Fostering Panel

Who sits on panel?

In accordance with fostering legislation, Fostering People maintains a “central list” of panel members who are selected to reflect the community that the panel serves, and as wide a range of professional and stakeholder/service user experience as possible. This includes some Fostering People social workers but predominantly independent adults with experience and knowledge of fostering, having been fostered or in care themselves, work in children’s social care, or health and education.

Membership includes:

A Panel Chairperson

They are not an employee of Fostering People, but an Independent person with the necessary skills knowledge and expertise to chair the panel.

A Vice Chair

This person is responsible for chairing meetings in the chair’s absence or when the position of chair is vacant.

One Social Worker 

They will have at least 3 years relevant post-qualification experience in child care with direct experience of fostering or in placing/supervising children in foster care. Usually (but not always) employed by Fostering People.

At least three other Members

Panel membership must include at least 3 other members not including the independent Chair person, one of whom must be a foster parent for another fostering service.

The Panel Adviser

At Fostering People, this role is fulfilled by our Practice Improvement Manager; Quality Assurance and Safeguarding Manager or Assessment Manager. The Panel Adviser is present at Panel as a non-voting member. The Panel Adviser is there to advise panel members on regulations, agency policy, practice and performance requirements.

When applications are presented to panel, a member of our placements team observes too. This helps our placements team to learn about the skills and experience that you bring which will help them when identifying children to come and live with you.

A supervising social worker may also attend panel in order to familiarise themselves with your application to foster, this person will go on to become your supervising social worker if your application is successful.

This means that there are usually 9 to 11 people in the room including an administrator taking minutes; as such, it can feel a bit full. But your assessing social worker is there with you to explain the recommendation to the panel and, if you wish, you can bring a friend or relative for support. That person can come into panel with you or stay in the waiting area, which ever you’d prefer.

Before the panel, the chair will come and introduce themselves and explain what will happen and how the panel works.

There are usually 2 questions asked from a pool of questions prepared by a group of our foster children; this is to help you to think from their perspective. You’ll be given these whilst you wait to come into panel, so you have time to consider your answers.

The panel will discuss your application and then ask you to come and join them along with your assessing social worker. The panel will then introduce themselves and ask you a few questions, including your answers to the children’s questions.