Post on 26-Dec-2015
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Family centre
Foster familyoffice
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Duties of the foster family office:
1. Recruitment of foster families
2. Training of foster families
3. Preparation for placement
4. Instruction, guidance and support to foster families
5. Supplementary education
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CONCEPTS OF FOSTER FAMILY ACTIVITIES:
A family home in the Child Welfare Act = a foster home
A family carer in the Child Welfare Act = a foster parent
A child placed in family care based on the Child Welfare Act = a foster home child or a placed child
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RECRUITMENT OF FOSTER FAMILIES We search for foster families through adds in newspapers
Foster family information and preliminary information form
Office and home visits
Continuation plan together with the family
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Absolute obstacles
If a family is willing to continue until training, we check whether there are any absolute obstacles.
Absolute obstacles can include e.g. housing conditions, state of health, age of parents, human relationships of the family, economic situation, criminal record.
A statement from the municipality’s social welfare board.
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Pride training
Developed in the U.S. The Pride programme is being used in the following European countries:
Finland
The Netherlands
Belgium
Sweden
Norway
Hungary
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Has aroused interest also in the following countries:
Estonia
Poland
Denmark
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PRIDE IS A 14-STEP MODEL FOR DEVELOPING FOSTER CARE
It is divided into three main sections:
1. Planning of family care – definition of starting points and analysis of resources
2. Preparation for family care - preliminary preparation for families and joint evaluation
3. Implementation of family care – co-operation, support and supplementary education
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The Finnish Federation of Foster Care Associations is the national specialist organisation for fostering families and their regional associations. It supports foster families through its member associations.
Save the Children is a non-profit organisation, which aims to improve the situation of all children and prmotes realisation of the child’s interests in accordance with the Conventiono f the Rights of the Child of the United Nations..
1994 - 1998 Save the Children and the Finnish Federation of Foster Care Associations – PRIDE project
PRIDE programme (Parents Resources for Information, Development and Education)
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FAMILY CARER ACT 1992
Obligates municipalities to organise training for foster families.
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PESÄPUU ry – CENTRE OF EXPERTISE IN CHILD WELFARE – DEVELOPES PRIDE FURTHER
Pesäpuu ry June 1998
Continues the PRIDE project activities in Finland
Maintains and develops the quality of child welfare and family care
Organises training related to special expertise in family care
Organises e.g. training for trainers of Pride training and Pride supplementary education
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OBJECTIVE OF PRIDE TRAINING
•To guarantee all children in need of a foster / adoptive home an opportunity to get to a well prepared and trained family
•To secure continuation of the placement as long as it is necessary from the child’s viewpoint
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CONTENTS OF TRAINING
Home visits: family-based discussions
9 x 3 hours’ group meetings during about three months
Distribution of information
Learning by experience
Experience-based exercices: getting an insight into their own feelings and into the feelings of the child and his parents at different stages of placement
"Book of my life" home work
PRIDE book
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Training ends in a final evaluation carried out together.
PRIDE trainers:
A foster / adoptive parent and a social worker together
Size of training groups: 10 families at maximum
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FACILITIES REQUIRED FROM FOSTER PARENTS:
Ability to protect and take care of the child Ability to take into consideration the child’s developmental needs and delays Ability to support relationships between the child and his biological family Ability to create permanent relationships in the life of the child Ability to act as a member of a professional team
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LEVELS OF LEARNING
1. Recognition
2. Understanding and knowing
3. Utilisation of skills
4. Increasing and deepening of skills
The objective is that persons aiming at becoming foster parents will achieve the level of recognition and knowing during training.
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JOINT EVALUATION
An instrument in training of foster parents
Information and understanding of the special needs of children placed in foster care
Also their families need special skills in their education
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-evaluation is carried out together by the parents and the trainer pair
- requires self-evaluation from the family and making of a conscious decision
- families are encouraged and they are required to participate actively in training
- starting point for evaluation is meeting with the requirements of the child -concrete skills required from the family so that they can be accepted as foster parents are assessed in the evaluation
-evaluation is connected to skills, not to persons
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- clarifies the responsibility of the office carrying out the placement for care of the child
- the aim is to ensure through the evaluation and selection process that the foster parents will be able to meet with the requirements set by the child’s care and education
-emphasises importance of co-operation, encourages professional attitude
- offers the families an opportunity to feel what it is like to act in a professional team for the benefit of children and families
- respects different cultural, language-related and religious values of different families
- the purpose of evaluation is not to judge the families; the family’s values and selections are respected
- emphasises the principle of mutual respect in co-operation
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GROUP MEETINGS IN PRIDE TRAINING
First meeting; getting to know each other
Second meeting: co-operation to obtain permanence
Third meeting; meeting with the needs concerning development; affection
Fourth meeting: meeting with the needs concerning development: losses
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Fifth meeting: support to family relationships
Sixth meeting: meeting with the needs concerning development; discipline and limits
Seventh meeting: Maintenance of family contacts
Eighth meeting: Information about and experiences from family care and adoption
Ninth meeting: End of training
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PREPARATION OF PLACEMENT
Placement work – co-operation between the child, his parents, social workers of the child welfare and other co-operation parties related to the child’s care
Selection of the place for care:
Based on the needs of the child or adolescent and strengths of the foster family
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THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION WILL BE ACQUIRED ABOUT THE CHILD TO BE PLACED IN FOSTER CARE:
Background of the child: information concerning parents
Grandparents and parents’ sisters and brothers
Human relationships in the family and close relatives
Mutual relationship between parents
Emotional relationship between parents, history of relationship
Parents’ attitude towards placement
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Health of the child
Character and behaviour of the child
Development level of the child
Possible medical research and care places and times of the child
School attendance
Behaviour
Previous measures of child welfare
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GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER
The family gets to know the child and the child gets to know the family
The child’s parents and the foster family meet and get to know each other
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THE ASSIGNMENT CONTRACT INCLUDES:
Fee of the family carer and period of care
Compensation for the costs due to family care
Leisure time of the family carer and fees and compensations for the leisure time
Support measures needed by the family carer
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CARE PLAN
A document aiming at long-term child welfare work
Drawn up together with the parties concerned:
Child’s parents
Child (taking into consideration his age)
Foster parents
Child’s social worker
Any other necessary party
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The care plan includes:
Conditions and issues which shall be modified
Means and estimated time of achievement of these objectives
Meaning and objectives of the placement
Arrangement of special support and help to the child, his parents and persons taking care of him
The way how contacts between the child and his parents and with other close persons will be realised
The care plan shall be revised according to the need.
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FAMILY CARE FEES
A foster family has no maintenance liability with regard to the child placed in care.
A compensation for expenses, a care fee and a starting compensation are paid for family care.
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Starting compensation – necessary costs due to starting
Beginning from 1.1.2003 the starting compensation is 2 394 EUR at maximum
Can be paid for example for necessary additional furniture and modification work due to a disability of the child placed in family care.
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Compensation for expenses
at least 300 EUR per month and 599 EUR per month at maximum
The compensation for expenses covers the costs due to:
The person’s nutrition and housing
Hobbies
Personal needs and other ordinary expenses
Ordinary health care expenses
And pocket money paid to the child
Costs due to the child’s therapy
Special costs due to studies of the child or young person
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Care fee
Is paid for every child placed in family care.
Beginning from 1.1.2003 it totals 225 EUR at minimum and 673 EUR at maximum per month
The care fee depends on the amount of care needed by the person placed in care
In case of a need for special care the maximum care fee 673 EUR can be doubled (1346 EUR)
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SOCIAL SECURITY
Pension security of a family carer
Pension Act concerning municipal post holders and employees
The pension is accumulated based on the care fee – the accrual percentage is 1.5 %
Accident insurance
Accidents Insurance Act
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A GOOD FOSTER HOME
A foster family is well-balanced and safe, when …
The relationship between parents is in order
There is time and place for the child
There are facilities to meet with the child’s needs
There is flexibility
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There is willingness to accept difference
There is an interest in care and education work
There is willingness to develop as educators
There is an ability to co-operate with the child’s own parents, social workers and other parties taking care of the child
All family members are willing to receive the child as an equal family member
The family’s parents have sufficient resources to act as the child’s foster parents as long as the child needs them
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TAKING CARE OF THE FOSTER FAMILY: instruction, support and guidance to work
Guidance and instruction given by the foster family office
External work guidance
Peer support groups for foster parents
Other forms of support
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Guidance and instruction given by the foster family office
Particularly important at the initial phase of placement – for a foster family starting their activities
In the beginning the social worker makes a home visit in the foster family even once per month
Established activities – a home visit at least once per year
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External work guidance is organised in the form of group work guidance
In some cases also family-based external guidance is needed
e.g. through the child guidance and family counselling clinic if the child already has a care relationship with the party in question
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Peer support groups for foster parents
– from a foster parent to a peer trainer
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Other forms of support
Home service
Family substitute
STatutory vacation in the form of holidays – a holiday substitute family
Statutory holiday – one weekday per each calendar month during which the parent has acted at least 14 days as foster parent based on the assignment contract
A family substitute - to the home of the foster family
Extra holidays
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SUPPLEMENTARY EDUCATION
Training related to varied themes:
E.g. psychologists, children’s psychiatrists, experts of chilren’s growth and development as lecturers
Training combined with recreation, meeting with other foster families and also taking children into consideration in training
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PRIDE supplementary education:
In groups, interactively Interactive lecturing Work in groups and pairs Operational exercices
Supplementary education is an important element in supporting foster parents.
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PRIDE SUPPLEMENTARY EDUCATION SECTIONS:
Self-esteem and interaction 12 hours - 4 meetings
Discipline and limits 9 hours - 3 meetings
Child’s family relationships 12 hours - 4 meetings
Intoxicant addiction 15 hours - 5 meetings
Base pillars of foster care 12 hours - 4 meetings
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