3.4.9 Trans-Racial and Trans-Cultural Placements |
AMENDMENT
This chapter was updated in October 2011 in regard to ensuring there is no delay in placing a child if the placement meets the child’s other needs.
Contents
1. Policy Statement
Lewisham is fully committed to recognising the importance to a child of his or her ethnic origin, cultural background, religion and language and will ensure that these are positively valued and promoted when the child’s needs are assessed, plans and decisions are made and services are provided.
Children do not exist in isolation from their families and background. They pick up subtle messages about themselves and their place in society from those around them and these messages subsequently contribute to the image and identity they form of themselves. They have family histories of which ethnicity, language, religion and culture form a significant part. They have a right to take pride in their heritage and to grow up feeling secure in their identity, knowledgeable of their culture and to be able to participate as a full member of a multi-racial society.
Lewisham recognises that a placement that reflects a child’s birth origins is likely to best meet the child’s needs but will not delay in placing a child if a placement that meets the child’s other needs is available.
The rights of the birth family to stipulate the religion (and denomination) within which their child will be raised is acknowledged within this policy and every effort will be made to seek a placement which meets the family’s wishes.
Without causing delay for the child, all reasonable efforts will be made to secure for each child in need of a placement a home which matches as closely as possible the ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious background of the child’s birth family.
Where a placement with a foster carer or prospective adoptive parent is required for a child, if it has not been possible to secure an ideal ethnic, cultural or religious match, all efforts will be made to find a family placement that is as close a match as possible. The placement must meet the majority of assessed needs of the child.
Trans–racial and trans-cultural placements should only be considered where it can be shown that reasonable efforts have been made to find a family placement reflective of the child’s heritage and background but that no such placement is available to meet the child’s assessed needs.
Wherever possible, Lewisham aims to consider trans-racial and trans-cultural placements where the ethnic and religious composition of the neighbourhood in which the prospective carer lives, their social networks and the local schools will meet the child’s racial and identity needs, whether it is a short term or long term placement.
Pro-active support must be provided to the child as an individual and to the carer in a trans-racial and trans-cultural placement to promote the carer’s understanding of the issues relating to the parenting of the child in order to meet the child’s racial and identity needs both in the short and long term and to ensure a successful placement outcome for the child.
2. Definition
“Trans-racial and trans-cultural placements relates to the placement of a child of one racial group and/or culture with carers, foster carers or adoptive parents of a different racial group and/or culture.”
(M. Hudson 2006)
For the purposes of this policy ‘trans-cultural’ is taken to include differences such as religion, language, and sexuality.
3. The Planning and Review Process
A decision to place a child in a trans-racial or trans-cultural placement should always be considered carefully and the decision must be recorded as a part of the child or young person’s Care Plan.
Factors influencing this decision may include:
- A child’s explicit and assessed wish not to be placed within his or her own community
- An urgent need to safeguard and protect the child from harm need to place a child urgently and the lack of an appropriate placement
- The need for siblings to remain together and the lack of an appropriate placement for them to stay together
- Where it can be shown that reasonable efforts have been made to find a family reflective of the child’s heritage and background and where a trans–racial or cultural placement is preferable to being at risk of harm, remaining looked after or an alternative to residential care.
- The views of the child’s family
- To consider other provision would delay permanence for the child
The decision must be explained fully to the child or young person including:
- what additional arrangements will be made in order to meet their needs giving due regard to issues of their heritage, culture, religion and language
- when and how the decision will be reviewed and how they can participate in the decision making process
- how they can make representations or complain if they wish to
The above information and actions must be recorded on the child’s records.
Arrangements must be made to provide support to the child or young person so that they are not isolated from their race/culture e.g. providing an appropriate mentor or independent person or making arrangements for support to attend specific activities.
Specialist training and support must be provided for the carers who must have good skills to accommodate racial and cultural diversity. Trans–cultural and trans-racial carers must acknowledge and embrace the child’s race and culture by building links themselves with multicultural networks.
Lewisham will not delay a decision for a child in a search for a match to the same race or culture if there is another placement that meets the majority of the child’s needs. Every effort is made to avoid drift in respect of trans-cultural and trans-racial short term foster care to fulfil its duty to give due regard to issues of culture, language and religion in making placement decisions or in promoting the human right to cultural and religious expression.
The Service Manager for Placements and Procurement will monitor and review on a monthly basis all children placed trans-culturally or trans-racially and the actions being taken. This information will be shared with the relevant Service Manger for the child.
The Planning and Review process for Looked After Children will ensure that the child’s social worker and the Independent Reviewing Officer at each Looked After Review explicitly considers and balances the child’s needs in terms of ethnicity, culture, language and religion within the context of any other needs and determines if the placement meets those needs.
4. The Family Finding Process
The family finding and recruitment processes in Lewisham will be pro-active in securing prospective adopters and long term foster carers from black and ethnic/religious minority communities. Where some communities may not have a tradition of adoption, specialist adoption agencies will be used where other recruitment initiatives have failed.
Applications from prospective foster carers and adopters will be welcomed regardless of marital status, race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. It is recognised that a wide range of carers and adopters are needed to meet the needs of our looked after children and young people and that these needs will determine the priority given to progressing the family finding, applications and assessments.
Where a decision has been made that a child’s needs will be met by adoption, the child will not be left waiting for a ‘perfect family’. Children should be placed with adoptive parents of an appropriate ethnic, religious, cultural and linguistic background. However if no such match can be found within reasonable timescales, alternative adopters who can enable and encourage a child to understand their background and culture should be identified in order to avoid delay in the child moving to a permanent placement.
The views of birth families about the adoption and contact plans must be clearly recorded and their wishes and views particularly in regard to religion in the planning of placements must be taken into account.
The social worker for the child must make efforts to obtain clear and appropriate information from the birth family about the family history and culture, and encourage the family to contribute to the child’s life story material.
As an aid in the family finding process and to underpin this policy, the following should be considered (although this should not be seen as an exhaustive list):
- Do the carers show an understanding and appreciation of other cultures?
- Are the carers able to address the child’s dietary needs?
- Are the carers sensitive to the style of the child’s dress, e.g. are they aware of the names of different garments?
- Are the carers able to support the child’s religious and linguistic needs?
- Will the child be racially isolated? They may be exposed to increased levels of racism, prejudice and intolerance with fewer opportunities for support.
- How can contact with the child’s birth family/community group be maintained – their link with their heritage – and is there the provision of positive role models?
- How can the child be supported when they experience racism – who will help the child develop the coping strategies necessary to manage this?
- Do the carers have access to resources to support the child’s identity development?
- Has or will training be provided to support carers fill in the gaps in their knowledge, experience, contacts etc.
- Has expert advice been sought?
- What are the cultural/religious expectations from the child’s background about the daily life of the child?
- Have you taken account of the views of the parents and significant relatives in selecting a family?
Are prospective carers able to do the following to promote a positive ethnic and cultural identity?
- Encourage confidence by letting a child know they are valued
- Provide images of various ethnic groups (books, dolls, clothing, music)
- Access language lessons/religious instruction
- Link with a family who can offer appropriate cultural/ religious/linguistic experience including a member of the birth family?
- Access advice about relevant resources and organisations
- Celebrate important holidays, events of the child’s ethnic/religious background.
- Follow prescribed ethnic and religious requirements
5. Training
All staff involved in working with children and young people must receive regular training on the ways in which the needs of children from different and mixed racial and cultural backgrounds can and should be addressed in all aspects of services provided for them – from Initial Assessment to Adoption Support Services.
Such training must not only focus on how to identify the child’s background but must promote an understanding of the implications for the child of these racial and cultural elements – how their daily life is affected and influenced by the family and the community where they live. A well informed assessment of a child’s needs will ensure that the plans and decisions made in partnership with the child and family will result in a good outcome for the child.
All foster carers and adopters must receive regular training and support to enable them to provide a service and care which recognises and celebrates diversity and can support children and young people to prepare for adult life confidently. All placement reviews and/or reviews of carers should monitor the carers’ training and development needs and ensure that training is provided regularly.
Adoption Support Plans should also include similar training and support to address issues as needed.
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