Staying Put

1. Changing a Foster Care Placement into a Staying Put Arrangement

The Leaving Care Assessment of Need (for the Pathway Plan) should begin at the age of 15½ and should identify the timescale required for the young person to move to independence. It should be used as the framework for beginning to explore the following questions and issues:

• Is it likely that the young person would benefit from a Staying Put arrangement when they reach their 18th birthday?
• Are the young person and their foster carer/s in agreement about a Staying Put arrangement?
• Do the young person and their foster carer/s understand the policies and requirements for extending a foster care placement into a Staying Put arrangement?
• If the foster carer is approved by an Independent Fostering Agency. Does s/he understand that the IFA will not have any role in any Staying Put arrangement: the young person will no longer be a foster child and the arrangement will be made directly between the staying put provider (the former foster carer) and Birmingham Children's Trust?
• Does the young person understand their financial and benefit responsibilities associated with remaining in a Staying Put arrangement?
• Does the foster carer/s understand the changes in their funding arrangements associated with a Staying Put arrangement?
• Does the foster carer/s understand the impact of a Staying Put arrangement on their welfare benefit income and on their Income Tax and National Insurance responsibilities and liabilities?
• What is the parallel plan for the young person should the Staying Put arrangement not be viable?
• What are the preparation for independence tasks, goals and targets to be achieved during the last two years of foster care and when the placement becomes a Staying Put arrangement?
• If the young person has a disability and meets the criteria for a service from the Adult Services, what is the plan for converting the Staying Put arrangement into an Adult Placement (Shared Lives)?
• During the planning process the foster carer's supervising social worker will discuss with them whether they would be able and willing to offer the young person a Staying Put arrangement, and will advise them about the financial implications.

If the foster carer is in agreement, a professionals meeting should take place as part of the Leaving Care Assessment of Need. To ensure sufficient time is available to make the necessary planning arrangements for creating a Staying Put arrangement beyond a young person's 18th birthday, this meeting should take place as soon as possible after Staying Put becomes a real possibility. This should be at age 15 but may be later if the young person is not in care at that time – in which case it must be no later than 6 months before the 18th birthday.

The professionals meeting should include the young person, the foster carer/s, the young person's social worker, the foster carers' supervising social worker and the leaving care personal adviser; and also the disability social worker if applicable. It should establish the viability and likelihood of a Staying Put arrangement occurring. The meeting should identify all the tasks that are required to extend the fostering arrangement into a Staying Put arrangement and to apportion roles and responsibilities.

The Staying Put professionals meeting should be repeated when the young person reaches the age of 17¼ and should ensure that any final arrangements and requirements are in place by the young person's 18th birthday. The outcome of the meeting should be discussed at the young person's subsequent statutory review and the decision ratified by the Independent Reviewing Officer.

All meetings should make reference to the reason for the Staying Put arrangement, the practical requirements associated with Staying Put and also the National Insurance, Income Tax and Welfare Benefits issues for the Staying Put Provider/s and the benefits issues for the young person.

Once provisional agreement between all parties has been reached, agreement to fund the staying put arrangement can be made by the Designated Manager in Children in Care Services who signs the Staying Put- Living Together Agreement.

The arrangement should be reviewed six monthly by the Leaving Care worker in consultation with the young person and the Staying Put Provider.

2. Financial Requirements and Personal Benefits for Young People

For the latest up to date advice regarding this please see 18+ Care Leavers Service Financial Support Policy.

If the young person is not entitled to claim benefits as they are in full time education the Trust will pay the equivalent of the benefits personal allowance to the young person.

3. Housing Benefit for Young People

For advice regarding this please see the Shelter Website.

Please note. Young people living with sisters, brothers and certain extended family members who were not formally approved as foster carers are not eligible to claim housing benefit on reaching the age of 18. There should be clarity therefore in the Pathway Plan that the family members were approved foster carers with the Trust.

4. Liability for Rent

All young people living in a Staying Put arrangement have a liability for rent which is set on a commercial basis. From the age of 18 young people can claim help from Housing Benefit towards their rent.

For advice regarding this please see Staying Put - Arrangements for Care Leavers Aged 18 and Above to Stay on With Their Former Foster Carers – Government Guidance issued by the DfE, DWP and HMRC (2013).

5. Staying Put General Allowances

From the young person's 18th birthday Staying Put providers are no longer expected to provide pocket money, a clothing allowance or a personal allowance. The young person is expected to replace this via means tested benefits, employment or by receipt of a personal allowance from the Trust.

In situations where a young person is working part-time and does not claim a means tested personal benefit, they will be expected to use their earnings to replace the equivalent of pocket money and clothing allowance and will be expected to claim housing benefit.

6.Council Tax, Council Tax Support and Non-Dependent Deductions

For advice regarding this please see Staying Put - Arrangements for Care Leavers Aged 18 and Above to Stay on With Their Former Foster Carers – Government Guidance issued by the DfE, DWP and HMRC (2013).

7. Effect on Welfare Benefits of the Staying Put Provider

Payments made to young people and passed to a Staying Put Provider under section 23C of the Children Act 1989 are disregarded in the assessment of Staying Put Provider's income for benefit purposes, if the young person:

• Was formerly in the claimant's care; and
• Is aged 18 or over; and
• Continues to live with the claimant in a non-commercial family type arrangement.

If the arrangement is a commercial one (i.e. if the young person contributes to the arrangement by paying a commercial rent) then this may not be covered by section 23C and could affect benefit payments.

8. Income Tax and National Insurance Issues for Staying Put Arrangements

A Staying Put Provider is entitled to Qualifying Care Relief if:

• S/he receives payment from the Local Authority/Trust for providing a staying put arrangement for a care leaver; and
• The care leaver is aged 18, 19 or 20, or is in further education, higher education or vocational training; and
• The care leaver has a Pathway Plan.

The details of this are in HMRC Help Sheet 236: The Qualifying Care Relief: Foster carers, adult placement carers, kinship carers, staying put carers and parent and child arrangements.

Staying Put Providers should always inform the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Customs and Revenue if their circumstances change and should always check with the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Customs and Revenue regarding their personal circumstances and how payments for Staying Put may affect their means tested benefits or any Income Tax or National Insurance liability.

9. Staying Put - Social Care and Regulatory Frameworks

9.1 Where a Child in Care is also Living in the Staying Put Arrangement

Where a young person reaches the age of 18 and fostered children are also living in the placement, all aspects of the legislation relating to fostering continue to apply and govern the regulation of the household. The major change is that the young person who is Staying Put is now an adult member of the household. The regulations require a Disclosure and Barring Service check (previously called a CRB check) on every adult member of the household. If the check highlights a potential risk, a risk assessment must be carried out.

In order to ensure that DBS checks are completed by the young person's 18th birthday, these will need to be planned in advance (from age 17½).

From the age of 18 the requirement for a young person to have a placement plan that sets out the day to day arrangements for the placement ceases; the placement plan should be converted to a 'Living Together Agreement' (format is in the Practice Guidance) which sets out the practical Staying Put arrangements.

The foster carer/s will be subject to an additional review which should be presented to the foster panel for note of the change of circumstances within the fostering household.

The review will include any issues arising from a DBS check and associated 'risk assessment' and how any looked after children, or children of the foster carer/s living in the household will be safeguarded.

The fostering panel will need to give due consideration to the impact of the Staying Put arrangement on the foster carers' terms of approval, including the numbers approved for, and whether this number includes the Staying Put young person.

9.2 Where No Looked After Children are Living in the Staying Put Arrangement

Whilst fostering regulations no longer formally apply when a young person reaches the age of 18 the following requirements and standards will continue to govern the Trust Staying Put arrangements in circumstances where no looked after child/children are living in the household:

• The placement plan which included the roles, responsibilities and the expectations of the foster carer and the young person should be converted into a 'Living Together Agreement';
• A return to foster panel for acceptance of resignation;
• A yearly review of the Staying Put carer and the overall arrangement;
• Safeguarding and risk assessment checks on household members and regular visitors;
• Health and safety checks;
• Regular monitoring from the leaving care personal adviser for the first year of the Staying Put arrangement and longer if appropriate or required.

In circumstances where Staying Put carers only have an 18 year old, (or older) young person living with them, the supervising fostering social worker will need to gradually withdraw, dependent on the needs of the young person, as the Staying Put provider is no longer an approved foster carer. This would not normally exceed 3 months.

9.3 Support for Staying Put Providers

In situations where foster children are placed in the household, or may be placed in the future and the Staying Put Provider remains registered as a foster carer, the existing supervising social worker will normally continue to support the overall arrangement (Fostering and Staying Put).

In situations where there are no foster children in the household and it is not planned that any further foster children will be placed, the leaving care personal adviser will support the Staying Put arrangement.

9.4 Minimum Standards and Practical Requirements

Staying Put providers should ensure that they inform their mortgage provider and their buildings and contents insurance provider that they will continue to be supporting a former foster child as a young adult under a "Staying Put" arrangement. Failure to inform the above may cause a breach of mortgage/tenancy requirements and may result in insurance cover being void due to a 'failure to disclose material facts'.

Staying Put providers who transport young people are required to apply the same level of standards and care when transporting young people as they did when they were transporting a foster child, i.e. comprehensive business insurance, a valid MOT, a valid Road Vehicle License and a road worthy vehicle.

When foster carers wish to remain fostering for the Trust alongside the Staying Put arrangement the expectations of this arrangement should be incorporated into the 'Foster Carer Agreement' that foster carers sign on initial approval, and then on a yearly basis following a successful review of their terms of approval.

9.5 Staying Put Practical Arrangements – Living Together Agreements

All young people (who are looked after) living in foster care should have a placement plan that sets out the day to day arrangements governing the placement; this is incorporated into their Care Plan/Pathway Plan.

The requirement to have a placement plan ceases when a child reaches the age of 18 and is replaced in the Trust by the requirement that all young people remaining with their former foster carers under a Staying Put arrangement have a Living Together Agreement.

The Living Together Agreement replaces the placement plan and should cover the same range of issues and include a focus on the young person's needs associated with the reason for the Staying Put arrangement being agreed.

Young people, Staying Put Provider/s, leaving care personal advisers and supervising social workers should meet to convert the placement plan into a Living Together Agreement prior to a young person's 18th birthday. The agreement should set out the expectation of all parties and clarify roles and responsibilities. The agreement should be incorporated into the young person's pathway plan.

The Living Together Agreement will cover:

• Payments from the Trust and the young person to the Staying Put Provider;
• Preparation for independence tasks, expectations, goals and targets;
• Finance, including young people having credit cards, loan agreement and mobile phone contracts registered at the address;
• Income and benefit claims;
• Friends and partners visiting and staying;
• Staying away for nights/weekends and informing carers of travel arrangements and movements;
• Education, training and employment activities;
• Health arrangements;
• Move-on arrangements;
• Issues related to younger foster care children in the placement, safeguarding, role modelling and time keeping;
• Specific issues to do with the needs of the young person.

The Staying Put arrangement should be reviewed every six months by the Leaving Care personal adviser in consultation with the young person and Staying Put Provider.

The format for a Living Together Agreement is in the Practice Guidance.

10. Continuing to Foster – or Ceasing to do so

The former foster carer may continue to be registered to foster other children but their terms of approval may be amended to acknowledge the change of circumstances. In addition the young person will become an adult living in the foster carer's household, and the fostering service will need to carry out a criminal records check with the Disclosure and Barring Service. Normal arrangements for support and review will continue.

If the former foster carer does not intend to continue to foster during this period this may be dealt with as a temporary break from fostering or as termination of approval. It is important that both the foster carer and the Fostering Service are clear about which is intended.

11. Approval

If the young persons and their foster carer agree they want a staying put arrangement when the young person is 18 years the Children's Trust must offer support if it considers this would be appropriate.

The social worker and team manager will consider whether there are any factors that suggest that the arrangement would not be appropriate for the young person.

The team manager will notify the Designated Manager in Children in Care Services of the proposed arrangement, the intended start date and the intentions of the young person and Staying Put provider as to when the arrangement will end. S/he will provide a copy of the Staying Put-Living Together Agreement.

The Designated Manager will confirm that funding for the arrangement has been agreed.

12. Ending the Agreement

If any of the parties – the young person, the Staying Put Provider or the Children's Trust – wish to end the arrangement this will be subject to the notice period stated in the agreement. If the termination is outside the current plan, the leaving care worker will arrange an urgent review.

The young person is "an excluded licensee", and the former foster carer may ask him/her to leave the property at any time, provided that reasonable notice is given. In extreme circumstances it may be reasonable to give very short notice and ask the young person to leave in the same day.