Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that routine decision making for a foster child is delegated to their carers as set out in The Children Act 1989, Guidance and Regulations: Section 3.188 which was revised in 2013.

The regulations and statutory guidance are clear that day-to-day decisions should be delegated to foster parents. Any exceptions to this should be clearly stated in the child’s care plan. However, we acknowledge that practice does not always follow guidance.

In the report ‘Fostering Better Outcomes (2018)’, we committed to empowering and supporting foster parents. We are commissioning research to identify excellent practice, including how decisions are delegated. This will inform the creation of a network of Fostering Trailblazers which we will use to share best practice, innovation and learning with the sector in order to encourage sector-led improvements in practice.