The Foster Home and Health and Safety

As part of your preparation to foster, you will have been provided with training on health and safety and be clear on what your responsibilities are as a carer. This will be continually reviewed by your Supervising Social Worker. You may also receive a visit from an Inspector from Ofsted as part of the inspection process for the fostering service.

Foster homes should provide a warm and welcoming environment where children are safe from harm or abuse as well as bullying. The home should be clean and well maintained including decor.

Please also refer to Nottinghamshire Children’s Social Care Service Procedures Manual, Health and Safety Procedure for further information alongside this section of the foster carer handbook.

A Health and Safety assessment should be completed by the supervising social worker with foster carers and be regularly updated. The Health and Safety assessment should additionally be updated when any structural work, or changes to the existing property are made, or there are changes in terms of a young person’s behaviour. If foster carers move, then a new Health and Safety assessment should be completed. Any second homes including holiday homes and caravans should also be considered if a child or young person is using these facilities.

It is important to know about any child/young person's needs and ask about any risks before they are placed. These risks should be detailed in the placement plan and shared with you prior to placement. A child or a young person placed may not have had much guidance around health and safety matters, so it is imperative you keep a close eye on the child or young person initially to keep them safe from harm.

Your Supervising Social Worker will talk to you about any safety equipment the fostering service may be able to offer. Any equipment provided by the fostering service is on loan and must be returned at the end of the placement. These discussions will include your arrangements for transport including car seats etc.

The whole family should decide on a fire exit strategy which identifies which exits you might use. Exit routes should always be kept clear of obstacles and keys should be accessible. You should practice the fire escape plan as a family.

The foster home should have smoke alarms, one on each floor of the house. You should make sure batteries are changed as needed. Attic rooms with one exit can be difficult and may need a smoke alarm;

You should avoid multi-way adapters as these are a fire hazard.

When doors and windows are locked e.g. at night, all members of the house including the foster child should know where to find the keys in the case of an emergency.

You should store matches and flammable liquids safely out of the reach of any child.

Foster Carers could also request the fire service visit their homes to ensure smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are fitted in the correct position. Also, to discuss evacuation plan (escape routes) as mentioned above.

Carbon monoxide (CO) cannot be seen, smelt or tasted so you do not know when it is present. Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that is produced by fossil fuel such as gas, coal, oil, or wood burners.

A build-up of carbon monoxide can be extremely dangerous and cause a variety of symptoms, or even death. Carbon monoxide monitors must be sited in the correct places such as near the cooker or gas fire. All heating and cooking appliances must be serviced regularly, and a Gas Safety certificate must be in place with this reviewed annually for foster carers as part of their review. It must be marked down on the Health and Safety checklist that it has been seen and that appliances have been tested. As part of unannounced visiting undertaken by supervising social workers to foster carers homes carbon monoxide alarms are checked.

You should make sure that all appliances are safe and in good working order.

Many accidents can be prevented by moving or removing dangerous objects out of a child's reach.  This includes items such as matches, lighters and sharp knives being stored safely;

There should be no leads from kettles or irons hanging where a child could pull it. 95% of burns happen at home. Burns and scalds particularly affect babies and very young children, with scalds from hot drinks being the most common cause.

When you are cooking turn pan handles towards the back of the cooker so they cannot be pulled, and, if you have small children,  keep them out of the kitchen.

Cat litter trays should not be kept in the kitchen and must be kept out of reach of children. This is due to the health risks around bacteria causing potential illness to a child.

Toxic/hazardous substances, such as bleach, cleaning materials, medicines, glue and aerosols should be stored safely and securely out of the reach of any child.

Where children have allergies, preventative measures should be detailed in their Care and Placement Plans and Health Care Plan - for example following good hygiene routines in terms of utensils and crockery, hand washing, avoiding cross contamination in the kitchen area, checking labels for allergens and any agreed allergen avoidance in the home.

Good supervision is important when a child or young person is outside. Age, disability, behaviour or known risks must be considered in this judgement.

If you have a swimming pool, water butt, or stream,or a pond, or a hot tub it should be netted, covered, fenced off or drained (where applicable and not in use). Children under 5 should not be left unattended at any time

In respect of hot tubs, the medical advice is that children under the age of 5 years old should not be allowed in a hot tub.  This is due to the high temperatures that younger children can struggle to cope with physically and the risk of drowning.  If young children over the age of 5 are using a hot tub, then the temperature should be reduced (maximum of 98F / 36.6C) and time in the hot tub limited to 5 minute periods at a time, with breaks in between. Children of any age should not be allowed in a hot tub unless they can stand or support themselves so that their heads are completely out of the water.  If a child over 5 years old has a disability that means that they cannot do this independently, then they must be supported by a responsible adult at all times and details recorded in their safer caring plan if this is planned on a regular basis.

Any chemicals should be kept in a locked, safe place which children cannot access.

Any out-buildings such as garages and sheds should be locked.

Washing lines should be out of reach of children who this could be a hazard for;

If you have slides and swings, they should be secure with a soft surrounding area.

A greenhouse/shed should be in good repair and any glass should be away from the play area or made of toughened glass.

Barbecues should be closely supervised, and children should never be left unattended near them. Barbecues can remain hot for a long period of time after use and they should be damped down once finished with. Children should not be allowed to light barbecues. Never leave barbecues unattended.

If children play unsupervised in the garden, then gates and fences should be secure. All equipment such as trampolines, play equipment, sand should be safe and well maintained.

Some fairly common garden plants are poisonous, and some are fatal. Children may eat berries and think they are okay. Poisonous plants should not be in the garden. If they already are, you should remove them.

You should not keep a dog which comes within the scope of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, either because it is a banned type of dog (any dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier; Japanese Tosa; Dogo Argentino; Fila Brasiliero; XL Bully), or a dog (of any breed/type) which is dangerously out of control, including on private premises. It would not be appropriate to place a child in a household where such a classified dog is being kept. Considerations in relation to dogs will include where/how they are kept. A recent Review conducted by Public Health Wales concluded that the most important piece of advice for members of the public is 'to never leave a baby or young child unsupervised with a dog, even for a moment, no matter how well you know that dog'.

As part of the annual review, consideration may also be given to the breeding of animals and/or working animals in relation to the impact of the welfare of the child/young person in your care.

Where children have allergies to pets (for example in relation to asthma or eczema) you should talk to your Supervising Social Worker about how best to minimize the effects.

If you do have pets, you should keep their areas including the garden clean and regularly changed.

A pet assessment will be completed during each annual review. If there are any changes to your circumstances with pets before your annual review you should inform your supervising social worker immediately.

For further information please see the Pet Policy and Guidance for Fostering Households.

You should make sure that any appliances are in good working order and regularly serviced by a Gas Safe engineer. You will be asked to produce the certificate at the time of your foster carer review.

There is a separate section regarding this, see Transport.

If there are concerns about any aspects of your home, then your Supervising Social Worker will discuss this with you and a period of time will be given to resolve the issue. If the issue remains a significant concern and are not resolved, then a report will go to the fostering panel to consider your approval.

Your Supervising Social Worker will support and guide you to creating and maintain a safe and caring environment. They will also help you with developing your Safer Caring Plan (see Developing a Safer Caring Plan) and arrange a break from fostering.

This information will be reviewed and amended along with any changes in legislation to make sure you provide the safest possible family home.