Transcript The role of the foster carer in promoting educational

The role of the foster carer in
promoting the educational
aspirations of children and
young people
Nuala Fitzpatrick
Judy Walsh
The Fostering Network
The Fostering Network
• Four Nation – England, Northern
Ireland, Scotland & Wales
• Membership organisation
• Services
• Projects
• Campaigning/Policy/Media
• Works with everyone involved in
fostering
A foster carer’s role
• Care for a child/young
person as a member
of their family
• Organise and attend
additional
appointments for CYP
• Facilitate contact with
birth family members
• Facilitate contact with
other people who are
part of CYP life
• Support/promote
education & learning
opportunities
• Participate in
meetings/visits re
care of the CYP
• Participate in
meetings/visits re role
as a foster carer
• Participate in learning
and development
• Undertake recording
A foster carer’s role in education
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A pro-active approach from early years
Education/learning normal part of day to day life
To have high aspirations
Build relationships with schools, teachers,
colleges & tutors
• Part of the PEP
• Involved in choosing schools or colleges and
other educational opportunities
A foster carer’s role in education
• ‘In discharging their duty to promote the educational
achievement of looked after children the responsible
authority should – as an integral part of the care plan –
help to ensure that a looked after child of whatever age
has the opportunities to achieve educational outcomes
comparable to his or her peers. This should be done in
particular by working pro–actively with the child’s carers
and teachers to encourage the child to have the highest
expectations of what they can achieve’
• Volume 2 Care planning, placement and case review
Regulations 2.67 DoH
The context
• Too many CYP in foster care move too
often
• Lack of remedial help
• Too many excluded from school
• Experience inadequate education
• Some young people highly motivated to
achieve educationally
The young people
• Compressed and accelerated
transitions to adulthood
• Outcome groups:
– Moving on
– Survivors
– Victims
Reference
What works for young people in care ? Mike Stein 2004
Your views
• Timeline exercise
• In your experience how have foster
carers supported young people in
further or higher education?
• What are the barriers?
The barriers
• Foster carers own educational experience
– lack of aspiration
• Lack of understanding/complexity of
educational system
• Fragmented experiences of CYP changes in people/services
• Uncertainty of status for UASC
• Emphasis of direct relationship between
FE and student at this age
Involving Foster Carers in
Further or Higher Education
A case example: Northern
Ireland
Fostering
Achievement
Foster Carers
•Workshops
•Advocacy and Support
•Home visits
•Working with Professionals
Young People
•Credits – Laptops, Driving Lessons,
Subject Tuition
•GCSE revision classes
•Teen Summer schemes
•Vocational Programmes
University of Ulster
• Open Day
• Sports Week
• Achievement Awards
What needs to happen?
• Entitlement to a home base with foster
carers beyond 18 and throughout
university
• Supplementary education
• Training - teachers and social workers
• Empowering and equipping foster carers
to promote educational achievement
Any Questions?