Finance: The Dark Side!

Seeking finance for a business venture these days is no easy matter.  Despite the banking bailout and the disgustingly named quantitative easing that floods their coffers with new money, the Banks are reluctant to look at new businesses.  The government appears to realise that it is only by entrepreneurs energetically creating new jobs that we will emerge out of this double dip recession, so how they are going to square this particular circle will be interesting.

In terms of a social enterprise such as fostering there is the additional complicating factor that the finance needs to support the ethical values of the project.  It's about delivering financial success through the quality of the service rather than the service supporting the financial needs of the investors.  It's a fine distinction but is hugely important.  It means the service must come first...always.

This is an incredibly frustrating time for an entrepreneur.  The plan is in place, no doubt having been worked on late into the night over many months or even years.  Everything is ready to go.  We're aching to get moving on a venture that we don't believe can fail.  But we have to wait while decisions are made elsewhere.

I'll be logging this period here as a kind of diary both for myself and any readers who may be considering the same path.

Currently our loan application is under consideration.  Much of that is down to how it can be underwritten against security.  At times this seems more important than the business plan itself.

If we are denied a loan on that basis we can then apply for the governments social enterprise guarantee.  This is where the government underwrites the security of up to 75% of the loan.

A work in progress and the time to focus on keeping inspired, staying hungry and prepping for the big day.

Ofsted!

Guidance on the registration of an independent fostering agency branch Introduction 1. The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) originally published guidance on the registration of a branch of an independent fostering agency. Ofsted is now responsible for registering and inspecting fostering agencies and we are issuing guidance as one of our publications. It restates the CSCI guidance to provide a consistent approach. 2. The Care Standards Act 2000 defines a fostering agency as: n an undertaking which consists of or includes discharging functions of local authorities in connection with the placing of children with foster parents or n a voluntary organisation which places children with foster parents under section 59(1) of the 1989 Act. 3. The definition of an independent fostering agency that we have adopted is: ‘an office(s) that is independently undertaking the majority of the key day-to-day activities of a fostering service’. Branches and registration 4. All independent fostering agencies must be registered with Ofsted. Each branch of an agency must be registered separately. The Care Standards Act 2000 states that: n ‘where the activities of an agency are carried on from two or more branches, each of those branches shall be treated as a separate agency for the purposes of this part’ and that n ‘a person who carries on or manages, or wishes to carry on or manage, more than one establishment or agency must make a separate application in respect of each of them’. 5. Our aim is to use a fair and consistent definition for a branch of an independent fostering agency. This only affects independent fostering agencies as the Fostering Services Regulations 2002 treat a local authority’s fostering services as a single entity. 6. We use the term ‘office base’ to mean a place of work. We have criteria to decide if an office base is a branch or just an office that is on a different site to the agency’s main office. 7. All our decisions must be based on what we find out from our inspections and we must take into account any day-to-day fostering activity that an office base is carrying out that is independent of the main office. How we decide if an office base is a branch 8. The key issues to consider are: n what are the day-to-day activities of a fostering service n how we decide that an office base is operating independently and therefore requires registration as a branch. The key activities of a fostering service 9. The core business of a fostering service is to recruit, assess, approve, train, supervise, support and review foster parents who care for children looked after by local authorities. 10. The Fostering Service Regulations list these key activities: n support, training and information for foster parents Regulation 17 (includes supervision) n establishment of a fostering panel Regulation 24 n assessment of prospective foster parents Regulation 27 (includes recruiting foster parents) n approval of foster parents Regulation 28 n reviews and terminations of approval Regulation 29. This is a branch 11. The functions of an independent fostering agency may be carried out from several office bases. 12. However, if an office base undertakes four or more of the key activities independently of its main office then it is a branch. Such an office base: n must have its own registration as a branch of the agency n will need its own manager and inspection regime. 13. A group of office bases can be a branch if they are working together independently of the main office to carry out fostering activities that equate to the majority of an agency’s key activities. 14. The criteria we use to consider if a group is a branch is listed below. n Is there a single statement of purpose for the group – that accurately and usefully describes the functions that the office bases undertake – or does each office base have its own statement? n Do the members of the group have: − the same policies, procedures and guidelines? − _common record keeping and administrative systems? − a common training plan for staff and carers? n Do the members of the group: − operate as one service or separate services? − self direct their own activities, or are their activities directed by another office? n What is the operational span of each member of the group? _We look for evidence that the members depend on each other. We take into consideration: − size of the geographical area that an office base covers − the number of placements that an office base supervises and the number of care staff – support workers, social workers and so forth – that it manages. 15. We use all the above criteria when considering if an office base or a group is a branch. It is possible that a decision can be made on the basis of only one of the criteria; for example, a large geographical coverage is likely to indicate independence of the main office. Branches and inspection 16. We inspect a fostering agency as one entity: we include the agency’s branches in its inspection. This is because a branch inspection will impact upon the judgements made upon all the agency’s branches. We will develop our fostering inspection methodology to take this into account. Question and answer Q: Why is Ofsted changing the policy towards independent fostering agencies operating from more than one site? A: We are not changing the policy. The policy we are adopting is the same policy operated by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI). Q: If Ofsted is not changing policy, why have you written to providers about it? A: We have written to inform fostering agencies of our intention to consistently apply this policy. Q: When will Ofsted begin applying the policy? A: We began applying the policy on 1 November 2008 for new registrations. For existing registrations we will seek to work with providers to achieve compliance by 1 September 2009. Q: What will happen next? A: Where we have evidence that office bases may require registration as a branch, we will undertake an inspection to assess the fostering activities undertaken by each one. Where an office base undertakes four or more of the activities of a fostering agency, the agency will be required to submit an application to register it as a branch. Q: Will I be charged a fee? A: We have no legal power to waive fees and so we will charge the full manager’s application fee and registration fees. Q: What will happen if I do not comply by the 1 September 2009? A: We will issue a notice of proposal to impose conditions on your registration that enable you to comply with our policy.

Marketing is key! Here's the first attempt at the logo!

Join us!!!

Balance Fostercare

Balance Fostercare

A radical new Independent Fostering Agency cooperatively owned in partnership with carers.

Good comms systems!

It takes excellent communication to run any business!  That means listening with full attention and awareness.

Mindmap

From Evernote:

Screenshot

It's a shame that Michael Gove has marginalised the 5 Outcomes because they provided great measuring standards for Looked After Children's services.  Then again it's a shame that the Secretary of State for Education has anything to do with children at all!

I just got sent my own job description!

Urrgh!  Just reading the language of this job description gives me the creeps.  There's something very soulless about people coming in to fostering who seem to think that carers and children are like cattle to be managed.  A target-driven, livestock approach which seems endemic in fostering businesses.
I believe foster carers and children, all of them, looked after and carers kids, are part of a family and that starting a business in Fostering is actually starting a family with lifelong commitments on all sides.  Having said that anyone like me thinking of starting their own fostering agency could do worse than look at the myriad responsibilities of this post and shudder.  It's quite a list!

REGISTERED MANAGER JOB PROFILE
 Job purpose:

Under the supervision of the responsible individual, to be responsible for the management and the day to day running of services.

Principles

• The Registered Manager is directly responsible to the Responsible Individual for the company
• The Registered Manager is expected to work according to all of the policies and procedures of the company and national minimum standards.
•  The Registered Manager is expected to be flexible in his/her working arrangements; being available for support, advice or management input for foster carers and social workers on a twenty four hour basis*
•  The Registered Manager has a duty to bring to the attention of the Responsible Individual, any matter which has a bearing on the delivery of the companies services.

 Job Activities: Quality Assurance

•  To monitor the implementation of the agency’s policies and procedures to ensure that these comply with the national minimum standards.
• To monitor the standard of care received by looked after children placed with the company to ensure that this promotes children’s welfare and enables them to achieve good outcomes.

Recruitment and Assessment of Foster Carers

• To oversee the implementation of the companies foster carer recruitment programme to ensure that it meets agreed targets and provides the organisation with carers of the required standard and skills to meet its strategic objectives.
• To supervise social workers to carry out assessments of prospective carers and to ensure that these assessments meet the required standards.
• To manage the organisation’s recruitment and assessment systems to ensure that these operate efficiently and meet the company’s recruitment needs
• to develop the agency’s recruitment programme and systems as required in order to meet new objectives as they arise.

Annual reviews of Foster carers

• To implement and manage the systems for the annual review of foster carers to ensure that all carers are reviewed as required and within the necessary time frame.
• To assume management responsibility for the variation and termination of foster cares’ approvals and to ensure that these are carried out in accordance with the company’s policies and procedures and national minimum standards

 Panel
To take management responsibility for all panel bookings and collation of reports. To share responsibility for ensuring that the operation of the panel complies with The company’s policies and procedures

Foster carers’ training
To take management responsibility for the provision of a foster carer training programme that fully equips carers with the necessary skills and knowledge in order to meet the diverse care and developmental needs of looked after children.

 Staff recruitment and supervision

 To support the responsible Individual in the recruitment of staff in accordance with Fostering For You policy and procedures and employment law. To provide formal supervision for ‘sessional’ social workers, supervising Social workers and administrative staff on a monthly basis.
Staff training In collaboration with the Responsible Individual to ensure that all The Company’s staff have access to training that meets their needs for ongoing professional development Placement of children

To assume management responsibility for the matching and placement process for children placed with The Company’s and to ensure that this process promotes children’s welfare and is in keeping with the agency’s policies and procedures and minimum standards.

To manage the organisation’s referrals and placements system to ensure that it is efficient and responsive to the placement needs of local authority customers. Safeguarding To ensure that Fostering Fro You’s safeguarding policies are adhered to and therefore that social work practice within the organisation promotes children’s safety from all forms of Abuse. Social Work Practice

 To play a key role and be consulted in the decision making affecting the day-to-day management of foster placements.
To advise on practice issues for foster carers and Supervising Social Workers on a day to day basis To be responsible for the authorisation of all placements made within Fostering For You To review and monitor all personnel, foster carer’s and children/young people’s files. These will be signed on a monthly basis by The Registered Manager To take responsibility for ensuring the registers kept by The company’s are updated when required Development of practice To contribute to the developmental and strategic planning for The company’s and to support the Responsible Individual in preparing an annual report To contribute to the policy and practice development for The company’s and support the Responsible Individual in enhancing awareness of Fostering For You’s activities To enhance individual skills and knowledge through professional training Administration To over-see the operation of all administrative systems, ensuring that these are in accordance with the agency’s policies and procedures and also that they adhere to the relevant national minimum standards Customer care Jointly with the Responsible Individual; to liaise with local authority customers to ensure that The company’s works in partnership with them to promote the welfare of children Jointly with the Responsible Individual to liaise with local authority customers to ensure that The Company’s is aware of the customers’ fostering needs and therefore in a position to meet these needs.

Aaaaaargh!!!!!!

PLANNING, PLANNING AND MORE PLANNING!

Whiteboards are amazing planning tools.  I have them everywhere, yes that includes the loo!  The whole point about ideas is to capture and share them.  The greatest ideas in the world are just hot air unless they're captured and poked around with.  Put them in children's rooms and just watch them capture those ideas!  This is from a great little app on my Iphone call whiteboard share!