Caring for Children and Young People Policy
What's Important To Us
We want all children and young people to reach their potential. Wherever possible we need to support their family to care safely for them, and to support extended whānau to provide care when children and young people are unable to live with their parents. This includes working in partnership with family and whānau, supporting their participation in decision-making, and the provision of safe and secure care of their children.
This policy brings together key expectations when working with children and young people where Child, Youth and Family (CYF) has casework responsibility, under an open intervention phase, both under care and protection and youth justice. This includes all children and young people involved with CYF via family/whānau agreements, family group conference plans, care agreements, and court orders. Some sections apply only to children/young people in the custody of the Chief Executive.
Planning
Every child or young person must have a case plan that addresses their education, health and care needs and which includes:
- a permanent care goal and concurrent care goal
- planned objectives (changes that need to be achieved)
- specific tasks for all participants, including tasks identified as part of the Gateway Assessment Interagency Services Agreement (ISA)
- child or young person focused timeframes for achieving the changes
- frequency of social work contact with the child or young person and their family
- a review date
Adequate financial and other support must be provided for the plan to be developed and implemented.
The plan and any other relevant documents are to be provided to all involved parties, including the child/young person and their caregiver.
Reviews of the case plan must take place within three months of a child or young person entering care and every three months thereafter.
Any child or young person who returns home after being in care must have a review within three months of that return home. The review will focus on ensuring that, necessary supports are available to the child and their family to ensure that custody orders against the Chief Executive do not remain in force for longer than is necessary.
Charter for children and young people in care
All children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive must:
- have a copy of the Children's Charter
- be talked through the Charter and have their questions answered
- if they are old enough, know how to access the complaints process
The child’s social worker is responsible for completing these tasks.
Use of Care Agreements to support a return home goal
If a child or young person is unable to remain at home, consideration must first be given to using a care agreement rather than a court order, where the case plan is return home.
Social work visits
Children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive
All children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive must be visited by their social worker at least every eight weeks. The child or young person’s plan may specify more frequent visiting based on the level of support and monitoring necessary.
When a child or young person returns home, their social worker must visit them once every week for the first four weeks of the placement. This includes children and young people exiting from residence.
The frequency of visiting for children returning home will not be reduced until the required professionals’ meeting has been held.
The visit must involve efforts to engage with the child or young person on their own so they are free to speak freely about any worries they may have.
Children and young people for whom we have an open intervention
For children and young people involved with Child, Youth and Family via a family/whānau agreement, family group conference plan or Court order other than custody (e.g. support, services or additional guardianship order, or wardship), the social worker will maintain regular contact with them.
Transition
When a child or young person is to move to a new placement, whether this is being placed away from their parents, between caregivers, residence, returning home, or caregivers formalising a home for life placement, clear arrangements must be put in place to allow for a smooth transition.
When moving between caregivers, this may include a period where the care is shared between the current and new caregivers. It is also important to allow an opportunity for the child or young person to say goodbye to the caregivers they are leaving.
Return home meetings for children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive
At least two weeks prior to a child or young person returning home (including children and young people exiting from residence), the social worker will hold a planning meeting involving the key professionals who are working with the child or young person and their family. At this meeting professionals will ensure that the services and supports needed are in place.
Within four weeks of the child or young person returning home the social worker will initiate and lead a planning and progress meeting with all professionals involved with the child or young person and their family.
The social worker will use the Child & Family Consult or Young Person & Family Consult as a framework for the meetings held prior to return home and within four weeks of returning home.
Ongoing case plan review meetings will occur within the three month review cycle as outlined in the Permanent Care and Creating a Home for Life policy. These meetings will include input from all professionals involved with the child or young person and their family and decide on the frequency of social work visits required.
Health and Education
Gateway Assessments
A social worker must make a referral for a Gateway Assessment for children and young people when:
- they enter care (including sections 139, 78,101,102,110 (2)(a),140)
- they are already in care and a Gateway Assessment would help clarify and identify ways to address their needs
- a care and protection family group conference is being convened and a Gateway Assessment will help clarify and identify ways to address their health and education needs.
If there are any immediate concerns for the child or young person’s health (regardless of their care status) an initial health check should be undertaken.
For more information on the Gateway Assessment referral process refer to Guide for Social Workers.
Meeting Health Needs
All children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive must be offered:
- a Gateway Assessment within 5 working days of entering care
- an initial health check if there is immediate health concerns
- receive routine medical and dental care at least annually or as required
- specialist medical and dental care when this is required
- specialist health (physical, mental, psychological) assessment if required.
Meeting Education Needs
The social worker must ensure the child or young person’s school or early childhood education centre has relevant up-to-date information including:
- the name and contact details of the social worker, the social worker’s supervisor, and the child or young person’s caregivers
- the legal status of the child or young person, and who the order is in favour of (e.g. custody order in favour of the Chief Executive)
- a list of people who can remove the child or young person from school or can have contact with the child or young person and alerts to those who must not
- details of bail conditions that prevent contact between young persons.
The social worker must liaise with the school or early childhood education centre to promote and advocate for the child or young person’s educational needs. This includes discussing and requesting the Gateway Assessment Education profile from the teacher as this will assist in planning for the child or young person.
Clothing
- All children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive must have their reasonable clothing needs met including the provision of school uniforms
- After a child or young person has been in a placement for three months, and that placement is intended to be ongoing, they are entitled to receive a quarterly clothing allowance, payable to the caregiver.
Pocket Money
Pocket money is a portion of the board payment and must be paid to all children and young people in the custody of the Chief Executive by the caregiver.
Placement
If a child or young person is in the custody of the Chief Executive, they must be placed with an approved caregiver. All efforts must first be made to identify a safe and appropriate placement with family/whānau.
Caregivers provide the day-to-day care of the child or young person and are entitled to a board payment for the child or young person. This also includes placements overseas.
Siblings must be placed together where possible and/or practicable unless there are safety concerns that require addressing.
Birthday and Christmas allowance
An allowance is paid to the caregiver to use for birthday and Christmas celebrations/presents for the child or young person. Each allowance is at half the rate of the board payment.
Information to support the placement
When a child or young person in the custody of the CE is placed with a caregiver or in a residence, information (currently called the care plan) must be provided. The caregiver is advised that the information is confidential and may only be shared with those who need to know the information.
- written care information must be provided on or before the day of placement. The exception to this is if a placement is made on a weekend. In this situation, basic information must be provided at the time of the placement, and more detailed care information must be provided on the next working day.
- it is necessary to share the care information with the caregiver/residential social worker, parent/s and usual caregiver/s and, when appropriate, to the child or young person to advance the wellbeing of the child or young person. If the placement is planned, the child or young person and their family can also be included in the completion of the information.
Legal status when placing in a Child, Youth and Family residence
A legal status under s78, s101, s110(2), s235, s238(1)(d) or s311 is the only status accepted by Child, Youth and Family to enable placement in a s364 residence.
Multiple placements
- When considering placing more than one unrelated child or young person with a caregiver(s), the placement must be approved by a supervisor in consultation with the child or young person’s social worker
- When considering placing three or more unrelated children and/or young people with a caregiver(s), Operations Manager approval must also be given before the placement is made
- This policy does not apply to Family Home placements, although it is expected that issues relating to the safety and needs of all the children and young people will be considered prior to placement.
Informal Placements
When children and young people are placed informally (without a custody status) by their parents or usual caregiver, the social worker will assist the family to ensure the people providing care are financially supported, including through either Work and Income, Child, Youth and Family, or other support agencies to meet the reasonable needs of the child or young person. This may include, for example, grocery vouchers, petrol costs or emergency clothing and information about community agencies that can provide support services.
Contact with family/whānau and other significant people
All children and young people who are placed away from their parents (or usual caregivers) must have, written in their case plan, details about contact with family/whānau, siblings, and other significant people that will meet the needs and requirements of the particular child or young person.
Updated 10 November 2011
