Vice Panel Chair

**Full Job Description**:
**Job Role: Independent Panel Vice Chair**

**Location: Fostering Solutions, North West England**

**Fee: £31 an hour**

Fostering Solutions are looking for Panel Vice-Chairs to attend Panel Meetings across the North West

The Fostering Panel provides independent oversight of the recruitment, assessment and review of foster carers and makes reasoned decisions on their suitability to foster. The Placement Panel provides independent oversight of an approved continuing care provider’s ability to offer a continuing care arrangement to a young adult and makes recommendations on their suitability to provide this.

Applicants should have experience professionally, personally or both of the placement of children in adoptive or foster families or of children being cared for away from their birth family.

Keeping the experience of the child and young person at the centre of your discussions you will lead the independent scrutiny of Fostering Assessments, Continuing Care Assessments and Reviews. Good listening and communication skills are essential along with being well prepared, technology literate, be able to provide focus and have the ability to make an assessment based on the written and oral information presented to the Panel in order to discuss and make decisions in a balanced and informed manner.

You will have experience of the Fostering Sector, either professionally, personally or both and ideally have experience as a panel chair/vice-chair, however, this is not essential. We are specifically looking to recruit a social work professional with experience in chairing and managing meetings. Applicants with experience of adult placement, continuing care and community education experience are also welcomed.

**It is very important to us that our Panel members are from different backgrounds to help us ensure we are making the right decisions for the children and young people in our care. We welcome applicants from minority backgrounds including: Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, LGBT, Disabilities and more.**

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and we expect all employees to share this commitment and undertake appropriate checks. **Successful applicants will be required to undertake relevant DBS checks, the cost of which is funded by the agency.**

**We are an equal opportunities employer.