Unannounced visits

We strive to make sure that children are safe in foster care.

Unannounced visits to foster homes are in place to make sure that our children and young people in care live in healthy, safe, warm, nurturing family environments and the care provided to them is of the best possible standard.

The Fostering National Minimum Standards 2011 states that:

"Each approved foster carer is supervised by a named, appropriately qualified social worker who has meetings with the foster carer, including at least one unannounced visit a year (NMS 21.8)"

and that:

"The foster home is inspected annually, without appointment, by the fostering service to make sure that it continues to meet the needs of foster children (NMS 10.5)".

What to expect

We want our approach to unannounced visits to be consistent across the county and we recognise that you may worry about them taking place. This is what you can expect:

• Visits will be undertaken by a fostering social worker or social work assistant who is aware of the general standard of the home.
• Every foster home must have an unannounced visit at least once a year.
• Unannounced visits can take place at any time.
• The visit will be undertaken as quickly as possible to cause least disruption
  possible to you and your routines.
• You must allow the unannounced visit to take place and it is only in
  exceptional circumstances that the social worker or social work assistant will accept a reason not to continue with a visit.
• If a nominated babysitter is looking after the child, the fostering social
  worker or social work assistant will identify the person but will not
  continue the visit and come back another time.
• If you or your family are not at home, the social worker or social work assistant will come back another time.
• The fostering social worker or social work assistant may request that the child or young person is seen and spoken to.
• The child or young person’s bedroom and all communal spaces available to them will be seen. Ordinarily, neither your children's bedroom(s) nor your bedroom will be seen, unless a baby sleeps in your room.
• Storage of confidential information relating to the child or young person will be checked as part of the unannounced visit.
• The fostering social worker or social work assistant will observe and record issues in respect of general cleanliness and health and safety compliance.
• The fostering social worker or social work assistant will clarify, discuss and seek to resolve any issues with you at the time of the visit.
• Unannounced visits will be recorded by the fostering social worker or social work assistant using a standard Unannounced Visit Template.