National Union of Professional Foster Carers Reviews 83

I am so glad that I joined NUPFC and wish I had done so sooner. I would recommend it to all foster carers. They always get in touch incredibly quickly. Chris provided excellent advice as well as 'getting' the situation and underlying issues immediately. He was supportive and encouraging, which we really needed. He attended Panel with us, which made a huge difference in all sorts of ways, and has given me additional practical advice. It doesn't necessarily need to be a 'huge' issue either - realistic, practical advice based on in-depth knowledge and wide experience has been invaluable to us and I won't hesitate to check in with NUPFC if I need advice again.

We genuinely wished that we had been members of the NUPFC sooner after having false allegations made against us by the LA SW, she removed a sibling placement of 7 years but of course waited until after Christmas and then provided the children with no transition whatsoever.
The LA was abysmal and we have identified many systematic failings of which have now been passed on to the LGSCO for investigation.
However, we can confidently say that this would never had gone this far if we had of been members of the NUPFC at the time.
It is in effect an insurance policy that all Foster Carers should have.
Robin is always available for any question/concern that we may have and this in turn ensures that the children that we support have continuity moving forwards and secures the longevity of the placement. It genuinely is a no brainer, thank you for your ongoing support!

My partner and I foster three children, two who have special needs, and we also raise our own two children, both also with special needs. Despite glowing annual reviews from both our fostering agency and local authority social workers every year, as well as being supposedly "sought after" carers, we knew fostering could potentially place us in a vulnerable position as there are no mechanisms in place for protecting foster carers when allegations are made; you hear the stories, but until it happens to you, it's hard to quantify.

After listening to a representative from NUPFC on LBC radio, we signed up that very day, hoping we'd never need their support, but taking comfort in the fact we had a bit of a safety net for a very reasonable monthly fee.

About a year later, we found ourselves in a situation where (false) allegations were made against us from a previous looked after child. It was an awful and stressful experience, and we realised how truly vulnerable we were, how do you prove something didn't happen?! It was very much a situation of "guilty until proven innocent" from the Local Authority, and the process is not transparent or in anyway fair toward the carers. We were relieved to have extremely detailed recordings (daily records) which we could provide, and fortunately, our fostering agency was extremely supportive (this is rare) and was happy to work with the NUPFC to defend our position. After a call to NUPFC. We had numerous support calls and a legal team liaising with the Local Authority and representing us at the meetings. Our representative from NUPFC really knew his stuff, understood processes, and navigated us through the process. It really did lessen the stress for us. It became very clear, very quickly, how dishonest, incompetent and/or underhanded the Local Authority can be, especially when facing an overzealous and rather feisty LA SW that "steps in" and arguably has their own agenda, and will do almost anything to get their way.

After a long meeting, the allegations were dropped and we were cleared of any wrongdoing, but we're not certain the outcome would have been the same without NUPFC's excellent support and intervention.

Being members of the NUPFC has given us more confidence to continue our fostering journey and advocate for the children entrusted into our care. If you are a Foster Carer, do not hesitate! You need this service!

Have asked for advice twice once was for an allegation. The advice received was the day after being told about the allegation. It made life so much easier and took the stress out of the allegation knowing you had support at the end of the telephone. Robin always gets back to you very quickly. For the £10 a month for the first person joining and then £4 per month for other persons in the house it is money well spent.

We received outstanding & unwavering support from Robin & Sandra throughout our recent Standards of Care investigation. The LA tried to suggest that NUPFC could not represent us, Robin quickly & politely informed the LA differently. Sandra was our amazingly calm & reassuring representative throughout the whole investigation, which resulted in a not only positive outcome but also an apology from the head of service.
We cannot Thank & Recommend NUPFC enough, They are truly amazing, lifesavers when you need them the most.

So glad I joined. Excellent direct support with a problem I had recently which is ongoing. Opened my eyes too as to the difficulties for other foster carers across the country. Not just me. The subs are great value for money knowing that they will have your back 100%.

I found NUPFC on Google search, I am proud today this a membership I will never regret signing up. I would shout in a very loud voice if you are a foster carer? What can you loose? Here you get professional support.

I have made contact twice and I was supported and directed in the right path way. If it have not been for NUPFC may career as a new foster carer would have been stained with incorrect information from my agency .
Please if you have never had issues with your company, you can still get clarity on things you may not be clear with with the laws around fostering .

I am happy I JOINED.

I honestly can’t recommend these highly enough! Just knowing there’s someone in your corner who knows the job inside out is so reassuring when things go wrong.

Without NUPFC i would have probably just handed my notice in, they gave me the strength to continue, they supported me when my LA didn’t, they fought with me to ensure the LA listened and did the right thing.
Thank you Chris! Me and my family are very grateful for you and the NUPFC

The NUPFC have been invaluable, supporting us to counter the false claims made by our agency. Without them, we would not have been able to find the information needed to fight our case. It should be mandatory that all foster carers are made aware of the NUPFC, and I would strongly encourage everyone to join them, for the extremely modest fee. Worth every penny!

I had to call on the NUPFC when my LA breached their agreement. Within a few days Robin had contacted director of social care, and I have managed to secure a meeting with them. Without Robin I wouldn’t have been able to achieve this. You cannot foster without being a member. As a foster carer you need the protection and back up of the union. Thank you for all your help!!