Fostering Panel

The Fostering Panel promotes safe, secure and stable placements through engaging with Family Fostering. It carries out a rigorous quality assurance function and promotes thorough assessments, support and training for foster parents. The Fostering Panel monitors the range and type of foster parents available to the local authority in comparison with the needs of children, and plays a key role in the improvement of standards within the fostering service.

As part of this function, the Panel oversees the conduct of assessments and annual reviews of approved foster parents, advises on any relevant matters in relation to the fostering service and makes recommendations to Children's Services about quality issues and performance standards.

In particular, the Panel makes recommendations as to the following:

1. The suitability of applicants to act as foster parents and terms of their approval;
2. Exemptions from the limit to the number of children placed with foster parents;
3. The continued suitability of the foster parents and whether the terms of the approval remain appropriate (after the first annual review of foster parents and any other review where significant changes or termination of approval is recommended - see Review and Termination of Approval of Foster Parents Procedure);
4. Any other special matters relevant to a foster parent which the Chair of the Panel considers appropriate to be referred;
5. Referrals to the Independent Review Mechanism - see Recruitment, Assessment and Approval of Foster Parents Procedure, Representations/Independent Review Procedure.

The Panel will also receive and consider any representations challenging a decision not to approve an applicant as suitable, or to terminate or revise the terms of a foster parents approval - see Assessment and Approvals of Foster Parents Procedure, Representations/Independent Review Procedure.

The Panel will receive Family Fostering annual report on the whole service which shall include panel's business: including statistical information about approvals, reviews, termination of approvals, the number of children in placement and complaints received about foster parents during the preceding year.

The Chair will communicate any issues of concern to the Fostering Service Manager and take part in quarterly meetings with them and the Vice Chair to review the Panel's functioning and report on the quality of work being presented to Panel, to ensure good standards are maintained.

At the quarterly meetings, the Panel Administrator will provide statistical information in relation to the Panel business, together with information on the numbers of foster parents and the numbers of children looked after within the service.

The panel members are recruited from a range of diverse backgrounds. The panel has the necessary knowledge and expertise to support Family Fostering to make effective child-centred decisions in relation to the cases brought before it.

Staff and panel members are suitably vetted and qualified and are able to deliver high-quality services to foster parents and children.

There is no fixed panel membership or maximum number of members or maximum tenure of office.

The membership must be drawn from a Central List of persons with the appropriate qualifications and/or experience, including one or more social workers who have at least three years' relevant post-qualifying experience.

Where it is considered that someone is unsuitable to be on the Central List, they must be given one month's notice in writing and reasons for the decision to end their inclusion on the list. The Chair will be a senior manager with responsibility for the fostering service or an independent person.

The Designated Manager must also appoint up to two Vice Chairs, whose role is to chair the Panel when the Chair is unavailable.

Reasonable expenses relating to attendance will be met, including travelling expenses and childcare; there is an allowance for attending training sessions plus travel expenses and this is all detailed within the Induction paperwork that panel members receive.

All Panel members must have been the subjects of satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service checks before taking up their appointment. These Disclosure and Barring Service checks should be kept up to date and recorded, including the date when the checks were made. Personal and work references will also be obtained in writing and must be satisfactory.

All new panel members will receive, on appointment, the ‘Effective Fostering Panels Guide’, The Fostering Minimum Standards 2011 book and a ‘Panel Policy Guidance Pack’ containing all relevant policies and procedures of the agency, and any other relevant documents. This will be updated as and when required.

Each member must be provided with written information on appointment of their performance objectives, including their participation in induction and other training and safeguarding the confidentiality of records and information submitted to Panel. They will be asked to sign an agreement with Family Fostering in relation to their membership, covering the service expectations (including the requirement to report any involvement in criminal proceedings), confidentiality issues and commitment to anti-discriminatory practice.

All Panel members will also be required to attend at least one Panel meeting as an observer before taking up their membership. Panel members should complete induction training within 10 weeks of joining the Central List, have access to appropriate training and skills development, be kept abreast of relevant changes to legislation and guidance and have the opportunity to attend joint training with fostering staff at least annually.

The quorum is 5 provided that the following are present:

1. Either the Chair or one of the Vice Chairs (in the absence of the chair). If the meeting is conducted by the vice chair who is not independent, there must be at least one other member of the panel who is independent;
2. One of the social worker representatives with at least three years' post qualifying experience;
3. Three (or in the case of a joint panel, four) other members.

Panel members may request any relevant information or assistance they require, including medical or legal advice, from Family Fostering and, if so requested, this must be provided byus.

There must be a process for review of the performance of Panel members (including of the Panel chair by the Agency decision maker) and for the performance management of members. Where necessary the termination of the appointment must be considered.

Where there are concerns about a Panel member's behaviour either inside or outside the meetings, and this cannot be dealt with by advice, training and/or information, this will be raised by the Chair with the Designated Manager (Fostering Panel Appointments).

The Designated Manager will decide whether someone is unsuitable to be on the Central List and therefore to end the appointment and if so, will advise the member in writing giving one month's notice and clear reasons for the decision.

Panel members may resign by giving one month's notice to the Designated Manager (Fostering Panel Appointments).

The Panel Administrator, with the Chair's authority, will arrange additional special meetings as necessary.

The Panel Administrator will arrange for the Legal Adviser to attend the Panel if required by the Chair or by the worker presenting a report.

The Panel's Medical Adviser will provide medical advice on matters to be brought to the Panel, by attendance at Panel meetings or where this is not possible by telephone or an exchange of correspondence on individual cases in advance of the meeting as considered appropriate.

The Panel Administrator may arrange for observers to attend meetings, in consultation with the Chair, but no more than 2 observers may attend at any one time.

The Panel welcomes the attendance of prospective foster parents at meetings during consideration of their applications for approval. Applicants can attend with a supporter and 'be heard' at fostering panel meetings that consider their approval - for the assessment and approval process in more detail - see Recruitment, Assessment and Approval of Foster Parents Procedure.

Although we encourage all foster parents and applicants to attend we understand that on occasion this may not be possible and we will ensure that all reports will be discussed fairly and anyone that is unable to attend will not be discriminated against.

The Panel Administrator, in consultation with the Chair, prepares the agenda for each meeting and sends out the agenda to Panel members five working days before the meeting.

Those presenting reports to the Panel must send their reports to the Panel Administrator at least 10 working days before the date of the Panel. The Panel Administrator will arrange for the documentation to be distributed to Panel members.

The Chair's role is to ensure that all members participate fully in the meetings (unless an interest has been declared - see below) and that each member has an opportunity to raise questions or offer comments on each matter considered, that sensitive regard is paid to foster parents while keeping the child's welfare paramount, that consensus is achieved wherever possible and that the Panel has clear reasons for its recommendations.

Where there is a serious difference of opinion among members, the Chair may ask for more information to be made available to the Panel before a recommendation is made. Serious reservations expressed by individual Panel members about a particular recommendation must be recorded in the Panel minutes for consideration by the Agency Decision Maker.

The Panel Administrator will prepare the minutes in which reasons for recommendations and any disagreements or dissent will be fully recorded.

They will send the minutes to the Chair for approval of their accuracy, and then submit them to the Agency Decision Maker for approval of the recommendations made.

The assessing social worker/supervising social worker will also ensure that applicants, foster parents and social workers are notified of Panel recommendations within one working day of the Panel. The Panel Administrator will provide social workers with a copy of the relevant minutes after a decision has been made by the Agency Decision Maker.

The Fostering Panel is required to make recommendations to the Agency decision maker.

It is expected that Panel members will have read all reports and carefully evaluated the information to identify issues where further information or explanation is required, before the meeting takes place.

The Panel chair will ensure that each Panel member is given the opportunity to raise comments and seek clarification about terminology in reports.

Applicants attending the Panel meeting where their application is being considered will also have the opportunity to make comments and seek clarification about the assessment or review process and any issues that may emerge. If they bring a supporter with them, the supporter will also be invited to speak on behalf of the applicant. The Panel's deliberations about an applicant's suitability will usually be done after the applicants have left.

The Panel is expected to try and reach a consensus of opinion discussing the strengths and concerns. All Panel members should be asked their views and no view should carry more weight than another. The chair would generally not have a casting vote, where an even vote occurs further information should be sought.

The recommendations should be recorded having been previously summarised by the Panel chair. The Panel chair will normally advise the applicant of the Panel's recommendations following the meeting.

Code of conduct for all panel members:

• Panel members will ensure adherence to the code of conduct;
• Where a panel member has prior knowledge of any case, this must be declared to the panel advisor at the earliest opportunity. A decision will be made about whether this prior knowledge renders it inappropriate for the panel member to read the papers and/or participate in the discussion;
• Panel members must safeguard all written material supplied to them by the agency in the course of their duties and will also receive confidential log in information to CHARMS in order to access the reports;
• Confidentiality is paramount and discussion will only take place within the panel meeting;
• Panel members should have read the panel papers carefully and should come prepared to contribute to the panel discussion;
• Panel members will respect/value the contributions of all other panel members;
• Panel members will speak one at a time and not interrupt each other or finish another member’s sentences. There should be no side discussions held;
• Panel members will challenge any views expressed which are not in line with equal opportunities or are viewed as discriminatory. This will be done sensitively by challenging the statement and not the person;
• Panel members will be welcoming, courteous and respectful to all those attending a panel;
• Panel members should accept responsibility for taking an equal role in the recommendation process;
• Panel members should base their recommendations on the evidence presented to panel and should provide clear reasons for these recommendations;
• All paperwork will be collected at panel (if applicable) and then stored or shredded confidentially within the agency.

Panel members should consider any conflicts of interest in relation to Panel agenda items. A potential conflict arises if an interest may be seen to adversely affect a Panel member's capacity to act without prejudice or preference in a matter, for example because they know a person under consideration in a personal or professional capacity.

It is anticipated that in many circumstances there may be professional knowledge of a case which should be notified to the chair but which will not affect a member's capacity to participate in the Panel. In other circumstances there may be a personal interest or connection which would require the Panel member to refrain from participation. It may be less clear in some cases when advice should be sought.

In the case of a potential conflict of interest where advice is required, Panel members should consult the chair or the Panel Advisor, giving as much advance notice as possible particularly having regard to the implications for the quorum.

The Agency decision maker must have been qualified as a social worker and have at least three years' experience and have a working knowledge of childcare law and practice.

The Agency decision maker will take account of the Panel's recommendation before proceeding to make a decision. The Agency decision maker can choose to make a different decision.

The Agency decision maker receives the same information as Panel members prior to a Panel meeting, together with the minutes of the Panel meeting.

The decision and the date of the decision will be recorded by the Agency decision maker.

Applicants and foster parents should be advised verbally of the decision within two days and in writing within five working days of the receipt of the Agency decision maker's decision.

The Agency decision maker may defer any decision should there be any cause to do so until such time as any issues have been resolved.

Family Fostering will review the approval of each foster parent in accordance with Regulation 28 of the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011.

The approval of foster parents can end in a number of ways.

Where the decision is made by the foster parents- for example, due to retirement, a career change, because the foster parent wishes to take a break or because they wish to move to another fostering Agency, they must give twenty-eight days' notice to Family Fostering and this will be reported to the next available Fostering Panel.

Occasionally it will be necessary for Family Fostering to take action to terminate a foster parents approval. Where this is considered it should be presented to the Fostering Panel following a review of the foster parents approval. This process is detailed in the Review and Termination of Approval of Foster Parents Procedure.