Payment for Skills and the Skills Level Criteria

This document sets out the skill level criteria and the foster carer fee payment scheme for all foster carers. The purpose of the fee payment scheme is to ensure that Walsall can recruit and retain high quality foster carers who can provide excellent care and who can provide stability, safety, security and where possible permanence for all children and young people in the care of Walsall Council. The expectation of all carers who receive the fee payment is that whilst in receipt of the fee, they are available to foster at all times.

Walsall Council is committed to ensuring that those who foster for Walsall are offered training and development opportunities which will support them in the challenging and rewarding task of caring for our Looked After children. All foster carers registered with Walsall Fostering Service will have access to the fee level scheme. Progression through this scheme will depend on the type of assessment that has been completed, evidence of the foster carers on-going commitment to training and development, the foster carers ability to care for a wide variety of children coming from diverse and complex backgrounds and the foster carers willingness to assist the service with on-going development which will include support to other carers and assistance with running training for foster carers and wider children's services.

There will be some Connected Persons foster carers who have chosen not to take up the opportunity to fulfil the criteria to access the fee level scheme and in doing so have chosen to foster without receiving a fee. There may also be some carers who have recently been approved, who have not yet had the opportunity to attend the required training.

There are also some experienced foster carers in Walsall who choose to foster without receiving a fee; these are usually foster carers who have been fostering for a considerable amount of time and who only wish to receive the child's allowance to enable them to provide for the needs of the child or children they are caring for.

All of these foster carers will receive the child's allowance and will be expected to work in accordance with the service to complete relevant training and to ensure their ongoing development is addressed. They must:

1. Have a commitment to their on-going training and development;
2. Be willing to work with partners and be able to engage with and implement the child's care plan;
3. Received formal notice that they have been approved as foster carers from the agency decision maker, either following fostering panel or approval under Regulation 24 of the Care Planning and Placement Regulations; or
4. Received formal notice they have been approved as foster carers following a recommendation of the fostering panel and an approval of the agency decision maker of their suitability to foster. These foster carers will have either completed the 'home study' assessment; this will either be a CoramBAAF Connected Form C assessment which assesses the applicants capability to offer care to a specified child or young person who is already known to them or a Fostering Network assessment or equivalent which assesses the applicants capability to offer care to a broad and diverse range of Looked After children who are not known to the applicants;
5. Be able to provide accommodation and availability to care for at least one child;
6. Have signed the foster care agreement; and the joint working protocol;
7. Be willing to actively participate in supervision with their allocated worker;
8. Have a commitment to their on-going training and development;
9. Be willing to work with partners and be able to engage with and implement the child's care plan.

The following are additional criteria, which have to be satisfied for carers to operate at the specified skill levels. However, it should be noted that any carer can choose to operate on a level below their actual or assessed skills level, for whatever reason. This may be, because he or she may not wish to be paid a fee, or because he or she may not wish to undertake the tasks associated with a particular level, either on a temporary or permanent basis. The service will review all carers skill levels annually or more frequently where it becomes apparent the carer is not satisfying the criteria for that skill level.

Foster carers on this payment level will usually be Connected Persons foster carers who have completed the Skills to Foster training. This requires the applicants to attend all sessions. Where a couple are approved as foster carers, both carers will need to complete the training for them to receive the standard fee. However, if only one of them has done it, they will receive the payment for a year whilst the second carer undertakes the training. If the second person doesn't attend the training the payment will stop after one year.

It is likely that Connected Persons foster carers will only be foster carers for a relatively short period of time. In the majority of cases, the expectation is they will secure permanence for the child within a relatively short period of time via a Special Guardianship Order or Child Arrangement Order, in accordance with the child's care plan. In order to maintain a standard level payment, all carers must:

1. Continue to have a looked after child placed in their care;
2. Achieve the Training, Support and Development Standards for Foster Care. Connected Persons foster carers are expected to meet these standards within 18 months of being approved;
3. By the end of year 1, attend 4 induction workshops, three of these must be safeguarding, recording and supervision (where a couple are caring, each carer must attend at least one course);
4. By the end of year 2, attend at least four core training courses, three of these must be positive handling, child protection and first aid at work (ideally both carers but the service will accept one carer completing; however, each carer must have attended at least one course);
5. Complete a Personal Development Plan which will outline training, support and development needs. A foster carer will be expected to undertake at least 3 training courses per year (a couple will be expected to undertake at least 4 training courses between them of which each foster carer will be expected to do at least one. Each year their PDP will be reviewed, outlining any specific training required and the expectation is that carers undertake any agreed actions.

If a foster carer does not continue to meet the requirements of the standard level, then their case will be presented to the monthly Foster Carer Progression meeting with a recommendation to reduce their level to "no fee".

Assessment tool to equip them to care for a broad range and variety of non-specified Looked after Children with diverse and complex needs. Foster carers will be approved to take children aged 0-18; however, within a foster carers first year, children will only be placed if they are within a foster carers matching preference. Beyond their first year, foster carers will be expected to have a wider matching preference, or be more flexible regarding the children they will provide placements for. This will be regularly reviewed between the foster carer, supervising social worker and the Fostering Independent Reviewing Officer (FIRO).

In addition to this they must also:

1. Have a looked after child placed in their care, or be available to have a looked after child in their care;
2. Achieve the Training, Support and Development Standards for Foster Care. Mainstream foster carers are expected to meet these standards within 12 months of being approved; if these standards have not been met, whether they continue to receive the fee will be reviewed;
3. By the end of year 1, attend 4 induction workshops, three of these must be safeguarding, recording and supervision (where a couple are caring, each carer must attend at least one course);
4. By the end of year 2, attend at least four core training courses, three of these must be positive handling, child protection and first aid at work (ideally both carers but the service will accept one carer completing; however, each carer must have attended at least one course);
5. By the end of their 3rd year of fostering there is an expectation that a foster carer will have completed the 12 week "Solihull Approach" course;
6. Complete a Personal Development Plan which will outline training, support and development needs. A foster carer will be expected to undertake at least 3 training courses per year (a couple will be expected to undertake at least 4 training courses between them of which each foster carer will be expected to do at least one. Each year their PDP will be reviewed, outlining any specific training required and the expectation is that carers undertake any agreed actions;
7. Have the willingness to care for children and young people, where little is known about their background, and to work with emerging information towards meeting the child's or young person's needs.

Foster carers on this level must have been assessed and approved as a foster carer using the Fostering Network assessment tool to equip them to care for a broad range and variety of non-specified Looked after Children with diverse and complex needs. Foster carers will be approved to take children aged 0-18; however, within a foster carers first year, children will only be placed if they are within a foster carers matching preference. Beyond their first year, foster carers will be expected to have a wider matching preference, or be more flexible regarding the children they will provide placements for. This will be regularly reviewed between the foster carer, supervising social worker and the Fostering Independent Reviewing Officer (FIRO).

In addition to this they must also:

1. Have a looked after child placed in their care, or be available to have a looked after child in their care;
2. Achieve the Training, Support and Development Standards for Foster Care. Mainstream foster carers are expected to meet these standards within 12 months of being approved; if these standards have not been met, whether they continue to receive the fee will be reviewed;
3. By the end of year 1, attend 4 induction workshops, three of these must be safeguarding, recording and supervision (where a couple are caring, each carer must attend at least one course);
4. By the end of year 2, attend at least four core training courses, three of these must be positive handling, child protection and first aid at work (ideally both carers but the service will accept one carer completing; however, each carer must have attended at least one course);
5. By the end of their 3rd year of fostering there is an expectation that a foster carer will have completed the 12 week "Solihull Approach" course;
6. Complete a Personal Development Plan which will outline training, support and development needs. A foster carer will be expected to undertake at least 3 training courses per year (a couple will be expected to undertake at least 4 training courses between them of which each foster carer will be expected to do at least one. Each year their PDP will be reviewed, outlining any specific training required and the expectation is that carers undertake any agreed actions;
7. Have the willingness to care for children and young people, where little is known about their background, and to work with emerging information towards meeting the child's or young person's needs.

Foster carers on this level must have been assessed and approved as a foster carer using the Fostering Network assessment tool to equip them to care for a broad range and variety of non-specified Looked after Children with diverse and complex needs. Foster carers will be approved to take children aged 0-18; foster carers will be expected to have a wide matching preference and be very flexible regarding the children they will provide placements for. This will be regularly reviewed between the foster carer, supervising social worker and the FIRO.

In addition to this they must also:

1. Meet the requirements of the Generic level;
2. Have 12 months experience of fostering at the Generic level demonstrating competence and willingness to work with children and families in the most complex and challenging circumstances. They must provide robust evidence of their experience to date of working with challenging and complex situations;
3. Have the willingness to work with young people, where little is known about their background, and to work with emerging information towards meeting the child's or young person's needs;
4. Provide - where necessary and appropriate - a high level of supervision and support for children;
5. Actively seek out training to meet their identified and agreed developmental needs;
6. Be able to take responsibility in a lead role - where appropriate - for the care plan provided to their child or young person in placement and to evidence their ability to work as part of a team in driving the care plan forward;
7. Provide availability to care for children or young people where it has been assessed that they require an Advanced level carer;
8. Be willing where asked to support the fostering service to deliver training and or workshops to new carers;
9. Additionally, to be willing to develop skills, abilities and expertise to undertake at least 2 of the following:
   • Caring for children with significant attachment difficulties;
   • Caring for children who exhibit complex behaviours that arise due to specific disabilities/syndromes, e.g. autism;
   • Caring for children and young people who have complex needs arising from medical or disability issues, which necessitate significant additional levels of care;
   • Become part of the fostering service training team to support other carers on a formal and structured basis, including visiting, recording, group work and to lead on group supervision sessions for new and existing carers on a chosen specialist area;
   • Caring for children and young people assessed as presenting significant issues which may disrupt family life; this could be as a result of sexual exploitation, persistent offending or sexualised behaviours which may present a risk to others;
   • Caring for children and young people who would otherwise require a residential group care placement or those stepping down from such placements;
   • Undertake an active role in service development and/or foster carer recruitment.
10. The FIRO must have made a provisional recommendation for an application to the Advanced level at the foster carers annual review;
11. The foster carer must complete the application form for progression to the Advanced level and complete a portfolio of evidence to support their application;
12. Once the foster carer has submitted this to the service, this must be reviewed by the carers Supervising social worker, who will add their comments within 10 working days;
13. The supervising social worker will present the application to the next Foster Carer Progression meeting (these take place every 4 weeks);
14. The meeting will decide whether progression is successful. If appropriate they can request further information from the foster carer or supervising social worker.

Please see the document "Application to progress to the Advanced level – your experience, your competence, your offer" for further details.

Foster carers on this level must have been assessed and approved as a foster carer using the Fostering Network assessment tool to equip them to care for a broad range and variety of non-specified Looked after Children with diverse and complex needs. Foster carers will be approved to take children aged 0-18. Specialist foster carers currently include:

• Mockingbird Hub carers.

Consideration is being undertaken to include the following at the specialist level from April 2020:

• Carers who offer a solo care placement for a highly complex child who would otherwise be placed in specialist residential provision;
• Carers who offer a step down from residential placement;
• Trained and experienced parent & child placements;
• The expectation is that Specialist carers will be meet the expectations of a Generic foster carers, plus the addition expectations of the scheme that they are part of.

All foster carers must be up to date with their training. All single carers to attend 3 foster carer training events a year (this would also include attendance and participation at a foster carer consultation event, a support group with a training component or the completion of online training courses which have been identified by the fostering service as relevant to ongoing continued professional development).

Completion of the 'Solihull Approach training' or equivalent therapeutic parenting course would count as 3 training sessions. Other training completed in a work or similar setting (e.g. safeguarding training in schools), would be accepted, but would need the prior approval of the team manager (foster carers would be expected to do at least one fostering training course a year).

Where a couple are fostering, the expectation would be that they complete 4 training sessions between them, of which each carer must complete at least 1.

Carers must continually demonstrate that they are complying with the expectations of all fees levels. This will be monitored through the supervision process and considered at every foster carer review. There is a requirement on the foster carer to gather evidence on the training and learning undertaken.

Where a carer is not meeting the expectations of their fee level, consideration will be given to moving them on to a lower fee; this may be achieved by following the process outlined below:

• Mutual agreement /carer request – if a carer no longer wishes to operate on their agreed fees level or an agreement is reached between carer and the supervising social worker that their fees level should be reduced, this can be implemented immediately;
• As the result of a review recommendation – if the carer and supervising social worker disagree about the carers' fees level, a review should be arranged to consider this;
• At the review, if agreement can be reached between the FIRO, the supervising social worker and the foster carer, to retain or reduce the fees level, this will be actioned immediately, effective from the date of the review. The review will be presented to the fostering panel in the usual way;
• In the event of the review not reaching agreement, a report detailing the reasons and evidence for this recommendation will be produced by the FIRO within 10 working days, and will be presented to the next Foster Carer Progression meeting. The carers will be expected to make their own written representations and may wish to refer to the fee level criteria;
• The Foster Carer Progression meeting will decide whether the carer should remain on that skill level or move to a lower skill level;
• The Fostering Service will write to the carers advising them of the decision within 5 working days;
• If a foster carer wishes to appeal against the decision made by the Foster Carer Progression meeting, they must write to the Group Manager (Provider Services) stating the reason for their appeal. Appeals must be submitted within 10 working days of the foster carer receiving the outcome.

There will be situations where, due to a complaint or allegation, the fostering service moves a child and places a carer on hold. In these circumstances the carer will continue to receive a fee for up to 6 weeks, whilst the complaint or allegation is considered. Carers will be notified of this by letter. Continuation of this payment, can only be agreed by the Designated Manager for the Fostering Service.

Foster carers offering Short Term Breaks for children and young people who have a significant or substantial learning, physical or sensory disability will usually commence fostering on the Generic level and must have been assessed and approved as a foster carer using the Fostering Network assessment tool. Short Term Break Foster Carers will be approved to take children aged 0-18; however, within a foster carer's first year, children will only be placed if they are within a foster carer's matching preference. Beyond their first year, foster carers will be expected to have a wider matching preference, or be more flexible regarding the children they will provide placements for. This will be regularly reviewed between the foster carer, supervising social worker and the FIRO.

Carers offering short term break placements at Generic level will in addition to the usual progression criteria also have to evidence that they can look after a child with a significant/substantial learning, physical and/or sensory disability.

The child may also have one or more of following needs:

• Requires administration of limited medication;
• Requires supervision with all personal care needs e.g. toileting, eating;
• Requires care/supervision throughout the day;
• Communicates via methods other than speech e.g. makaton, or may have limited speech;
• Requires high level of stimulation and close supervision during play;
• Exhibits challenging behaviours that cause management problems;
• Is vulnerable to abuse due to disability and intimate care needs.

Short Term Break Carers wishing to progress to Advanced Level will in addition to the usual progression criteria for Advanced carers also have to evidence that they can look after a child with multiple significant/substantial learning, physical and/or sensory disabilities.

The child may also have two or more of the following needs:

• Requires administration of a regime of medication/clinical procedures;
• Requires total personal care needs e.g. feeding, dressing, bathing;
• Minor non-compliance in care routine could result in serious consequences for the child;
• Requires care/supervision throughout day and night;
• Requires support in using aids/adaptions/specialist equipment;
• As generic but may use only emotional display of need or facial/body gestures;
• As generic but will also require use of specialist equipment, toys, games and may include input from specialist workers in this area.