Decision details

This report seeks agreement for Cheshire East Council to continue its participation in the Foster4 Fostering Hub collaboration and to support the extension of the current hub model to an end to end fostering model, in line with Department for Education expectations for future fostering reform.

That the Portfolio Holders:

a)  Agrees that Cheshire East Council will continue to participate in the Foster4 Fostering Hub, led by Warrington Borough Council, as part of the Cheshire and Merseyside regional fostering collaboration.

b) Agrees the ‘in principle’ decision that Cheshire East Council, as part of the Foster4 Hub, will adopt an end-to-end fostering model as set out in DfE guidance, subject to finalisation of legal, financial and governance arrangements.

c)  Approves the principle of contributing staff and/or budget to the Foster4 Hub as Cheshire East Council’s contribution to the end-to-end model, subject to compliance with employment law and approval of detailed staffing and financial arrangements through the Council’s normal governance processes.

d)  Note the legal, financial and operational risks associated with participation in the Foster4 Hub and the mitigation measures set out in this report.

e)  Delegate authority to the Executive Director of Children and Families, in consultation with the Monitoring Officer and Section 151 Officer, to:

• enter into and vary as necessary the Foster4 collaboration agreement, data-sharing arrangements, staffing agreements and memoranda of understanding with the Department for Education and participating local authorities; and

• take all necessary steps to implement the end-to-end Foster4 model within the agreed governance framework.

The Department for Education has set out a clear expectation that all fostering hubs will move to an end-to-end model by September 2026, with future funding contingent on implementation. Participation in the Foster4 Hub supports regional sufficiency, improves recruitment and retention of foster carers, and contributes to better outcomes and stability for children in care.

Not participating in the end-to-end Foster4 model would require Cheshire East to disengage from the current Foster4 Fostering Hub and set up its own end to end regional model with other Local Authorities.

The cost of this is prohibitive both financially, reputationally and risks the loss of DfE funding and reduce the Council’s ability to address foster carer sufficiency through regional collaboration.

This option is therefore not recommended.