Private fostering and assessments

We’d like to raise awareness about private fostering arrangements and the important role schools can play in identifying privately fostered children.

Further information

Private Fostering

Private foster carers are people who are not a close relative to a child but plan to look after them for 28 days or more. The local authority must be notified for an assessment to take place of the care and support being offered in the immediate and potentially longer term to ensure it is a safe and suitable place for the child.

The private fostering regulations are a consequence from the Victoria Climbe inquiry (2003) to ensure privately fostered children have their welfare and safety promoted. It can be a positive arrangement and it is usually a response from a friend or the local community to a family in need of support.

Leicester Children’s Social Care only received 6 new notifications of private fostering arrangements from April 2024 to February 2025 and 4 of these arrangements were for the same sibling group which totals only 3 families being referred to have their arrangements assessed. This is a low number of referrals with no referrals made by schools, nurseries, and playgroups.

An audit check of the three families highlights that in one family the environment and level of care and support was considered unsuitable and not good enough with alternative arrangements being made. In two of the families there was child in need social work involvement required, and in the third arrangement the child protection plan was closed with the arrangement being deemed safe. It is not always necessary to have a child in need or child protection plan. It is the assessment and support process which will determine the level of need.

Become a Private Fostering champion

We would like Designated Safeguarding Leads in Schools to becomes Champions for Private Fostering in helping to identify privately fostered children.

Leaflets and posters can be found at the bottom of this newsletter to help promote the awareness and understanding of private fostering.

How do we know a child is privately fostered?

Private fostering is when a child or young person under 16 years old (or 18 if they have a disability) is looked after for a period of 28 days or more by someone who is not a parent, close relative, legal guardian or person with parental responsibility.
Close relatives are defined as step-parents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters and grandparents.
Other people, such as neighbours, friends or more distant relatives need to have an assessment.
Following a successful assessment, the local authority must visit the child regularly to ensure they are and remain safe.
By law, the local authority where the private foster carer lives must be told about all private fostering situations.
The child’s parents, private foster carer and anyone else involved in the arrangement are legally required to inform the local authority.
Schools should be clear who has parental responsibility for children on their roll, and where they identify a private fostering arrangement they must report this to the relevant local authority.

Why might a child be privately fostered?

There are many reasons why a parent may be unable to care for their own child on a short or long-term basis. Regardless of the reason, any child separated from their parents is potentially vulnerable.

We all therefore have responsibilities to ensure the alternative care any privately fostered child receives meets their welfare and safety needs.

Examples when a child might be or become privately fostered include:

If the parent has chronic ill health, in hospital or in prison.
When parents who live overseas send their children to this country for education.
When the parent and child do not get on, so the child lives with a distant relative or friend.
When parents study or work hours/commute etc prevents them looked after the child themselves.
Where parents study or work hours/commute etc prevents them looking after children themselves.
Where parents have separated or divorced, and may have no stable home.
When young people want to live with family of a boyfriend or girlfriend.
When children/young people I boarding schools cannot return to their parents in the holidays, e.g. parents in the Armed Services may have been deployed overseas.
Unaccompanied asylum seeking children/young people who live with friends, distant relatives or strangers.

Whilst most private fostering cases are established for good reasons, we must be open to the possibility that the child may have been a victim of trafficking.

Signs a child may be privately fostered

The following are 6 key questions which may help to identify a privately fostered child:

Has the child said that they are no longer living with their parents e.g. are staying with friends/cousins/ family you were previously unaware of?
Is the child vague about who is looking after them and what their relationship to them is?
Is their carer vague about routines, needs and the child’s education?
Who accompanies the child to school, nursery or playgroup – is it someone different to their known carer?
Are you unsure who is looking after the child and what their relationship to the child is? Have you checked that those called e.g. ‘Auntie’, ‘Uncle’ etc. are relatives rather than the term being used as a form of respect?
Are you unsure if the carer has parental responsibility for the child?

The role of the local authority

It is the local authority’s legal duty to make sure all private fostering arrangements are safe for the child or young person. Once informed of the arrangement, the local authority will check the suitability of private foster carers, make regular visits to the child or young person and ensure advice, help and support is available.

Please call the Duty and Advice Team on 0116 454 1004 or email CASP-Team@leicester.gov.uk if you wish to discuss a family for advice on whether a child is being privately fostered or to make a referral.

Resources and useful websites

Attachments

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