Can I transfer to New Life Fostering?
What’s involved in
the process?
Initial enquiry to transfer can be made New Life Fostering by calling 0121 359 8811 or email fostering@newlifefostering.co.uk
- The process around transferring.
- How the assessment will be undertaken.
- The time frames involved.
If you have children or young people currently placed with you, in most cases following a protocol meeting with the placing Local Authority, an agreement can be reached for the children to transfer to us with you. We will always give a commitment to maintaining the current terms of the placement to both you and the placing local authority.
- We do more than offer advice on your issues. New Life Fostering is committed to guiding you through resolving your concerns and issues, and helping you identify other resources and organisations who can offer the level of specialist advice you need (if this cannot be provided in house). Our dedicated team provides 24 hour support and assistance, 7 days a week.
- We have a number of respite carers, who are not only available during holidays but there when you need them.
- As a small agency we make sure that you don’t just become a ‘number’, but part of our family of carers.
- Some agencies offer financial incentives on transferring; we always look at individual circumstances before we discuss financial incentives.
What happens to the children in our care ?
If you have a foster child already in your care, the relevant Local Authority will hold a transfer protocol meeting within twenty-eight days, the local authority staff and the agencies involved, attend to discuss the implications of the change of agency, if any, for the child. Generally, there is NO change in the way a young person is cared for.
Once the protocol meeting has happened, the new life foster staff will meet with your current agency and the social workers of any children in care, to discuss and agree transfer arrangements, especially so that any child or children are not disrupted in any way.
Call us today on 0121 270 2984 or email fostering@newlifefostering.co.uk
Fostering Payment
At New Life Fostering we know that the main reason people foster is to make a difference, but it is important to also understand how the finances of fostering work to see whether fostering would suit your personal circumstances.
We believe that the financial package for fostering recognises and rewards the challenges that come with fostering; that’s why New Life Fostering uses a payment structure that recognises the skills, experience and expertise of foster carers to meet the needs of children and young people in our care.
Foster Carers with New Life Fostering will receive a fostering fee of up
to £800 per week although this will vary with the age and the needs of the child.
This allowance will normally cover things like food, clothing, transportation, pocket money, outings and personal household expenses etc. In addition, New Life Fostering offers generous bonuses and foster carers receive other benefits while fostering with us such as paid respite and membership with fostering network which has a long list of benefits that comes along.
Training and Support
To support our foster carers, we at New Life Fostering provide free on-going training throughout the year. This includes group training, online training and one to one training. All our training is held at our New Life office to make sure it’s convenient for our foster carers.
We also arrange for regular local support groups where newly approved foster carers have the chance to meet with experienced foster carers and share their experiences with them. We also buddy our new foster carers with our experienced foster carers.
New Life Fostering would also provide higher fostering fees for Foster Children and Young people that require more skilled support in terms of managing children or young people with enhanced or complex needs such as:
- Autism
- Disability
- Complex behaviours
- Parent and Child
Additional Fostering Allowance
As well as your Fostering fee New Life Fostering offers additional allowances, some that are unique to us in comparison to other fostering providers. Allowances such as:
- Help towards the cost of celebrations for children,
- such as birthdays, Christmas and other festivals
- A loyalty and incentive bonus
- A referral bonus
Support Provided by New Life
All children and young people placed with New Life foster carers should have their own Local Authority Social Worker who will keep in touch with our carers, whilst the child is in our care, make statutory visits and make care planning decisions for children or young people by working in partnership with the team of professionals around the child or young person.
However, in addition to the LA Social Worker, every New Life Fostering household have their own allocated Supervising Social Worker to ensure that they are fully supported.
New Life Supervising Social Workers support foster carers by attending any meetings relevant to a child in your care.
Support from Supervising Social Worker
Keep in touch with you, your family and children/young people in care through visits at least once every four weeks and through weekly telephone calls.
SSW will arrange for any additional support needed such as Support work with a child or young person to support the ability of the placement or respite care when needed.
Support you in keeping up with daily recordings, dealing with birth parents and local authority professionals. They also help you access services such as CAMHS, TESS, local community support etc.
Discuss training needs by devising a bespoke PDP training plan and help you to achieve your learning and development objectives including meeting the TSD (Training, Support & Development) standards within the first year of fostering.
Supervising Social Workers will ensure that foster carers remain compliant with all their statutory checks and H&S requirements at all times.
Contact us
West Midlands Office
Charter House, 848 Tyburn Road
Erdington, Birmingham, B24 9NT
Phone
0121 359 8811
Staff and foster carers have worked tirelessly to embed consistently high standards into all areas of our practice. Our guiding principles of being supportive and working together to achieve best outcomes for children, has been recognised by Ofsted. New Life Fostering is a place where all children thrive and are safe from harm, and we are proud to be recognised as an Outstanding fostering provider.
- Download Ofsted Report
- Download Ofsted Press Release
