Private Fostering
Hello,
I hope whoever is reading this is keeping well.
I am writing in connection to the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Please could you endeavour to answer the following questions within 20 working days, as specified under its clauses:
Please can you break down the below information for the following calendar years: 2019 and 2020. Can you also please provide me the information for the period between 1 January 2021 and 28 February 2021.
Q1) Over the stated period, on how many separate occasions did a member of the public contact your council to inform you they suspected that a child was living in a private fostering arrangement (that hadn't been reported)? In order to report such a suspected private fostering arrangement, people are often directed to a council's children safeguarding board/children's services team (or similar) or encouraged to fill out a form (such as via a Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub) on the local authority's website. Please can you break down Q1 in terms of what type of person reported the private fostering arrangement (for example, but not limited to: school/teacher, neighbour)
1a) How many of the children living under such private fostering arrangements were found to have a disability (please specify what kind- such as autism, down syndrome- if that information, indeed, is recorded and retrievable under the constraints of the act)
1b) Following the subsequent completion of the Private Fostering Assessment (or similarly titled) form, how many placements were found to be prohibited?
1c) How many of the private foster carers had convictions recorded on their DBS disclosure form? Could you please breakdown all the above information in a table and on a case to case basis over the requested period.
I would like to receive this information in an electronic format. If you feel that a substantive response to this request is not possible within a reasonable time frame, or the request is too broad, I would be grateful if you could please contact me by email ([email address]) and provide assistance as to how I could refine the request.
Yours faithfully,
Yohannes Lowe
Dear Yohannes Lowe,
Thank you for your recent request for information as detailed below;
Private Fostering:
Please can you break down the below information for the following calendar years: 2019 and 2020. Can you also please provide me the information for the period between 1 January 2021 and 28 February 2021.
Q1) Over the stated period, on how many separate occasions did a member of the public contact your council to inform you they suspected that a child was living in a private fostering arrangement (that hadn't been reported)? In order to report such a suspected private fostering arrangement, people are often directed to a council's children safeguarding board/children's services team (or similar) or encouraged to fill out a form (such as via a Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub) on the local authority's website. Please can you break down Q1 in terms of what type of person reported the private fostering arrangement (for example, but not limited to: school/teacher, neighbour)
1a) How many of the children living under such private fostering arrangements were found to have a disability (please specify what kind- such as autism, down syndrome- if that information, indeed, is recorded and retrievable under the constraints of the act)
1b) Following the subsequent completion of the Private Fostering Assessment (or similarly titled) form, how many placements were found to be prohibited?
1c) How many of the private foster carers had convictions recorded on their DBS disclosure form? Could you please breakdown all the above information in a table and on a case to case basis over the requested period.
I can confirm that this council does not hold any information in relation to your request and that your request would be better directed to Suffolk County Council who are responsible for the following:
•Highway improvements & Traffic control
•Social Care & Children's and Young People's Services
•Education
•Gypsies and travellers
•Pension funds
•Public Health
•Libraries
If you have any queries about this email, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number FOI20210334 in any future communications.
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, you should write to the Monitoring Officer, Grafton House, 15-17 Russell Road, Ipswich IP1 2DE, within 40 working days of the date of response. Please note that we are not obliged to accept requests for internal reviews after this date.
If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Council.
Kind regards,
The Information Officer
[Ipswich Borough Council request email]
Ipswich Borough Council
Grafton House
15-17 Russell Road
Ipswich
IP1 2DE
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