There is no doubt that the ‘fostering world’ is a highly regulated one and perhaps the involvement of local government is wholly appropriate in the current climate of devolved services. Although some of us may want to shield our eyes and our ears to the role of the government, there is a need (and a value) in acknowledging it. To not consider agenda is to not take on board everything that affects our current and future practice. In particular in relation to the DfE Training,Support and Development Standards that all foster carers need to evidence.
For those who have been around in the sector for some time, we are used to new standards, new milestones and in how these changes can sometimes cause some misunderstanding about what we are ‘supposed’ to do.
In a general sense, we just carry on ‘as we were’ because what we are ‘supposed to do’ remains fundamentally the same. Children and young people still need to be cared for in good, nurturing and stable homes. Foster carers still need to work within a framework that guides their good (and very, very good) practice, which gives credit to and reflect the fantastic role that Chrysalis Care foster carers have in transforming the lives of children and young people.