New to Foster 4 Leeds: can you help a young person reconnect with their home and community as a Reconnections Foster Carer? Find out more:
THE ROLE:
This role will see you provide specialised care for a child, likely 11+, with complex emotional, behavioural, or developmental needs who has been living in residential care.
With the right care, your home will become a temporary home for a child, allowing them to move back into a long-term family setting, either with another foster carer or a member of the child’s birth family/extended network – allowing them to be brought closer to their home, community and cultural identity in a safe and supported way.
There are full and part time roles available.
ROLE REQUIREMENTS:
To be eligible for this role, you must:
1. Have significant formal childcare experience (e.g. 3 years’ fostering experience or employment in children’s residential provision, education settings, family support work, social worker, police, youth services/ justice, third sector provision and health)
2. Not have any other employment
3. Be 21 years old or over
4. Have a spare bedroom for the young person
5. Be resilient, patient, and have the ability to build connections with young people who may have exceptional needs and experienced trauma
6. Be experienced in a trauma-informed approach to working with young people
7. Be comfortable working closely as a team with the young person and wraparound support services. These will include therapeutic services, education provision, Youth Justice services and any other service working with the child
8. Be able to provide support care plans to the young person
9. Be able to provide aftercare to support the young person once they've left your care
10. Appreciate the impact of separation and loss of family networks for young people look after
11. Demonstrate an understanding of the care system experience and the ability to support young people through a trauma-focused approach
12. Enable and support young people to progress and adapt to living within a family setting
SUPPORT AND TRAINING:
Reconnections Foster Carers will receive a fee of up to £67,000 per annum for full time carers (£10,000 subject to tax), consisting of fees up to £1,300 per week.
Alongside this, support includes:
13. Specialist training will be provided to help you gain knowledge and skills to work with and support young people through their recovery from trauma.
14. Opportunities to shadow professionals in residential children's homes to better understand the models of work will be provided
15. A bespoke support package for each young person and carer (including 24/7 support where needed)
16. Individual and joint counselling for you and the young person
17. Regular support from Specialist Supervising Social Workers and dedicated outreach workers
18. Group and Peer support for Reconnections foster carers.
19. Respite provision where needed, as agreed as part of the young person's plan
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check against the Children’s barred list will be carried out on preferred candidates.
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