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Thurrock Council Foster Carers’

Recruitment Strategy

2017-2020

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CONTENTS

Item Page

1. Introduction 3

2. National Context 3

3. Local Context –Thurrock 3

4. Fostering Statistics and Analysis 2016/17 5

5. IMPOWER review Report 9

6. Thurrock Plan 11

7. Positioning Thurrock 12

8. Monitoring and Evaluation 12

9. Action Plan Year 1 Apr 17 – Mar 18 13

1.

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2. Introduction

To ensure a strategic recruitment approach is adopted to meet the council’s placement sufficiency, a comprehensive audit and review was undertaken by an external organisation, IMPOWER. The outcome of IMPOWER audit and review has informed this new strategy. It is important to emphasise that support systems are being rolled out to streamline the recruitment processes and to progress all enquiries in a timely, efficient manner in order to sustain the interest and motivation of prospective carers. This document must therefore be read in conjunction with IMPOWER review and Thurrock Fostering Statement of Purpose. This document compliments Thurrock Children services sufficiency strategy by outlining the approach and plans Thurrock Council has for recruiting foster carers for children requiring foster placements. Thurrock fostering placement analysis from 2015 to 2017 predicts that between 200 and 250 children require foster placements annually. Whilst acknowledging that in-house placement capacity has increased from 85 places in 2015/2016 to 120 places 2016//2017, about 100 to 120 children are still placed with independent Fostering Agency. Thurrock Family Placement Service strategy therefore is to increase the In-House foster placement capacity of 80 carers by 20% annually for the next 3 years. The intended outcome is that by 2020, Thurrock should be able to place up to 80% (230) of all children in care with In-House Foster carers. To achieve this, a net increase of 45 new fostering household must be added to the current portfolio over the next 3 years, from the 76 active fostering households to 122 households. Thurrock recruitment strategy outlines and complies with statutory requirements - ensuring that, the Fostering Services: National Minimum Standards 2011 and (England) Regulations 2011 are met fully in the recruitment, assessment, approval, review and support of foster carers. It also provides details, in context, the key issues facing the service. Thurrock Fostering Service recognises the importance of recruiting suitable carers to meet the growing placement demands of children who are looked after by Thurrock Council.

3. National and Local Context

According to figures released by the Fostering Network for the period April 2015 to 31st March 2016,

nearly 64,000 children live with almost 55,000 foster families across the UK each day. This is nearly

80% of the 81,000 children in care away from home on any one day with a rising number of children

coming into care, and around 12% of foster carers retiring or leaving the service last year. According

to official figures released by Department for Education and Fostering Network (2014), around

30,000 more children come into care over the course of 12 months, with similar numbers leaving the

care system to return home, move in with another family member, live with new adoptive families,

become subject to a special guardianship or residence order or move on to adult life.

As at 31st March 2016, 51,850 children were living with around 44,625 foster families. The Fostering

Network estimate that about 5900 new foster carers are needed in England and a total of 530 new

foster carers are needed in Eastern Region, which include Thurrock, to meet fostering sufficiency

target According to the Fostering network analysis (2014), more foster families are needed in

England to provide homes for teenagers, children with disabilities and large sibling groups. Shortage

of carers for teenager and large sibling placement is consistent with Thurrock current situation.

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4. Local Context - Thurrock

The 2016 pre-ofsted inspection Self-Assessment report indicated that Thurrock’s population is

around157,700, up by over 22.5% since 1990. Thurrock has a young population by national

standards. There are 42,800 children under the age of 19 (26.8% of population) and 12,100 children

are under the age of five. The number of 0 -19 year olds in Thurrock is set to increase to 50,500 by

2037. The distribution of children less than 15 years of age is centred in the south of the borough in

Tilbury, Chafford, North Stifford, West Thurrock and Ockendon.

The self-assessment indicated that the population is becoming significantly diverse. According to the

2011 census, over one in four (26.5%) school going children are from a black and minority ethnic

group. The latest available data (2011 Census) indicates that Thurrock may have a slightly higher

population of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children than the national average (0.3% compared to

0.2%). In 2016, there was significant increase in asylum seeking minors, peaking at over 90 children

by November 2016 being referred to Thurrock for accommodation and support due to the migrant

crises.

Going by above data and the trend of placements demands, Thurrock will be self-sufficient in the

provision of foster placement if targeted recruitment achieves a net increase of 80 new fostering

household, which is achievable within 6 years, to complement the current fostering household. Out of

the estimated net increase, about 45 new carers should be able to offer foster placements for a range

of children, especially, large sibling group as well as teenagers with challenging behaviours and

behavioural issues which is priority in the first 3 years.

In the next phase,(from 2020), it is estimated that about 35 new carers (net –increase) would be

added; this would add about 15 of the new fostering households with specialist skills suitable for

children with special needs and disability and 10 Parent and Child carers and additional 10 general

carers.

5. Fostering Statistics and Analysis

At 31st March 2017 there were 332 children in care and 251 living in foster care – representing 76%

of Children in Care. Of the 251 children living in foster care on the 31st March 2017, 51.8% (130)

lived with Thurrock In-House Foster Carers whilst 113, representing 45%, resided with Independent

Foster Carers (IFAs). 8 (3.2%) were placed with voluntary/charity based fostering agencies

(eg.Barnardos).

As at 31st March, 2017 there were 187 teenagers (13 -17 years) in Care and 124 (66.3%) were living

in foster care. Of that number (124), 70 children (56.4%) were placed with Independent Fostering

Agencies due to shortage of in-house carers who can offer placement for ‘challenging and difficult to

place teenagers’. Furthermore, only a third (36.4%) of 16 and 17 years olds in foster placements

were cared for by In-house foster carers.

The focus of this strategy is therefore to target the recruitment, approval and training of foster carers

who are willing to offer placement to teenagers while maintaining and expanding the capacity of

existing foster carers.

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4.1 Placement Distribution Chart 1: Age Distribution of Looked After Children (13 -17 years) in Placement as at 31/03/2017

Age LAC 16+ Provision Foster Placement

In-house IFA

13 21 N/A 21 14 7

14 25 N/A 22 10 12

15 31 N/A 26 10 15

16 44 10 34 12 21

17 66 45 21 8 11

Total 187 55 124 54 70

Chart 1b: Age Distribution of All Looked After Children and Placements 2016/17 Age P’pulation

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Chart 2: Look After Children and Placement Types: 2016/2017

Placement Type Children Percentage

U4 Foster placement 216 63.9%

P2 Independent living 49 14.8%

K2 Children's Homes 21 6.3%

U1 Connected Person 18 5.1%

U3 Reg: 24 16 4.8%

P1 Placed with own parents 6 1.8% R1 Residential Care Home

(Reg Homes Act 1984 2 0.9%

R3 Family Centre / Mother

and Baby Unit 1 0.6%

A6 Adoption (S21) - not with

current foster carer 1 0.6%

U5 Foster placement with

other foster carer who is also an approved adopter: 1 0.3%

K1 Secure unit 1 0.3%

R5 0 0.0%

Q2 0 0.0%

332

U4, 65.1%

P2, 14.8% K2, 6.3%

U1, 5.4%

U3, 4.8%

P1, 1.8%

R1, 0.6% T3,

0.3%

A6, 0.3%

U5, 0.3%

K1, 0.3%

R5, 0.0%

Q2, 0.0%

Other, 0.9%

Thurrock CLA Cases by Placement Type

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Chart 2: Fostering Placements by Placement Provider Type 2016/17

PP CODE

PR4 - Private Provision 113 45.0%

PR1 - Own provision by LA 114 45.4%

PR2 - Other LA provision 16 6.4% 51.8% 130

PR5 - Voluntary/Third Sector Provision 8 3.2%

251

PR4 - Private Provision, 45.0%

PR1 - Own provision by LA, 45.4%

PR2 - Other LA provision, 6.4%

PR5 - Voluntary/Third Sector Provision,

3.2%

Fostering Placements by Placement Provider Type

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Chart 4: Ethnicity of Children (LAC) and In-House Foster Carers (IHFC) 2016/17

A1 -WhiteBritish

D2 -Africa

n

E2 -Any

OtherEthnicGroup

C4 -Any

OtherAsian

Background

A3 -Any

OtherWhiteBackground

B4 -Any

OtherMixedBackground

B1 -MixedWhite

/Black

Caribbean

D3 -Any

OtherBlack

Background

A5 -Gypsy

/Roma

B3 -MixedWhite

/Asian

D1 -Caribb

ean

B2 -MixedWhite

/BlackAfrica

n

C1 -Indian

C2 -Pakist

ani

LAC 56.9% 12.0% 9.0% 5.7% 4.2% 3.6% 2.1% 1.8% 1.8% 0.9% 0.9% 0.3% 0.3% 0.3%

IHFC 60.3% 10.6% 7.1% 3.5% 4.3% 5.7% 2.1% 2.8% 0.7% 1.4% 0 0.7% 0.7% 0

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

LAC

IHFC

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6. IMPOWER REVIEW REPORT

Indicator 1

Enquiry Generation

Findings

Level of enquiries

The level of enquiries is lower than expected. Based on a ratio of enquiries to CLA Thurrock is 21% below expectations

Brand recognition

Over 30% of carers contacted other agencies before approaching the Council. This is particularly high against an average result of 10% in Council’s iMPOWER have surveyed

This implies an opportunity to improve the brand recognition of the Council as a provider of fostering

Recommending the Council

100% of carers surveyed said they had informal conversations about fostering with friends, family and colleagues, and 86% said they would recommend the Council

However, anecdotal evidence suggests there have been no formal recommendations in the period from April 2016

This indicates a missed opportunity in generating enquiries through word of mouth

Carer involvement in recruitment

Foster carers are positive about being involved in recruitment

Carers are particularly interested in contributing informally –e.g. through talking to people, holding coffee mornings or being part of a drop in session

Having information packs and guidance about the types of carers Thurrock needs would be particularly helpful for carers

Level of enquiries

The level of enquiries is lower than expected. Based on a ratio of enquiries to CLA Thurrock is 21% below expectations

Indicator 2

Enquiry to Approval

Findings

Context

Only people who completed the Enquiry to Approval process were interviewed as we only spoke to approved carers

There has been significant changes to the process in the last six months which may not be reflected in the feedback received

The conversion rate is lower than national ‘good’ guidance

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Conversion rate and indicates room for improvement in retaining foster carers through the enquiry to approval process

Communications

Respondents were broadly satisfied with communication and information, but there may be scope for improvement around frequency and quality of communication from the service

Matching Expectations

93% of Foster Carers agreed the Council set out clear expectations of the assessment and approval process, but in reality 28% of Foster Carers disagreed that the process matched those expectations

Managing and meeting expectations is critical in maintaining trust in the approval process

Peer Support

Only two thirds of carers were satisfied with peer networking

Pioneers value contact with their peers, so improving satisfaction with networking and

Indicator 3

Supervision and Support

Findings

Context

The survey did not include carers who had de-registered so their views are not included

Supervising Social Workers 95% of Foster Carers are satisfied with their fostering social worker -a very positive response

This is broadly in line with other services iMPOWER have surveyed

Children’s Social Workers

By contrast only 46% of carers were satisfied with the Child’s Social Worker

Again, this is broadly in line with other services iMPOWER have surveyed, but requires further consideration across Children’s Services

Accessing Information

Almost two-thirds of carers were dissatisfied with the quality and ease of access to information about children and placements

Foster Carers reported several placement breakdowns could have been avoided if more information had been given in the first instance. Breakdowns have implications

NB: Refer to IMPOWER report for detail of the audit and review.

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7. Thurrock’s Recruitment Plan (TRP)

a. A CORE NARRATIVE The outcome of IMPOWER review shows that Thurrock Residents are predominately Pioneers. Therefore, they are more persuaded to act only if they are persuaded that this is “the right thing to do” Fostering is the right thing to do, however, previous marketing has hinged heavily on the “reward and incentives available to carers. The new marketing approach will therefore focus on the ethical value of fostering. The key messages are:

Being a foster parent is an amazing thing to do. It will not only change the lives of the young people you support but it will change your life as well. And because we know it is such a big step to take we will make sure you are well paid for doing this – in fact you should think about being a foster parent as a career opportunity.

We [Thurrock] think getting the right people is crucial so we see you becoming part of a much bigger family of other foster parents, officers and young people.

We [Thurrock and residents] are a team and that means we will all be in this together. If you have a spare room and a willingness to go for it then we will support and advise you so that this becomes one of the great decisions in your life.

Most of all, you get a chance to give someone the head-start in life that they really need. We really look forward to hearing from you”

b. MARKETING THE CORE NARRATIVE

To achieve the overarching objective to communicating our Key messages to residents, the following mechanism would be used. It is however important to emphasise that this is not an exhaustive list. Method / Source

Action

On-line: Council website and fostering micro to be revamped and updated with Key Messages – inviting residents to get involve -

On-line: social media

Press releases about the various information events happening across the borough. Partners will be invited to support the campaign by re-tweeting (Twitter) or ‘liking’ (Facebook) our messages.

Public Relations

Regular articles from carers’ would be released to local and regional press

In-house Fostering Newsletter production to commence. This newsletter will share good news stories of the service as well as features and news/event stories.

The newsletter will focus on how existing carers can expand their capacity and to take active part in the recruitment campaign

Direct Marketing – literature distribution

Each council letter dispatched to a resident should have fostering information. Eg. Council tax letters, etc.

Build support among elected members

We will seek to engage elected members in supporting our strategy, beginning with briefings from the Fostering Team, and leading to support in the form of speeches, social media and mainstream

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media work.

Advertising Board/ Public Spaces

Rebranding Thurrock recruitment banner / boards with Pioneer Messages and hosting in strategic places within Thurrock (eg: Town Centre, Lakeside Shopping Centre, etc)

8. Positioning Thurrock In addition to promoting fostering we will need to promote Thurrock Family Placement Service as the place to go to if you are thinking about fostering. Staff working within the recruitment and support teams would be required to adopt a new approach recognising that potential and existing carers can choose any local authority or IFA to foster. This will be particularly relevant in helping people move through the journey with Thurrock and make those already approved very loyal to the authority. We are therefore positioning Thurrock Fostering as offering:

Exceptional customer service

Transparent, supportive and timely assessment process as well as

Very kind and supportive supervising social workers who are always ‘on the other end of the phone’.

9. Monitoring and Evaluation The strategy will be measured quarterly to build up a picture of effective methods of recruitment. This will be undertaken by a variety of methods including:

Analysis of initial enquiry data – an ongoing monitoring system is in place via Framework and other database systems

Analysis of prospective carers data – ongoing monitoring systems are in place.

Analysis of referrals

Analysis of exit interviews/feedback to evidence how services can be improved and promoted - ongoing monitoring systems are in place.

Analysis of ‘drop out’ stage – when do people drop out of the fostering process i.e. information pack, initial visit, preparation training, or assessment stage.

Evaluation of individual recruitment channels used – including hits to the website and press coverage

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Action Plan Year 1: April 2017 – March 2018

Date Activities By Whom Expected Outcome

April -– June

Setting up Implementation group for Strategic recruitment, assessment and support – 3 main groups to be formed.

Enquiry generation

Enquiry to approval

Support for existing carers

Team Managers

& Fostering Development Officer

A good mix of Foster carers, Supervising Social Workers and children social workers overseeing the planning, recruitment and support systems that is effective and attractive to ‘pioneer’ foster carers

Carers to take ownership and see themselves as active part and as an extension of the service

May

Fostering Fortnight

A range of activities to showcase Thurrock fostering in strategic locations in Thurrock

Team Managers &

Fostering Development Officer

Increase presence in community

June / July

Newsletter Launch

Formal lunch of Thurrock Fostering Newsletter with ONE Team (name of newsletter TBC)

Online Portals Update

Website & Microsite revamped with: relevant information, Newsletter and

Key Messages

Team Managers, Communications & The One Team

Effective systems and mechanisms to market “Core Narrative”

July/August

Carers Event

Managers & One Team

Motivating ‘pioneer’ foster carers –

July – November

Recruitment Campaigns & Summer Road Shows

Work with Cllrs and Foster Carers (One Team) to conduct outreach work – information sessions to voluntary groups, business, internal employees, NHS, child minders, schools, charities etc.

Recruitment Officer & Comms Rep

Gain senior members support in recruitment of carers

Outreach work with local churches raising awareness of fostering and adoption.

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Promoting Fostering as an everyday life to friends and family.

September (TBC)

Providers Forum – Long Term Matching

Outline our permanency options available through SGOs for carers with Thurrock children and transitional arrangements

Placement Referral Manager & Commissioning

All IFA carers with Thurrock children to receive information leaflets about our seamless transfer process and what Thurrock is offering.

November / December

Carers end of Year Celebration & Awards

Managers & One Team

Acknowledging foster carers contribution – ‘Pioneer’ – core narrative.

February

Key Messages

All council tax letters to include fostering Key Massage at the back of the envelope and information leaflet – designed to represent Pioneer values

Recruitment Officer & Comms:

-END-