§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how the national award scheme for foster carers envisaged in the Green Paper 'Every Child Matters' will be assessed; and what the scheme will award. [133123]
§ Margaret HodgeA national award scheme for outstanding foster carers is one of the proposals in the Green Paper, "Every Child Matter" to improve the80WS Education Act 2002 on 30 October 2003. The report will outline details of the three applications that the Secretary of State has received during the first academic year of the Power and will detail for each application the nature of the exemption sought and the outcome of the application. These have been:
recruitment and retention of foster carers. The Green Paper is now out for consultation until 1 December 2003 and we look forward to receiving views from the consultation both on the merit of this proposal and how such a scheme might best operate in practice.
§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what framework regulates private fostering; and what definition he uses of private fostering. [133132]
§ Margaret HodgePrivate arrangements for fostering children are covered in Part IX of the Children Act 1989, and The Children (Private Arrangements for Fostering) Regulations 1991.
A 'privately fostered child' means a child who is under the age of 16 (or 18 if disabled) who is cared for, and provided with accommodation by, someone other than a parent of his; a person who is not a parent of his but who has parental responsibility for him; or a relative of 81WS his. A child is not a privately fostered child if the person caring for and accommodating him has done so for a period of less than 28 days; and does not intend to do so for a longer period.
In practice, children in a variety of different circumstances will fall within this definition.