Private fostering is an arrangement that often takes place but is not always understood/reported.
Because of this, we’re bringing private fostering to the forefront, with a relaunch of our private fostering campaign, as we want to raise awareness about it with parents, private foster carers and professionals and ask everyone to help make sure that it is understood and properly reported.
According to the Children Act 1989, private fostering is when a child under the age of 16 (18 if they have a disability) goes to live with someone who is not a close relative (like a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle or step-parent through marriage or civil partnership) for 28 days or more.
If you are aware of someone of a child or young person who’s being looked after by someone who isn’t their parent or close relative, they may be in a private fostering arrangement and it is your duty to let your local authority know.
In Slough, Slough Children First manages and provides children’s social care on behalf of Slough Borough Council.
We will be distributing new leaflets and posters across Slough, hoping that it will help raise awareness to parents, private foster carers and professionals, especially those working across our partner agencies in education, health and social care sector and more.
We also hope it will allow more people to be proactive in identifying fostering arrangements/ knowing the action to take if they’re aware of this type of arrangement and to not be scared to report it.
To speak to someone about private fostering, please get in touch with our MASH (Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub) Team via tel on 01753 875362 or via email at Sloughchildren.referrals@sloughchildrenfirst.co.uk
Please also see Private Fostering – Slough Children First for more information.
