News In Focus
6 December 2006
Executive seeks views on fostering
The Scottish Executive is seeking views on a plan to help shape foster and kinship care in Scotland over the next 20 years.
The National Fostering and Kinship Care Strategy sets out to address the specific needs and to protect and support the rights of those children who need to live away from home and from their parents, for a short period of time or over the longer-term.
It has been drafted with the support of experts from the Fostering Network, Barnardos, other children's charities and fostering and adoption agencies.
The proposals in the strategy paper are designed to:
- give every child in foster or kinship care a better chance by providing them with safe, stable and secure placements;
- allow young people in foster/kinship care to remain in the home beyond their 18th birthday if appropriate;
- improve the recruitment and retention of foster carers;
- work out and standardise payments for foster carers.
The paper will be accessible at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Consultations/Current . The consultation runs until 16 February 2007.
As at 1 March 2006, 3,731 children and young people were cared for by foster carers and 1,726 children were living with friends or relatives.
Education Minister Hugh Henry said: "We must guarantee the support we give our looked-after children, and those who look after them, is of the highest standard possible. That's why we are asking those who know best of all to tell us how we can make the Scottish care system the best in the world."
In September the Executive also published a document designed to identify best practice where children are being cared for by local authorities and to dispel the negative stereotypes associated with such children.