Support at Three Circles Fostering
Here at Three Circles we pride ourselves on offering an Outstanding level of support to our foster carers. Unfortunately with the busy/ overwhelmed nature of the sector we work in means that agencies can often get lost in paperwork, children can simply become ‘placements’ and foster carers can get ignored. Our promise is to never forget that we are in the business of people. Without every piece of the puzzle, Three circles does not exist. With this in mind we will continue to put an emphasis on not just professional support but personal support too. Not to blow our own trumpet but we feel this was reflected in our recent OUTSTANDING Ofsted inspection!
Here is a comprehensive list of the support that we offer:
Learn more about fotering with The Circles from Rena!
24 hour, 365 day on call support
Monthly face-to-face support from qualified social worker ensuring personal progress of carers and progress of the care plan
Education input and support from a named education practitioner within NT&AS
Support and advice to achieve positive educational transition
Advice and support from social work team
Identification and provision of training
Regular programme of training delivered to meet carers’ needs.
Pre and post approval training
Access to secure area of Three Circles Fostering website where information and guidance may be found
Frequent contact from their allocated social worker
Comprehensive foster carers’ handbook
ICT systems for completion of reports and records
Carer forums and support groups
Support to children of the fostering family
Access to the directors
Private medical insurance for qualifying families
Agreed additional mileage allowance
Birthday and holiday allowances in line with Fostering Network rates
Independent allegation support service
Individual membership to Fostering Network
A diary of free events for the whole family!
Three Circles support does not just stretch to Foster carers but also to the children that they look after. We mean it when we say that the decisions we make as an agency will always be with the best interest of the children in mind. We are genuinely proud of what the agency has become and the fact that we haven’t finished pushing for better outcomes for young people.
This list below is some of the support we offer our young people. This list is constantly evolving:
Named educational practitioner
Liaison between home, school and young person as appropriate
Support to raise national curriculum attainment levels
Dyslexia screening where appropriate
Strategies to successfully manage school inclusion
Intensive literacy/ numeracy programme as appropriate
‘Booster’ sessions at key points in the educational calendar e.g. Year 6, Year 9, Year 11
Support for school transition
SEAL training (social and emotional aspects of learning)
Resources to follow individual activities or hobbies
Supervised family time with families
Children’s welcome guide
Next Steps independence pack
Access to independent children’s helpline
Next Steps stay “in touch” facility for care leavers
Events through the year
Children who foster are included in all events and activities
It is hard to quantify ‘support’ as so much of it is down to the relationships we have built over the years with our carers, children and local authorities. This blog has been an attempt to give insight into what we guarantee our foster carers and their families have access to simply for being with us. We also see it as a reiteration of our ethos, Foster carers, young people and their families are the reason we do what we do.