Fran Gallagher

@rtsrichard @annemflfc @Peston Asked someone about this. Peterborough is not contracted out. S & D converted to Trusts so were not outsourced. CoL is so small that it’s not viable to have an internal service apparently.

@GallagherFran2 @annemflfc @Peston It may have changed but the report by Sir Martin Narey which was a complete look at the system, identified Peterborough as wholly contracted out and Doncaster, Slough and City of London had >95% contracted out with only a few legacy FCs left in house at the time.

Hundreds of millions of pounds of profit are being extracted from children's homes by private equity and other owners. This week’s The Rest is Money podcast is a special episode on the disastrous deterioration of support for families in crisis and the escalating scandal of private-sector residential care for children removed from parents lnk.to/TheRestIsMoney…

@rtsrichard @annemflfc @Peston Which LAs have stopped having their own foster carers?!? I’ve not heard that.

7 years fostering for local authority. £200 per child standard. Bernardos pay double also offer respite cover for two weeks holiday a year. Some private companies even pay a retainer when without kids. I was in a Foster Care Association meeting with about 40 others. The guest speaker was the guy who handled all the support money for PEPs etc. for the Council. He asked for a show of hands on who had kids. It was less than half. He was staggered and questioned why the LA was using the private sector so extensively. What I said was true. I've seen it happening. By the way, some councils don't even recruit foster carers anymore. They use private provision exclusively.

@saj_anderson @TfL @TfLTPH I didn’t say it was excusable. I’m saying the consequence is ridiculous.

@saj_anderson @TfL @TfLTPH Totally wrong. What will a fine do? He should have been made to have spent a day with Ava. She would have taught him more than a fine will ever do.

@ded6ajd Are you aware that some foster carers have to go into schools to teach teachers about trauma?

"I have a message for the people who don't actually teach, but confidently assert that they know how to teach, manage behaviour and even prevent crime. The message is: shut up." A quote from someone who should neither be seen nor heard so much (!)- now read on: 1/2

@CareExpUK .

@Jo_WhiteheadUK @SKinnock Why don’t people ever criticise the buying behaviour of council? Is that the root of the problem?

Care homes for children shouldn’t be owned by private equity companies based offshore, some making £45,000 profit per child. Care should be focused on what’s best for children, not shareholders. @SKinnock huge changes needed #C4News

@SWConcern @human120021 So how do you feel about charities that pay their CEOs far more than the private companies and also rack up £000,000’s in legal costs after making poor business decisions? Should they be allowed to be nominated?

@human120021 My point isn’t about rules, or the purpose of the awards. It’s about the ethics of the awards being used to promote private business interests, a position I have long held and written about. But FWIW Ofsted results as promotional tool is problematic IMO that’s but another debate!

Mosaic Foster Care is a private fostering agency that paid £200k to shareholders last year. Unclear how a private limited company with a vested interest in profiting from children’s services can be nominated in the Children's Team of the Year category of the Social Work Awards?

I remain perpetually staggered that child development does not form part of teacher training. The relevance of understanding the cognitive, emotional, physical & social growth that children go through from birth to early adulthood is enormous.

@nupfc @Durbs1976 @fosteringnet That response has a dismissive feel about it. Sadly.

@Durbs1976 @fosteringnet Please email us at enquiries@nupfc.com and our general secretary shall be delighted to chat with you. You can learn everything about the National Union Of Professional Foster Carers by going to nupfc.com

Congratulations to Labour. As soon as the dust settles we will be contacting the new Secretary of State for Education & Children's Minister. There is only one solution for foster carers, for retention, for recruitment A Central Licensing Body for foster carers.

@TimBall16 There are too many prisoners because there’s too much crime. So L are looking to tackle cause and be more preventative. Are you against that?

The nonsense progressive policies have started already. "We have too many prisoners", says new PM Starmer. Tell that to the victims of muggings & burglaries & the owners of retail businesses, who are seeing an epidemic of lawlessness & shoplifting. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

@PickardJE What the hell? This is quite possibly the least newsworthy story on the planet. It really doesn’t f’in matter. Go and do some proper journalism you lazy plonker.

Treasury revamps the chancellor’s private toilet in preparation for its first female incumbent

@Beechtreefun @Jenny_1884 @ThatSneaker @penny62132920 great example. some foster carers struggle to if caring for children with particularly complex needs.

@Jenny_1884 @ThatSneaker @penny62132920 Residential care staff for children in care are usually away from home for 2 nights work 2days on 4 off 15 hours shifts.

Postal Votes should from now on only be for people in exceptional circumstances who are unable to get to a polling station. The problem being in this day & age is that postal voting cannot be monitored properly & easily & could easily be fraudulent.

@Hannah_CEPSW After a child has left this is the child’s social workers responsibility . It should never be expected that a foster carers home should be a free storage facility for years. Especially when there are many items and they have made numerous requests to have items relocated.

@GallagherFran2 In this specific case it was (they’re not longer FCs) but yes SWs etc also have a duty to take care of belongings. However in the home, it’s a foster carers responsibility to ensure memories/ belongings are appropriately stored not just dumped somewhere

I heard yesterday about how a child’s belongings got ruined because a foster carer left them to rot in a garage 😒 Belongings & memories are so important for children in care. LOOK AFTER THEM.

@FosterSupport What’s the back story to this? Sorry but the fundraising page doesn’t explain enough imo. Why was the child moved? Is there more detail?

@Hannah_CEPSW It’s not always the carers fault. If belongings have been packed up carers can’t open them to see the state of them. This happens a lot. Left belongings in lofts & garages. Some collected many years later. Some abandoned forever. The LA needs to take more responsibility.

@Hannah_CEPSW When children leave a foster home it can be extremely difficult to get their belongings transported. Especially if they move far away. I’ve known carers to remind the LA about left belongings almost weekly for over a year & still nothing done! 1/

@Headteacherchat I’m stumped as to why you need advice. This is a given.

Anonymous post: Would you authorise a holiday during term time for a child with a sibling who has severe learning difficulties? The parents believe that a quieter environment would be better for the disabled child. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Are you a foster carer from past or present? If so my mum would love some help to complete this quick survey fosterwiki.com ❤️ Please RT

@RStraightener @BCPfails @DanielRoyParkin @SaraArmstr64445 Do non profits cost more than private?