The Assessment Process
All Fostering Agencies are obliged to make strict checks into all aspects of prospective carers’ lives and to screen out anyone who could potentially hurt a child or young person. This assessment is known as a Form F assessment. Potential carers need to know that this assessment looks not only at WHO you are now, but also WHY you are the person that you have become. We will look at your early childhood and relationships throughout your life. On the surface this may look quite intrusive, but many carers who have undergone the process actually say that it is an enlightening process and they have come to understand why they are like they are now.
The process of becoming a carer passes through the following stages:
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1
Register Your Interest
If you do decide to contact us, you will be spoken to by one of the Oasis Fostering Services staff who will obtain contact details from you so that we can send you our pack/brochure which explains who we are, what we do and how you can become a Foster Carer. You will be asked a couple of simple questions and, if you wish, have an informal chat which may help you to make up your mind whether you wish to proceed further.
After you have received and read the brochure, you may choose to do one of three things:
(a) Complete and return the enclosed enquiry form.
(b) give us a call if you need further clarification over anything in the material we sent or…
(c) you may decide not to continue.
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2
Initial Visit
Once we have received confirmation that you wish to continue, we will arrange for you to be visited by one of our Social Work staff. Please don’t worry, it is not an interview, it is just the opportunity for you to find out a little more about fostering and for us to find out a little more about yourself and your family.
We will tell you the good things about fostering and the not so good things about fostering. After this visit we will ask you to think about what you wish to do and we will contact you again in a couple of days. If both yourself and Oasis wish to then go ahead then…
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3
Allocation of assessing social worker
We will then allocate an assessing Social Worker, who will undertake your Form F assessment. The Social Worker will discuss a programme of visits, best suited to your availability.
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4
Form F assessment
This assessment is a very thorough analysis of you and your family. It looks at your past history as well as your current situation and circumstances. The assessment will take place over several weeks and will cover every member of your household. The assessment will conclude with a recommendation as to your suitability to become a foster carer.
That isn’t the end of the matter, the report and the recommendation will then come before an independent Fostering Panel who consider the recommendation and it is then that the final decision is made as to whether you are approved. At any time during the assessment you may decide that fostering is not for you. If this is the case, you do not have to continue.
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5
CRB Check
Within the assessment we have to obtain references from any employer s you may have, from the Local Authority, personal references and from other bodies and Agencies such as the NSPCC. We also have to undertake a Criminal Records Bureau check. The CRB can sometimes be a cause for concern for potential carers as it MAY disclose any offences or indiscretions during your earlier years. If as a teenager you stole a Mars Bar and were caught, please don’t worry, this is unlikely to have any impact on your application. What the check is there for is for any serious or serial offending such as violence against a child or drug/alcohol related issues. If there are any issues please don’t be embarrassed, tell us about them and we can advise as to whether it is likely to have any detrimental impact
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6
Medical
You are required to undergo a medical examination with your own GP. Again this can cause some concern to applicants. At Oasis we are not necessarily looking for “Olympic athletes” or people in the peak of fitness. What we do need to know is whether potential carers have any major complaints that would affect the way that they can look after children or young people.
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7
training
Oasis Fostering Services will then arrange for you to undergo the Skills to Foster Training which covers all aspects of the Fostering task. This is a training package which is usually taken over three days (although we can be flexible if required to help with a carers personal needs). Some applicants may be a little worried about the thought of going on a course, but don’t worry, it is not an examined course. If carers contribute as well as listen and take part in the exercises then things should be all right. As a trainer, the only people that give me cause for concern are the people who either don’t contribute or say anything to anybody or, those who don’t listen and won’t let anyone else contribute or say anything. If you are somewhere in the middle you should enjoy the experience.
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8
Panel Meeting
Once the assessment has been completed then it goes towards the Panel for approval. The Panel is a collection of people who have expertise in certain areas, there may be a health visitor, there could be a teacher or someone with education experience, there should be another Foster Carer and a medical advisor. They will look at the report and make a decision, you will be invited to answer any questions that they may have, but usually the heaviest questioning is to the Social Worker who wrote the report. Once and if that hurdle has been successfully passed then you are then available to take placements.
Interested?
If you're interested in becoming a foster carer with Oasis, then contact us about an enquiry form or call us on 01706 822552.
Any more questions?
If you still have questions unanswered, then you can find answers to some of our Frequently Asked Questions.