HuffPost UK reports that a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Department for Education (DfE) shows that government ministers have been asked to intervene 72 times over the last three years to use their powers to force academies to accept looked after children. Local authorities can force a council-run school to accept children, while […]
New Children & Families Minister appointed in Cabinet reshuffle
Conservative MP for Chelmsford Vicky Ford has been named as the new children’s minister. Ford, who was elected to parliament in 2017, has previously been a member of both the the science and technology and women and equalities select committees. Her appointment comes after Michelle Donelan was made universities minister last week. Prior to entering […]
Accommodation for children in care – Consultation
The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a consultation on unregulated provision for children in care and care leavers in England. It has been launched alongside a research report on the same topic and transparency data on looked after children in independent or semi-independent placements. The consultation seeks views on proposals to: ban placing children […]
Why we must do more to support care leavers at university
Research finds that half of care leavers consider dropping out of university due to a mix of health problems, money worries, high workloads and personal and family issues. Half of care leavers consider quitting university It found that 51% had seriously considered dropping out, with the most common difficulties arising from a mix of health […]
Coronavirus: Official advice for schools, nurseries, children’s homes and social workers
Public Health England (PHE) has issued advice to education settings, residential care providers and children’s social care professionals amid fears of an outbreak of coronavirus in the UK. The Department for Education has also set up a Coronavirus helpline for anyone with education related questions on 0800 046 8687 (Mon to Fri 8 am to […]
Fosterline Website Wins Two Awards!
We are very pleased to announce that Fosterline’s new website has won 2 awards! Our brand new website has won the Best UX Awards and the Special Design Kudos Award in the CSS Design Awards! Thanks to everyone who voted, and for COAL for designing our website! […]
Professional Association for ChildCare and Early Years
The Professional Association for Child Care and Early Years are running a Department for Education funded project to support child care providers, parents & carers with recognizing the value of everyday interactions and routines on children’s development. You can read more and find links to informative short film clips on “5 small things” talking, reading, […]
Call for review of the care system
An editorial in The Guardian urges that the review of the care system promised in the Conservative manifesto should start as soon as possible, be fully independent and ‘peer into all the troubling gaps’. The piece states that with the number of looked after children in England at a ten year high, how they are cared for and educated should […]
Special Educational Needs of Looked After Children
The Guardian reports on the findings of a research study examining the level of special educational needs (SEN) support required by children in the care system. Researchers at the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health examined data on almost half a million children who began school in September 2005 and found that 83% […]
Meeting the Needs of BAME Children in Foster Care
Two articles this month examine the issue of the shortage of black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) foster carers: BBC analysis of Ofsted figures show that two-thirds of councils in England have a shortage of BAME foster carers. 23% of children in foster care in England at 31 March 2019 came from a BAME background. […]