Fostering support and training

Training and your support – from Sunbeam Fostering North West

Your support is a key priority and focus of your fostering agency – Sunbeam Fostering North West.

We are focused on helping all foster carers develop their skills, experience, and knowledge. This will empower you as individuals and provide a safe and sound home environment for children and young people. Safeguarding is a key priority for us.

Our support and training courses are tailored to your needs and understanding, and to ensure that fostering regulations are met and exceeded.

Your support from the agency includes

  • Regular supervision visits to your home from your dedicated social worker.
  • Support groups and others meet up during the year to foster support areas.
  • Activities for children and young persons
  • Support during out-of-hours on a 24-hour basis
  • Foster Talk membership
  • Comprehensive foster carer payments
  • Breaks for respite during the year
  • Contact and support from the Senior Management Team, including Registered Manager Shams Zaidi and Responsible Individual Samiya Zaidi
  • Effective matching for new placements to help secure the right child or young person to be supported by you
  • Regular events for foster carers, including awards and year-end celebrations
  • Secure online logins for your recordings
  • Extra one-off payments were beneficial and funding is secured – toward holidays or other one-off costs

Training courses and development

We provide excellent training courses to each foster carer by delivering learning and content through online courses, video learning, and face-to-face training.

For new foster carers, as part of your approval and assessment process, we provide “Skills To Foster” training, a two-day course delivered by skilled and experienced trainers to prepare you for fostering.

In your first 12 months after becoming approved as a foster carer, your training support would cover completing your TSD certificate. This relates to Training, Support and Development (TSD) and includes the following topics and courses:

  • Record keeping
  • Child protection
  • Challenging behaviour – how to manage this
  • Contact arrangements
  • Adulthood for young persons – how to help prepare young persons
  • Self-esteem and identity
  • Abuse and neglect – supporting children and young persons here if they have experienced this.
  • Safer caring and safeguarding
  • First aid
  • Education support
  • Health and safety

Following completion of your TSD and to develop your knowledge further, we provide further courses covering extensive topics and content, including:

  • Placement interventions and managing breakdowns
  • Support for sibling groups
  • CSE – Child Sexual Exploitation
  • Self-harming
  • Gang culture and management
  • Drug use and safety

These are just a few courses and examples. Please request a copy of your Training Guide covering all your courses. Your social worker will help you create a personal training plan.