Step-down fostering placements

All young people should have a secure family home. That’s why we developed a step-down programme, which helps young people move from a residential unit to a stable and supportive foster home.

What is step-down fostering?

There are lots of reasons why children may find themselves in residential care; sometimes it’s simply because there are no foster placements available at the time when they need it. Their lives can often be drastically improved by living with a foster family.

Our step-down programme helps children make the transition back into a family, with lots of support for both them and you along the way.

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What step-down fostering involves

There are four stages to step-down fostering to give you both chance to adjust and get the training and help you need.

1 - Matching & Planning

Making the right match between a foster carer and child is incredibly important. After careful matching, you’ll have the opportunity to attend planning meetings to discuss your placement and any questions you may have.

2 - Settlement

A 12-week settlement period to help the young person settle-in. During this time there will be others involved in helping to settle the young person, these could include social workers, therapists and possibly education officers. There will also be regular Team Parenting meetings.

3 - Stabilisation

A second 12 week period where you’ll continue to see involvement from others, to help stabilise the placement. As the young person starts making progress, Team Parenting meetings will start to reduce in frequency as is appropriate and agreed by all.

4 - Maintenance

The final stage of the programme lasts up to 28 weeks but could be longer depending on the needs of the young person. By now they should be well settled and making significant progress.