Decision details

To recommend the annual uplift in payments to North Yorkshire Foster Carers that will take effect from 1 April 2023..

To also present an options appraisal of other possibilities to increase payments to Foster Carers for the purposes of retention and recruitment.

After consideration of the report and the completed Equalities Impact Assessment and Climate Change Impact Assessment it was agreed to raise Allowances, Premiums and Fees on 1 April 2023 by the rate of December CPI inflation applied to April 2022 payment levels

Accredited premiums and advanced/specialist Fees – To increase the accredited premium by 15%
Additional Payments:
• Introduction of bridging payments to accredited Foster Carers
• Pay the first 100 miles of transport
• Include Foster Carers in the Vivup Everybody Benefits scheme
• Introduction of a ‘Recommend a Friend’ and Golden Hello Scheme

Additionally, to keep Foster Carer payments under constant review. This review to be mindful of the impact of additional payments on both retention and recruitment.

ince 2016 the formula adopted for annual increases to all payments to Foster Carers in April has been the rate of CPI inflation in the previous December. Prior to this the recommendations of payment rates made by The Fostering Network (the national charity that independently supports Foster Carers) were always adopted by the Fostering North Yorkshire Service. (The Fostering Network stopped recommending specific rates in 2016 because they felt that house prices had become too diverse across the UK for a national recommendation to work. They then recommended that payments should be increased annually by inflation but did not recommend which measurement of inflation to utilise.)

This decision will address and mitigate against the retention and recruitment risks of Foster Carers in North Yorkshire.