A case concerning two primary school aged children, a boy (A) and a girl (B) came before the District Court for review following the breakdown of their placement. Care orders had been made in Autumn of 2022 and they had been placed with an older half-sibling, but they had now changed placement.
The social worker told the court there had been inter-sibling contact and family relationships had been maintained but at present these relationships were delicate. She said B had moved to the west of the country and had settled very well. It was a general foster placement, but the foster carers were very experienced. The boy had significant medical needs and she was in the process of ensuring that all of his files were transferred. She said the current medical and therapeutic teams would update the new teams in the area to which he had been transferred.
She said: “[B] has settled so well, the foster carers have been brilliant and gone above and beyond what could have been hoped for. B has started school, and it really has gone better than anyone had hoped.”
The boy, A, had stayed in the locality and had been fostered by an adult he already knew. The social worker said that although he was nervous, he too had settled well. He was delighted to have not had to change schools and he was doing well at school.
The social worker said that the relationship between the previous foster parents and the CFA was not positive, and she was asking the court to adjourn this matter to allow time for things to settle. She said it had been a substantial change for the foster carers, the children, and the new fosters carers, it had to be managed sensitively. It was also important to recognise the children were now in separate foster homes and access between the children was the priority. She said the new foster parents were working together to try to arrange as much access as possible, but it was difficult because of distance and B’s medical needs.
The judge noted the positive foster placements and adjourned the matter for eight weeks.
