STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of Next Step Fostering Services is to provide quality foster care for looked after children and young people aged 0-18 for assessment, support, respite, and rehabilitation (if appropriate), as well as short, medium and long-term care for children where it is not possible for them to return home.  Next Step also provide parent and child placements which offer support, supervision and assessments within public court proceedings.  There is a day time activity based programme for children temporarily outside of mainstream education.

Next Step has adapted to the Every Child Matters initiative and has ensured this is known through the staff group and the foster carers.

Statement of Functions

1. Next Step recruits suitable people - within the context if its Equal Opportunities Policy and subject to consideration by the Next Step fostering panel to become foster carers.  Carers are approved across the various ‘Form F’ categories dependent on the assessment.

2. The organisation provides support, advice and training to the foster carers through Link Workers, the designated Manager, carer support and supervised groups and training packages.
   

3. Next Step regularly reviews the work and practices of all carers and such information attributes to the carers' annual review.
   

4. Looked after children / young people who are referred to Next Step are considered at the referral stage by the Registered Manager and Link Workers. 
   
   Appropriate matches are progressed between child and potential carer and this is done in full consultation with placing Social Workers, Link Workers and Next Step Managers, who have the responsibility of taking final matching decisions.
   

5. Looked after children / young people receive ongoing care from their designated foster carer.  The Link Workers maintain frequent and regular contact with carers and provide support, supervision, advice and consultation as necessary.  Unannounced visits are carried out by Link Workers. 
   
   They also monitor the progress of children and young people as part of their liaison with carers. 
   
   The Link Workers are responsible for ongoing liaison with placing social workers. The designated Manager provides regular, planned supervision to the Link workers in respect of all these matters and is managerially accountable for each placement, quality of childcare practice and provision of professional support, advice and consultation.
   

6. Children and young people who are not in mainstream education or who are embarking on the first steps to independence may attend the Next Step Daytime Programme in Kent, which is aimed at the 8 to 16 years age group.  In addition, tailor-made support packages are available to all ages children and young people either within or outside of Kent.
   

7. Where needed, with funding from a Local Authority, child centred therapy can be put in place provided by a range of qualified therapists offering different approaches.
   

8. Those families who are accepted for comprehensive risk assessments are placed with suitable foster carers where the necessary work can be undertaken based on the Department of Health's publication “Assessing Children in Need and their Families” more commonly know as "The Lilac Book". A specialist social worker can be commissioned to take the lead role in those assessments in the support of carers and the direct work with families.

Management Structure

Next Step Fostering Services is an independent fostering agency that is managed by people with a variety of experience within this field.

Maureen Ward, the founder, began fostering in 1982.  She provides advice and support to the management team and directorate. 

The Registered Manager is Lesley Ward, a qualified social worker with an NVQ Level V in Business Management.  Lesley manages the social work and administration elements of the agency, including all of the foster carers, as well as other quality assurance roles.

Ian Dixon is the Service Manager and Responsible Individual, and has social work experience in senior management roles in social services departments since 1982.  Ian is responsible for the developments within Next Step and the finance and personnel issues.  He is also the Agency’s ‘Decision Maker’ for all fostering panel matters.

Geoff Simpson, Independent Social Worker, who qualified in 1972 and has a wide experience both in practice and social work management, provides advice and support to the management team and organisation.

Foster Carer Recruitment Process

• Applicants are initially processed through the administrative system then telephone contact is made and an initial home visit undertaken.
  

• Applicants are then invited to meet staff and foster carers.
  

• Applicants attend the “Skills to Foster” Course as part of their initial assessment and induction to fostering.
  

• In consultation with agency colleagues a decision is reached as to which candidates should go forward for full assessment (BAAF F Form).  These are mostly undertaken by suitably experienced and qualified independent social workers and supervised by an independent social worker with expertise in assessment and supervision.
  

• All necessary checks and references are taken up.
  

• On completion of the assessment the applicants are presented to the Next Step Fostering Panel.
  

• Following the panel recommendations, a decision is taken by the agency decision-maker.
  

• On appointment the foster carers are enrolled on the Agency’s professional development/training programme.

Legal Status and Constitution

Next Step Fostering is registered as a Limited Company known as Next Step Fostering Services Ltd.

Principles

1. Each child is unique and their welfare paramount.
   

2. The child's family is the preferred place for children to live.
   

3. Where a child needs to be looked after outside the family there is no compromise to the provision of high quality individualised care.
   

4. Children have a right to feel safe, be protected, be treated with respect and dignity, be encouraged, nurtured, supported, helped, looked after, have their heritage permitted, be consulted, considered, be helped towards a personal sense of worth, well-being and independence.
   

5. The parents, carers and relatives of looked after children have a right to be kept informed, involved and consulted as appropriate. They have the right to be treated as individuals with respect and without being judged.
   

6. Individual care planning is imperative at the outset of each placement followed by regular reviews to ensure all the needs to the child are met.
   

7. Children have a right to expect the very best professional care from foster carers. Therefore Next Step is committed to the provision of quality support, supervision, advice, consultation and training to enable carers to meet the child's needs. In addition there is 24-hour support available to carers from Next Step staff and a Manager to cover on-call decisions.
   

8. The organisation’s staff make a major contribution to the service and receive high quality, structured supervision, support and training in order to facilitate best practice in all their activities.
   

9. Next Step is committed to working in partnership with all who have an involvement in a child's life.
   

10. Next Step is committed to its Equal Opportunities Policy and to working in a manner that is anti-discriminatory in practice.
    

11. Next Step Fostering actively self-regulates its work and maintains openness to ongoing critical evaluation. It welcomes comment from the children / young people, carers, staff, independent workers, placing authorities, panel members and any who have a contribution to make.  Next Step Fostering welcomes the arrival of the inspectors from the Commission for Social Care and Inspection.
    

12. Next Step Fostering has a commitment to keeping abreast of developments in Fostering and is committed to change when that is required, appropriate and provides for improvements in the service.