To approve the business case for investment in commissioned marketing and engagement services to strengthen the council’s in-house fostering service, increasing the number of general and specialist foster carers and reduce the reliance on the more costly IFA (independent fostering agency) sector in line with Herefordshire’s County Plan and Children and Young People’s Plan.

That:

(a)  the business case described within paragraphs 9-37 is approved

(b)  a contract is openly tendered for the provision of a professional marketing and engagement service, at a value of up to £261k over up to five-years for award by the Director for Children and Families under the Chief Executive’s scheme of delegation, which authorizes that commissioning for children’s services may be undertaken by the Director for Children and Families, and following the council’s Contract Procedure rules

1.      Do nothing. There is no evidence to suggest that continuing ‘as-is’ would increase the number of new fostering household approvals.

2.      Invest additional resources into the in-house fostering service to form a small dedicated marketing and engagement team. This could involve expanding the existing 1.5fte marketing and recruitment officer roles and introduction of a new fostering marketing and engagement lead. Aside from new investment into staffing, team resources would include other running costs, with total team spend estimated at £120k per year. The service has previously had some difficulty in recruiting to and retaining marketing roles, which could also be an issue for a dedicated team.