Training

Prepare prospective foster carers for the realities and responsibilities of fostering. This three-day course explores children’s needs, the impact of trauma, relationships, protective and therapeutic care, identity, transitions and the effect fostering may have on family life. 

This session explores how Protective Care can create safe, nurturing environments where children can thrive, while supporting foster carers and practitioners to respond confidently and proportionately to concerns and allegations. Drawing on trauma-informed practice and the 5 Ps Model, the course explores how to balance safeguarding with positive, risk-sensitive decision-making, distinguish between allegations, concerns and complaints, and reduce unnecessary disruption wherever it is safe to do so. Participants will gain practical approaches to strengthening placement stability, supporting foster carers and promoting positive outcomes for children. 

Explore evidence-informed ways to attract, assess, support and retain a diverse and resilient foster carer workforce. Drawing on research and practice from across the UK, develop practical actions that strengthen carer experience, placement stability and outcomes for children. 

Strengthen practice in matching children with foster families and sustaining stable placements. Explore reflective supervision, early identification of placement fragility, courageous conversations and child-focused stability plans that support foster carers and improve outcomes for children. 

Build the knowledge and confidence to support parent-and-child fostering arrangements safely and effectively. Explore safeguarding, observation, recording, assessment, partnership working and the foster carer’s role in decision-making and court processes. 

Discover how trauma-informed therapeutic parenting and PACE can help children feel safe, understood and connected. Explore the links between trauma, attachment and behaviour, alongside practical ways to respond calmly, build trust and support emotional wellbeing. 

Strengthen your approach to accurate, timely and child-centred record keeping. Explore legal, ethical and data protection responsibilities, how to record and report concerns or disclosures, and how clear communication supports safeguarding and children’s wellbeing. 

Learn how to embed therapeutic, trauma-informed practice across children’s social care and fostering teams. Explore attachment, PACE, relational approaches, therapeutic team culture, staff wellbeing and practical ways to respond to stress and secondary trauma while strengthening support for families. 

Build confidence in the Supervising Social Worker role, including effective oversight, support and appropriate challenge. Explore statutory and professional responsibilities, risk and safeguarding, practical supervision skills and how to manage difficult conversations constructively. 

Develop the skills to conduct robust foster carer reviews using evidence, reflection and professional analysis. Explore safeguarding, allegation management, professional curiosity and the assessment of risk and protective factors to support safe, effective fostering practice. 

Explore protective care planning and supervision that keep children’s safety and wellbeing at the centre. Learn to work with the whole fostering household, recognise family dynamics and promote children’s meaningful participation in decisions that affect them. 

Consolidate learning across the Supervising Social Worker Skills programme. Explore how to monitor children’s outcomes, apply trauma-informed principles in supervision, reflect on your own practice and identify strategies for ongoing professional development. 

A reflective course for male foster carers to explore their role in fostering and the impact they can have on children and young people in care. Discuss protective care, challenges including discrimination, the emotions fostering can bring up, and opportunities to learn from and encourage one another.