Foster carers are to receive better pay in Brighton and Hove after a decision by councillors yesterday (Monday 12 June).
The move came as Brighton and Hove City Council tries to recruit more foster carers directly rather than through independent agencies.
Councillors were told that the council had to pay more to support children placed with foster parents by private agencies.
At a meeting at Hove Town Hall, Labour councillor Jacob Allen said that his family had been fostering since 2010.
Councillor Allen said: “I have seen up close and personal how it is a 24-7 job, emotionally and physically draining.
“They’re (foster carers) not celebrated nearly as widely as they should be. I wholeheartedly support this uplift because foster carers are not nearly as remunerated as they should be.”
The extra payments to those fostering through the council could add £486,000 a year to the budget, according to a report to the council’s Children, Families and Schools Committee.
But a council official, Karen Devine, said that this could be offset by savings if, by offering more competitive allowances, the council was able to direct more carers directly.
There is a national shortage of foster placements, which is reflected locally, councillors were told.
Ms Devine said that placing children directly with families was “significantly cheaper” and better value than using independent agencies, residential care or semi-independent supported accommodation.
Currently, 136 children were in council-supported foster care, with 45 youngsters placed through independent fostering agencies.
A further 39 children had residential placements. Of those, 14 had disabilities. One child was in a residential school.
There were also 28 young people who were described as “staying put”. They had turned 18 but were still living with their foster families and would receive financial support from the council until they were 21.
Four of these are unaccompanied asylum seekers.
Ms Devine said that the support that the council offered to foster carers was one of the unique selling points.
Labour councillor Les Hamilton said that he had served as a member of the council’s fostering panel.
He said: “I was absolutely flabbergasted and amazed at the love and care those foster parents were giving to the children. It’s unbelievable the lengths they will go to on many occasions.
“It was interesting to know that some of the people that had been with independent agencies came back to the council – even when they had a reduction in their allowances – because they found they had far better support from the local authority than what they would get when they were in independent foster agencies.
“We were very grateful to have people coming back to us in that way for what is an extremely important service.”
Green councillor Sue Shanks said that she had also served as a member of the council’s fostering panel, adding: “There are awful things that some children have gone through before they get fostering and how difficult that is for some foster parents to cope with.
“It’s certainly worth more than we actually pay but it’s good to see the increase.”
The Labour and Green councillors voted to increase allowances. Conservative councillor Emma Hogan abstained.
We aren’t pay cll Hog@n to abstain! Pointless really. Why bother running then???
They may not have enough knowledge on the subject, or their party line is to abstain from these sorts of issues, or they simply realise they don’t have a strong majority and don’t wish to be controversial by putting in a vote, tactical abstaining. These are all really obvious reasons why someone would abstain, Susie. I did the math, you pay less than three pence toward Councillors, so calm yourself down.
I emailed CLLR Hogan and asked her she hadn’t responded
Great decision, really good to hear from Jacob Allen, too.
I am happy to see this increase to foster parents. It is the right thing to do; no-one should be made financially challenged by providing safe and secure homes for young people, and the academia shows those in foster homes are less likely to be involved in crime and be more successful in a variety of metrics over those who stay in the system.
We also have an underlying problem that has caused this need in the first place, and that’s a lack of social housing. And I hope we support any reasonable initiative to come that improves the council’s stock of social housing, but that is a conversation for another article!