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Contents

1. Decision to Look After Child
2. Placement Service and Placement Identification
3. The Care Plan
4. Timescales for Completion of Care Plan
5. Approval of the Care Plan
6. Circulation of the Care Plan
7. Other Required Plans, Documentation and Actions

1. Decision to Look After Child

1.1  The Decision

A child may not come into care without the express permission of HOSDAR or the area Head of Service in an emergency situation.

Any decision to look after a child made outside office hours will be communicated by fax to the relevant team by the beginning of the next working day.

1.2  Considerations before a Decision to Look After is made

The decision to look after a child will only be made where those making the decision are satisfied that appropriate consultation has taken place and appropriate consideration has been given to the necessity, purpose and nature of the proposed placement or, where the circumstances constitute an emergency, opportunities for consultation are limited.

Before a decision is made to look after a child, consideration should be given to making arrangements with other extended family members or friends who might be prepared to care for the child without the need for the child to come into care.  In these circumstances, care must be taken where the local authority has been involved in the arrangements for the child to be cared for by relatives; the child may be viewed as within the definition of Looked After and a legal view may be helpful to clarify the status of the child and the placement.

Alternatively, the child may come within the definition of Privately Fostered after 27 days, in which case the Private Fostering Procedure will apply.

In any event, any such arrangements would have to be agreed with the parent or a person with Parental Responsibility, and the social worker must be satisfied that such an arrangement is sufficiently secure to meet the child's needs and is supported by a Child in Need Plan.

If no such arrangement can be identified or such an arrangement would not meet the child's needs, the child's social worker, with his or her team manager, should consider:

• The child's immediate placement needs - including the child's views, the views of the parents, those with Parental Responsibility and any other person whose wishes and feelings the authority consider to be relevant - and whether a placement with a relative or friend under Regulation 38 may be possible;
• The timescales for the child's placement;
• A date for the child to return home or when the decision will be reviewed;
• The actions of support and work to be included in the Care Plan to enable the necessary change for the child to return home wherever possible;
• The obtaining of parental consent to look after the child and consent to medical care;
• The contact arrangements with birth parents, siblings, extended family and friends.

Where it is considered that Care Proceedings should be initiated to secure the child's placement, see also Care Proceedings Procedure.

NB Any decision that a child should be the subject of Care Proceedings should have regard to the requirements of the Public Law Outline, and in particular the Pre-Proceedings Checklist which is set out in Public Law Outline and Statutory Guidance for Local Authorities - Frequently Asked Questions.

All decisions made should be recorded on the child's electronic record, including the reasons for reaching the decision.

1.3  Actions required after a Decision to Look After is made

In relation to children where Care Proceedings are being considered to secure the child's placement, see also Court Proceedings Procedure.

In all cases, if it is agreed that the child should become Looked After, the child's social worker will draw up a draft Care Plan (see Section 2, The Care Plan) with clear timescales and a statement as to whether the child's needs would best be met in a family placement or residential care.

If a foster or residential placement is required, the relevant procedure to be followed, including the need to hold a Placement Planning Meeting, will be found in the Placements in Foster Care Procedure or the Placements in Residential Care Procedure.

Where a decision is made to pursue a Looked After placement with a relative or friend (or the child's placement with a relative or friend is judged to be a Looked After placement), an immediate assessment of the relative/friend must be undertaken. Where the placement is likely to be for longer than 6 weeks, the social worker must also make a referral to the Fostering Team to conduct an assessment of the relative/friend as a Family and Friends Foster Carer with a view to presentation to the Fostering Panel within six weeks. See Placements with Family and Friends under Regulation 38 Procedure.

For secure placements, see Placements in Secure Accommodation Procedure.

Before the Placement Service is contacted the social worker will need to complete a risk assessment and for a short term assessment a CC5 form and a CC9 form for a long term placement. All these should be sent to the placement service by email.

2. Placement Service and Placement Identification

The Placement Service is the central contact point for the availability of immediate and temporary placements in foster care and residential settings.

Social workers request a placement by completing and emailing a CC6 referral form to SS Resources Placement Desk Referral.

There is an expectation that placements will be offered that take into account the child's geographic home location and the corresponding feasibility of casework support. The expectation is that the child will be placed as near to their home locality as possible.

Other factors to be taken into account will include:

• Anticipated length of placement;
• Contact arrangements;
• School;
• Disability* ethnicity / religious background / language / culture;
• Identified ability of the carer to meet the needs of the child(ren);
• Child's history and an assessment whether they present a risk to themselves or other children.

Wherever possible, the supervising fostering officers or their Team Manager, should be consulted before placements are offered.

On being offered a placement, the social worker should be given information on:

• Household composition;
• Available accommodation;
• Other looked after children already in the household;
• Any known risk factors;
• Name and office base of the supervising fostering officer; 
• An initial risk assessment must be undertaken by the social worker prior to placement, using form PS4 F1.

The completed form PS4 F1 must be sent to Placement Service, and from there it will be forwarded on to the social workers of all children in placement, and to the supervising fostering officer.

Social workers must confirm to the placement co-ordinator, that placement has or  has not been made and the date of placement.

The Placement Service will complete the CC6 referral form and email as soon as possible, details of the placement to the supervising fostering officer who will, on receipt of that information:

• Contact the social worker for the newly placed child/ren and confirm other existing placements of looked after children and the name(s) and offices of the social worker for those children placed;
• Contact the social worker for the already placed child/ren, to inform them of the relevant details of the new placement;
• Raise any safeguarding issues immediately with their team manager, consulting the social worker/s and foster carer as appropriate;
• Contact the carer regarding any immediate requirements resulting from the placement;
• Arrange to visit the placement as soon as possible.

In parent/child foster placements, a CRB check must be requested, and an interim verbal police check on the parent (16+yrs) undertaken, before a placement can be made. This must be requested by the social worker or team manager for the parent/child and its outcome confirmed to the SFO/fostering team manager in advance of the placement. The placement can only go ahead if the outcome of the verbal/CRB check is satisfactory.

When transracial placements are made, a copy of the completed CC6 referral form, should be copied to the BME Fostering Development Officers.

At the outset of the placement, it is the child's social worker's responsibility to undertake an initial risk assessment (form PS4 F1), and to provide all the child specific information that is necessary to enable the foster carer to safely and appropriately care for the child. This information should be provided in the Placement Plan format. These documents must be fully completed, particularly the Essential Information Record (part one) which is required on placement. Remaining paperwork must be provided within statutory timescales

As soon as possible following the placement, supervising fostering officers will visit  the foster home and undertake a risk assessment (form PS4 F1) in respect of the fostering household as a whole, and with specific reference to the carers Safe Care Plan. This risk assessment will again be circulated to all social workers who have children in placement.

For disabled children, the Family Placement Risk Assessment General Checklist (to follow) will be used.

At the time of the placement, it is the child's social worker's responsibility to address the amount and suitability of the child's clothing. If this is a first placement, a clothing grant may be necessary.  If this is a transfer of placement, the "sending" foster carer should have completed a clothing inventory, indicating the amount and condition of the child's clothes. The "receiving" foster carer must sign to agree this or in the case of dispute, alert the social worker or their supervising fostering officer to the situation  

Where consideration of an IFA placement is necessary, the relevant SDM for the child's area, will seek agreement from a Head of Service. When this is confirmed, Placement Service admin will send details of the referred child/ren to the IFA's on the approved list, and ask for proposed suitable placements.

Responses will then be forwarded to the child's social worker for consideration, and if they choose to proceed, they should contact the IFA direct to make arrangements, and confirm with the Placement Service that the placement is proceeding.

3. The Care Plan

In all circumstances where a decision is made to look after a child, the child must have a Care Plan completed by the social worker and signed by the relevant team manager, the contents of which:

• Describe the overall objectives and their reasons;
• Identify and prioritise long term needs in key areas of the child's life;
• Nominate the type of placement being sought;
• Indicate how long the child is likely to need to be in care
• Describe the contingency plan;
• Give the date of the child's first Looked After Review (within 28 days)

Where there is no recent Core Assessment in relation to the child, the Care Plan must provide for a Core Assessment to be completed.

The child's social worker is responsible for drawing up and updating the Care Plan in consultation with:

1. The child;
2. The child's parents;
3. Anyone who is not a parent but has been caring for or looking after the child;
4. Other members of the child's family network who are significant to the child;
5. The child's school or the education service;
6. The relevant health trust;
7. The Youth Offending Service, if the child is known to them;
8. Any other agency involved with the child's care.

The social worker should ensure that the child, those with Parental Responsibility and the carer understand the Care Plan and their role in contributing to its implementation.

The Care Plan is subject to scrutiny at each Looked After Review.

See also Care Plan Guidance.

4. Timescales for Completion

The Care Plan must be drawn up as soon as the need for the child to come into care has been identified.  It should be completed at the Placement Planning Meeting prior to the child's planned placement or, where the child is placed in an emergency, must be completed at the Placement Planning Meeting held within 72 hours of the placement being made - see the relevant Placement Procedure.

5. Approval of the Care Plan

Any final Care Plan taken before the Court within Care Proceedings must be endorsed and signed by a Designated Manager (Care Plan).

All other Care Plans must be endorsed and signed by the social worker's team manager.

6. Circulation of Care Plan

The Care Plan must be circulated to the following people:

• The child;
• The parent(s);
• Providers/Carers - if no Care Plan has been drawn up prior to the child's placement, the social worker must ensure that the providers/carers understand the key objectives of the plan, and how the placement will help achieve these objectives;
• The Fostering Service, where the child is in foster care.  N.B. The Care Plan should be filed in the confidential section of the foster carer's file and returned to the child's social worker when the placement ends.

7. Other Required Plans, Documentation and Actions

See also ICS Guidance

7.1 Placement Information Record

The child must have a Placement Information Record at the time of the placement (this includes the parent's consent to the placement (if applicable) and the child's medical treatment). It should be completed as far as possible before the child is placed.

Copies of the Placement Information Record must be provided to the child (if of sufficient age and understanding), the parents and must be handed to the residential staff/carers before the child is placed.  Where a child is placed in an in-house foster placement, one copy should also be sent to the Fostering Team - to be kept in the confidential section of the foster carer's file and returned at the end of the placement.

At the time of the placement, the residential staff/carers should also be given any additional information about details of the child's day to day needs which are not covered by the Placement Information Record but are important to ensure that the staff/carers are in the best possible position to help the child settle in the new placement, for example any particular fears at night-time or the child's favourite toys.

7.2 Arrangement of first Looked After Review

The child's social worker must notify the Integrated Safeguarding Unit (ISU) of the placement, so that the necessary arrangements for the allocation of an Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) and the child's first Looked After Review can be made. See the Looked After Review Procedure for the procedures relating to reviews, including the responsibility for invitations to reviews.

7.3 Health Care 

Before or at the time of the placement, the social worker should request the parent to transfer the child's personal child health record. Where this is lost or not available, the social worker should ask for a replacement to be issued and ask the Designated Nurse for LAC to assist with providing any information to complete the record.

The social worker should also contact the Designated Nurse for LAC to arrange a Health Needs Assessment within one month of the placement and the completion of a Health Action Plan in time for the child's first Looked After Review. See Health Needs Assessments and Individual Health Care Plans Procedure.

In addition, the social worker should inform the carer of any medication the child is taking, and ensure that a supply of medication is provided in a clearly labelled bottle with the child's name, required dosage and the time the medication is to be given - see Medication Policy for Children who use Residential Services.

7.4 Personal Education Plan (PEP) 

The social worker should also liaise with the Designated Teacher so that a Personal Education Plan (PEP) can be completed in time for the first Looked After Review.  See Education of Children in Care Procedure.

7.5  Provision of Information 

The child's social worker must provide the child and parents with written information about the placement.

The child and parents must also be provided with information about the complaints process and the availability of advocates - see Advocacy and Interpreting Services Procedure.

7.6 Changes in Legal Status

Any changes in a child's legal status as a result of court proceedings must be recorded on the child's electronic record. It is the responsibility of the social worker to complete the notice of movement form, ensure that it is signed by the team manager and passed to the appropriate admin officer who will notify the boarding out service.

End