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Contents

1. Introduction
2. Requirements Arising From Household Fee Payments
3. Payments for Capacity
4. Parent and Child Placements
5. Payments Per Placement Scheme
6. Limited Availability
7. Short Term Break Carers (Disabled Children)
8. Permanence
9. Carer Terms of Approval
10. Holidays
11. On Call Payments
12. Complaints/Allegations/Concerns
13. Changes to Skill Levels
14. Transition between Agencies

1. Introduction

Walsall Council ’s Fostering Service strives to ensure that it recruits and provides sufficient carers for children for whom no family, friends or relatives have offered suitable care.  Foster carers able to offer such placements are eligible to receive a weekly fee in recognition of the specific demands of this task, and their availability to accept such placements. (This excludes those recruited for specific children for whom there is a Panel endorsed plan for adoption – see Section 7, Short Term Break Carers (Disabled Children).)

The fee is a ‘household payment’ made to the designated person who is a registered carer.

Fee payments to carers are made on the basis of ‘self employed status’. Carers should clarify the impact of payments on any benefit they may be in receipt of before registering.  Additional information on this issue can be provided by the family placement service (for guidance only, provided in good faith and without prejudice.)

Where such payments may prejudice carers’ benefit income (e.g. when no child is in placement), payments can be requested to cease.

Carers are required/responsible to request this on each occasion via their supervising link worker.

Progression through bands is mutually agreed/ negotiated. Registration with each band carries increasing expectations of the degree of involvement together with increased training commitments. It is understood and accepted that some may wish to invest more in fostering than others according to individual circumstances (refer to ‘skill level criteria’).

Payments to carers will be made on a four weekly payroll basis commencing from the Monday following their panel approval or the date from which they are available to accept placements, whichever is later. For current carers joining the household scheme for the first time, entitlement to payments will commence from the 1st Monday following the date the application reaches the family placement service and is approved. The timing of the receipt of the first payment will be dependant on the payroll cycle.

With the exception of those applicants who can demonstrate relevant experience and/or training/skills to access the services at levels 3 or 4 via an application to the skill level panel or at the fostering panel at point of approval, newly approved carers offering at least one placement to one unrelated/ unknown child will be registered for fee payments at level 2.

2. Requirements Arising From Household Fee Payments     

Household fee payments will continue uninterrupted as long as the carers continue to be available to accept placements of unrelated/unknown children.

Where no child or fewer children than the carer is approved for are in a placement, carers may be asked to undertake other reasonable duties. These may consist of offering support to other carers, assisting in the recruitment of carers or contributing to carer training.

A carer may give notice of his/her availability for placements.  In this case, payments will cease from that date.  This includes foster carers, whose capacity is taken up solely by relative/friend children or who wish to continue to foster relative/friend children, but no longer offer capacity to unrelated/unknown children.  Short periods of illness may be disregarded from this requirement.

3. Payments for Capacity

The level of fee is determined by both the carer’s skill level and the number of placements he or she is approved for (capacity). It is not dependant on occupancy of these placements at any one time.

Under normal circumstances the actual number of placements a carer is registered for will be the same as the capacity payment he or she receives on the applicable skill level.  This includes those relative and friends carers, who are eligible to progress to levels 2, 3 and 4, usually, because they are able to offer a placement to an unrelated/unknown child, as well as a relative/friend child.  In this case all the foster children the carer is approved for will be counted (including the relative/friend children).

A carer on the per placement scheme, who offers an additional placement to a relative/friend child, will be offered the choice to being paid the fostering allowance only in respect to that child, or to join the household scheme, as long as they continue to be available for placements of unrelated children.

However there are a small number of exceptions to the general rule, which are as follows:

• A small number of carers are to be paid at capacity 2, even though they are only available for 1 placement. These carers must offer substantial additional support duties to the service, e.g. assisting with transport or caring duties to support other carers, training or carer recruitment;
• This exception covers carers protected under transitional arrangements agreed, when the current scheme was last reviewed in January 2005. It is not anticipated that new carers will join these arrangements unless there are special circumstances;
• Carers who may be approved for 2 or 3 children may be asked by the service to limit themselves to one placement to meet the needs of a specific child. The capacity payment will not be affected, as the carers are responding to the needs of the service.
  
  This arrangement should be reviewed on a regular basis;
• The service may also from time to time wish to recruit very specialist placement carers to provide the type of placement described above. The intention would be to place children or young people who require a placement without other children. In these circumstances a carer can be approved for 1 child, but set up as a capacity 3 carer from the outset.
  
  It is anticipated that this arrangement will only be used in very specific circumstances and most likely as part of a dedicated intensive fostering scheme, which may be developed in the future;
• Carers cannot be registered for more than 3 children, but may occasionally offer placements for larger siblings groups or groups of 4 children or more for short periods. These carers will be paid the capacity 4+ fee for the duration of these placements only.

Any amendments/variations to approval capacity will result in a change of fee level payable to the carer. If the change in capacity is temporary, through a variation, then the capacity will revert to the original number when the agreed variation ends. If the amended capacity is agreed to be permanent through the fostering panel/agency decision maker processes, then it will continue and be reviewed in line with foster carer review processes.

For any placement that is approved for respite, a fee will only be paid for the period the child is in placement (together with the fostering allowance). Fees payment will be pro-rata the carer’s assessed skill band.

This amendment to the policy on Payment for Skills will take effect from 01.04.2010.

4. Parent and Child Placements

Where a young parent is looked after, and requires a foster placement with his or her children, then both, the young person and the baby will regarded as individual placements.

Where the parent is placed with his or her child, then parent and child placement will be considered to require capacity 3 payments. This will be payable for the duration of the placement. Fostering allowance will be payable for the child and the 16+ rate will be payable for the parent, as long as he or she is at least 16 years of age, and whether or not they are adults.  The expectation on the young person or adult to make a contribution towards maintenance costs apply, as per the fostering allowance guidance.  It is the responsibility of the carer’s link worker to notify finance in writing, stating the contribution amount and the start date the contribution is applicable. Family placement must inform the carer of this arrangement. Where any other children are in placement at the same time, the payment level will be at 4+ capacity at the relevant skill level.

5. Payment per Placement Scheme

This is a ‘ring fenced’ arrangement only for carers registered for Walsall’s fee paid service prior to the implementation of the ‘skill based’ scheme on 1.4.00 for transition purposes only. In order to remain on the payment per placement arrangements, the carer must be willing and able to operate on level 4. Payment will be made only for periods when a child is actually being looked after by the carer.

The only exception is when a child is temporarily absent from placement because he or she has run away or has a hospital stay and the placement remains available for the young person to return to. In this case, payments will continue at the full fee level for 1 week, after which they will cease. If during this time the carer refuses to re-accommodate him or her, the fee will cease on the day the young person actually left the placement. An extension of this period can be granted by the Strategic Manager in exceptional circumstances. If a parent and child placement is made with a payment per placement carer, the individual placements will each attract the full placement fee.

No new registrations with this scheme are possible. Payments are a combined sum of both Allowance and Fee. Carers may give notice to join the household scheme at level 4.  However, no transitions from level 4 to this ring fenced scheme are possible.  Entitlement to household payments will, in this case, commence from the first Monday following the date the application reaches the Family Placement Service and is approved.

All requirements pertaining to ‘level 4 arrangements above will apply.

6. Limited Availability

Carers unable to make a commitment to a ‘full time’ placement but who wish to offer occasional short-term care are eligible to receive fee and/or fostering allowance payments in respect of each over night stay. Fees payment will be pro-rata the carer’s assessed skill band.

Carers not on the household scheme, including carers in training and relative and friend only carers, who undertake caring duties in respect of unrelated children will be paid in line with the principles of the short term break scheme, based on level 2 payment rates. All carers offering limited availability care are advised to seek guidance on tax and benefit implications of such payments.

7. Short Term Break Carers (Disabled Children)   

Carers registered to provide this service are not eligible to receive ongoing household payments. Payments of a non taxable allowance are made on a ‘session’ basis of 1-6 and 6-24 hours. When undertaking one or two hour sessions for specific medical training, introductions or essential meetings these odd hours should be added up to make a six hour session. Any stays exceeding 72 hours should be agreed by all relevant parties. Payments for periods in excess of 72 hours and up to two weeks will be reduced by 20%.

Accompanying non disabled siblings attract an allowance payment equivalent to half the fostering allowance daily rate for 1-6 hours and the full rate for periods of 6-24 hours.

All disabled children entering placement will be assessed at level 3 but will be reviewed in the first six months of placement and then annually. Payment levels will relate to the assessed needs of the child requiring the service (see separate criteria). Carers’ skill levels will be identified as part of the carers’ annual review to inform the matching process for children. No application to the Skills Level Panel is required.

The maximum short term break episode is two weeks. Periods in excess of this are paid as per the household scheme at the carers assessed level together with the relevant age band allowance. All carers entering the household scheme in this way will initially be paid at level 3, but will be required to submit an application to the skill level panel to retain level 3 payments beyond 6 months or move to level 4.

8. Permanence

Fee payments in respect to carers offering permanent placements in accordance with the Council’s permanence planning policy will commence from the date the carer is matched with a specific child. However, carers offering full availability for non permanent, e.g. respite, placements, whilst such a match is identified will be eligibility for fee payments from the Monday after approval. Alternatively carers offering occasional respite placements during this time will be treated in the same way as other carers with limited availability.

In the case of carers recruited as potential adopters for a specific child for whom there is a panel endorsed adoption plan, there is no fee payment entitlement. In the event of the plan changing (rescinded by panel) and the placement continuing on a permanent fostering basis, fee payments may be introduced from the date of the panel recommendation.

In the event of a permanent placement disruption, which results in the carer no longer being available to foster, fee payments may be maintained for a maximum of 4 weeks, to allow the carers’ future availability to be assessed. If the carer is clear that he or she is no longer wishes to be considered for fostering, then payments should cease, as soon as this decision has been made. This should be put in writing to the carer with specific dates identified.

Where a foster carer has obtained an adoption, residence or special guardianship order in respect to a child previously fostered by him or her, the budget holder may continue to pay fees for up to 2 years.  The budget holder will take into account the circumstances of the case and in particular whether the order will impact on the carers’ capacity to foster.  However, the amount payable will usually reflect the household capacity fee equivalent to the number of children for whom the orders are made, at the relevant carer skill level, plus the fostering allowance, where eligible. In line with the permanency support strategy the fostering allowance element will be paid subject to one of the eligibility criteria being met and a means test, the fee element can be agreed regardless of such a test.  For example children who have an established fostering relationship with the proposed carer and are aged 7+ will be eligible for an allowance to 16yrs, as will children with a permanent disability.

9. Carers Terms of Approval

If a carer declines a placement which is consistent with their terms of approval or is unwilling to undertake agreed additional support without a good reason, a review may be held to explore the issues and any modifications to the terms of approval.

If a carer on the household scheme has no children in placement for a combined total of more than 2 months in any 12 month period, consideration should be given to whether the service being offered still satisfies Family Placement service needs. If the Family Placement service no longer requires what a carer is able to offer, future viability on the Household Scheme should be discussed and 4 weeks notice given to the carer if necessary.

This should be put in writing to the carer with specific dates identified. Finance must be notified immediately that the carers’ fee is ceased to avoid any over payment.

10. Holidays

Fee payments plus fostering allowances will continue uninterrupted for the duration of holidays with children in placement. Fee payments, but no fostering allowances, will also continue during holidays taken without children in placement to a maximum of 2 weeks in any 12 months period.  Decisions to holiday without the child in placement should be discussed and planned in advance (28 days minimum notice) to ensure the least disruption to children.

11. On Call Payments

Carers may be contacted about placements consistent with their approval at any time, unless they have informed the service of a requirement not to be contacted between the hours of 10.00pm and 7.00am.

In addition session payments are available to appropriately experienced carers guaranteeing to be contactable to offer placements to children in emergency circumstances outside office hours, where no other appropriate carer is available.

The system is designed to ensure that there is minimum service to meet the needs of all children in crisis under such circumstances. 1 session consists of either 1 night cover between the hours of 5.15pm and 8.45am or 1 weekend/bank holiday day cover between the hours of 8.45am and 5.15pm.

Carers offering such a service will be appropriately approved and have vacancies of sufficiently stable placements to reduce the risk of disruption to a minimum.

12. Complaints/Allegations/Concerns

In the event of a Carer becoming unavailable due to the process of an investigation, fee payments may be maintained for a maximum of 4 weeks and then cease. The carer should be informed of this, followed by confirmation in writing to the carer with specific dates identified.

13. Changes to Skill Levels

Any changes to carer’s skill levels will be made in accordance with the changes to Skill Level Procedure. 

14. Transition Between Agencies

Carers wishing to transfer to other agencies whilst retaining a Walsall young person in placement, will usually be paid at the all inclusive fee per bed rate until the placement ends.

Walsall has the facility to honour payments to agency carers, who offer permanency to Walsall children already established  with them and who are willing to transfer to the local authority. It is anticipated that one all-inclusive weekly payment is made, which will increase with inflation only.

Carers, who have resigned from another agency with the intention to register as a carer for Walsall will be assessed in the normal way.  Many of these carer, may be able to evidence experience and/or training/skills to access the services at levels 3 or 4. The evidence may be provided to the fostering panel on approval, who can make a recommendation on the information provided, without a further presentation to the skills level panel.

End