FOSTERING SHAKE-UP

Adoption and fostering services in Peterborough could be put out to private organisations in an effort to improve the service and save money.

Peterborough City Council is proposing the development of a new service which would secure permanent long-term placements for a range of young people to be looked after as quickly as possible.

The service would also improve training and support available to foster carers and adopters.

Currently, the council spends £4 million on children in foster care. It is hoped the bill would be cut by £2 million, with £1 million being re-invested into the service, leaving a £1 million saving.

Plans have been announced that the council intends to explore partnership arrangements with a specialist provider that could allow for such a new service to be established in Peterborough.

Adoption services in Peterborough were rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted earlier this year and regionally the city has one of the lowest rates of moving young people once in foster care.

Wendi Ogle-Welbourn, corporate director; people and communities, said: “The overall ambition is to place a higher percentage of young people in care with our own local foster carers. We know our local carers well and therefore we can better match the needs of our children in care and help keep these children close to the city to maintain vital relationships with family and friends. This will also enable us to reduce expenditure on higher cost placements, helping the council to achieve savings and enabling investment in other services for children, young people and their families.”

Mrs Ogle-Welbourn said no jobs would be at risk with the move. She added that the council’s preference is to work with one organisation that would deliver the whole range of services. That would mean it would need to be a charitable or not-for-profit organisation.

Councillor Andy Coles, cabinet member for children’s services, said: “We all know that these are times of austerity. This means that public services have to think and do things differently if we are to continue to improve outcomes and be more efficient. That is why we will be exploring how new ways of working with specialist partners could be used to benefit the children and young people that need our help, as well as our own foster carers and adopters.”

It’s expected that the service will be put out to competitive tender early in 2016.

Public services have to think and do things differently.

Cllr Andy Coles