-focused ethos.

About you
An exceptional qualified social worker who can commit to the 12 month contract. You will enjoy working in a multidisciplinary environment and understand the benefits that fostering can have for children and families

Benefits

• Certified Training
• Child-Care Vouchers
• Company Pension
• Competitive Salary
• Flexible Working
• Generous Holiday
• Great Working Environment
• In House Training
• Progression Opportunities
• Recognised Qualifications

Further information and application documents here
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Local charity fostering hero, Ian Riley, has been chosen as one of 50 people on The Independent's Happy List.

Now in its tenth year, the list is a collection of inspirational heroes and heroines whose kindness, courage and selflessness make Britain a better place to live.

A senior support worker for our fostering service, Ian has been with Together Trust for over 25 years. Starting out in our residential homes and progressing into the fostering team, he has worked tirelessly to ensure that some of our most vulnerable young people experience as much joy and happiness as possible.

​​Nominated for giving people hope and always turning up with a smile, it was Ian’s dedication and commitment to changing the lives of our vulnerable young people that saw him chosen for this year's Happy List. Not to mention the fact that he isn’t afraid to dress up as Santa for the residential Christmas party!

But dressing up as Santa at the residential Christmas party is just one of the many ways that Ian works to ensure that children in care have an equal chance in life. As part of a small but dedicated fostering team, Ian gets to know all of Together Trust’s foster carers, helping them to offer stability, warmth and guidance to the young people they support.

Ian said: "25 years with our wonderful charity has gone so fast. I enjoy working alongside our young people and playing my part in helping them prepare for their future once they leave us for the big wide world."

Find out more about Together Trust’s fostering service:  https://www.togethertrust.org.uk/thinking-about-career-fostering

Source:
www.togethertrust.org.uk

Last month the government released its response to the fostering stocktake and education select committee inquiry, Fostering Better Outcomes.
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We were pleased to see that the government puts children’s needs and views at the heart of their vision for foster care. High quality, stable and trusted relationships are also a welcomed priority. However, we, along with the Alliance for Children in Care and Care Leavers, were disappointed that the government did not outline how they would deliver this vision, or make a commitment to funding. Something which we agree is needed to achieve the best outcomes for children in care. We would welcome clear guidance from the government over how they hope to make this vision a reality.

A priority for our own fostering service is to ensure that we offer stable placements so we are pleased to see the introduction of the National Stability Forum. We agree that a joined-up approach by leaders from across the sector will improve the outcomes for children in care.

We would like to see the government to place more emphasis on the Staying Put policy. Having worked with other charities on the Staying Put report, this remains a priority focus for our own placements. We would like to see the government address the barriers that exist for the Staying Put policy.

Along with our colleagues in the Alliance, we are happy to see a commitment to improving fostering and look forward to working with the government so we can achieve an equal chance in life for the children and young people in our care. 

Jill Sheldrake, Service Director 

Source:
www.togethertrust.org.uk

This summer, Together Trust were proud to celebrate the accomplishments of 200 young people and adults from across its services.
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The special event, held at Stockport County football club, celebrated the exceptional achievements of the individuals from across our care, community and special education services.  

Over 300 guests attended the awards ceremony to champion our young people and adults, including family and friends, Together Trust staff and trustees and special guests the Mayor and Mayoress of Stockport, the Mayor of Salford, and members of Hazel Grove Rotary Club.

Opening the ceremony, Mark Lee, Chief Executive of Together Trust said:

“Tonight we celebrate the fantastic achievements our young people have made over the past 12 months.

"We have been truly inspired by what they have done, the challenges they have overcome and the successes they have achieved.”

Each individual was awarded with a certificate of their achievements, a medal and gift vouchers. After the award presentations, guests were treated to a special musical performance by students from Ashcroft School who composed and sang their own songs.

The award ceremony was sponsored by our corporate partners, Insight, who presented their own special prize, the Insight Award for excellence in communication. During the event, members of Hazel Grove Rotary Club also presented Together Trust with an incredibly generous cheque for £1,000 from their recent fundraising activities. 

Closing the ceremony, Together Trust Chairman of Trustees, Wendy Coomer said: “It is such a great joy to host this event.

"It’s a really happy occasion, celebrating the successes of the young people and adults from across Together Trust. Congratulations to you all.” 

After the award presentations young people, parents and colleagues hit the dance floor, giving everyone the chance to join the celebrations.

Huge congratulations to all the young people and adults who attended this year’s achievement awards and for your successes throughout the year! 

Source:
www.togethertrust.org.uk