Welcome to Consulting Matters
Consulting Matters provides consultancy, project management and training services to children’s social care providers in the public, voluntary and private sectors. The Director, Simon Newstone, has particular expertise in relation to looked after children and fostering services.
A revised suite of Children Act 1989 guidance and regulations came into force in April 2011. Over the past two years, Consulting Matters has delivered bespoke in-house training to case responsible social workers and managers, as well as local authority or independent agency fostering services, on the content and implications of the revised legislative framework. This includes fostering panel joint development days, as well as sessions for mixed groups of staff and foster carers, with a focus on implementation of key Government policies such as delegation of authority to foster carers. Simon has also assisted a number of services with updating of policies and practice guidance/handbooks.
The Government has published in May 2013 its response to the public consultation on Adoption and Fostering: tackling delay and the key next steps that relate to foster care and fostering services are summarised on the blog pages.
| Simon Newstone and Doug Lawson have designed a quality assurance support package for the Fostering Network. It is aimed at managers of fostering services and others with a quality assurance role. The package includes a handbook for managers, a digest of core policy requirements, templates for undertaking quality reviews, audits of case records and quarterly reports, and pro-forma decision maker letters and includes two days’ consultancy to support implementation.
Updated materials, including additional templates for reviewing staff and central list member records and for recording decision making should be issued in June 2013. |
‘Once again, thank you for providing the in-depth training on the NMS 2011 and associated Regulations. The range of materials you used were helpful for Panel members, Staff and Foster Carers to understand what the changes are and the responsibilities for each person within the Fostering Service. The office is buzzing today with all the good ideas you put their way‘
Baljinder Haer, Director, Swan Fostering
Contact Simon on 07720 428951 or simon@simonnewstone.com