Where you might live and settling in
Where you might live
When you are “looked after” by Gloucestershire County Council you might live with:
- family or close family friends
- foster carers
- or in a Residential Home
You might hear people call this a “Placement” - this is a name for where you are living.
Family and Friends
Not all children who are “looked after” live with Foster Carers. Sometimes children and young people are cared for by someone in their own family like grandparents, aunties or uncles or a close family friend. They would be “assessed” just like Foster Carers to make sure they are able to look after you properly.
Foster Carers
You might live with foster carers; these are people who look after children and young people in their own home. Foster Carers come from lots of different backgrounds, they may be single, a couple, different races and religions and they may have children of their own. Foster Carers are checked, approved and trained to look after other people’s children.
They don’t replace your parents but while you live with them you should be treated the same as any other member of their family. Foster Carers have Supervising Social Workers. They will ask you to give feedback on your carers when they have a review.
Residential Home
Some young people live in a residential home. This is when you live with other young people and you are looked after by a team of adults. You should have a “Key Worker” who has a special responsibility for looking after you.
Other Options
Everyone’s an individual and there might be some situations where you might need some extra support to keep you happy and safe and therefore you might live somewhere that especially suits you. There are places that might have other young people living there too, sometimes they might have a school onsite. Wherever you will be living your social worker will talk to you about whether this is what you need.
Can I live in my 'home' town
We will do our best to keep you in your “home” town. But sometimes we might not always be able to do this. It might be because it would be better for you to live further away. It should be explained to you why you can’t live near home, but if you don’t know why ask your social worker why?
Where you live you will have....
Where you are living and how long you will be living there will be written down in your Care Plan but you will have:
- A bedroom of your own
- Your personal belongings and a proper bag to move them in
- Space to put your things
- Toiletries like shampoo, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste
- Pocket money - how much you get is agreed between you, your parents, your social worker and carer
- Someone who listens to you and is interested in you
- Help to stay in touch with family and friends if its safe and in your plan
- Help if you need it with education or training
- Clothes and money to buy what you need
- A place you can feel safe
- Some house rules, things like how late you can stay up, watching TV or times for you to be in.
Settling in....
Wherever you are going to live you should get a chance to visit your carers before you move in. This will give you a chance to ask any questions and get to know them a bit before your move. If you are moved in an emergency you may not get chance to visit but your social worker will try and make the move as easy as possible for you.
You’ll probably be nervous moving somewhere new so here are a few questions you could ask before you move to help you find out a bit more.
- What can I bring with me when I move in?
- What are the house rules or routines?
- What about meal times?
- Can I bring my pet?
- What about bedtimes?
- How much pocket money will I get?
- How do I buy clothes?
- Who do I tell if I need extra things for school?
- Where are the nearest bus routes or train station?
- Will I be able to carry on my usual activities/hobbies?