Social Work Support

We offer:

• Your own dedicated Fostering Social Worker, who will come and see you regularly to ensure your wellbeing, celebrate your successes and work through any concerns They’re also available via telephone, email and to meet in between visits as required. They’ll undertake a more formal ‘supervision’ with you a minimum of 6 times per year.

• A worker on duty in the fostering team all day, every day during office hours.

• A 24/7 out-of-hours emergency support, staffed by Warrington Borough Council Social Workers.

• An Independent Review service, made up of a team of Independent Reviewing Officers, including the fostering Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO). The service oversees the experience of the children and young people and hold our service to account on their behalf.

• In addition, the child or young person living in your family will also have their own Social Worker to support them.

• An active Foster Carers Forum, which we hold every few months. This is another opportunity to input to the development of the service. We often have guest speakers to further inform you of the support you can access.

• Monthly drop in clinics with the Fostering Managers. An opportunity for you to meet face-to-face and discuss your experiences.

• Systemic Practice- Warrington now utilise this relationship-based model throughout Children’s Social Care. This means stronger relationships and fewer ‘hand-overs’- children and young people can stay with their Social Worker for longer.

• As a Foster Carer, you will have the same Fostering Social Worker as a number of other carers. You will all have an opportunity to meet together regularly, in ‘team meetings’. We can invite speakers to these meetings, discussing topics that are relevant to you as a specific group of carers, tailoring the sessions to your bespoke needs and interests.

• Each new carer is linked with a Carer-Mentor – an experienced foster carer to act as a ‘buddy ’ allocated to you during your assessment to support you through the early stages of your fostering career and beyond.

• Manager recognition cards – We regularly send out ‘Thank you’ or ‘Well Done’ post cards to carers who have gone above and beyond, perhaps supporting a child through a particularly difficult transition, or achieving a personal development milestone for example – a simple way to ensure you continue to feel valued.