Concurrent Caring
What is Concurrent Care?
Concurrent Care is a particular type of fostering where babies and young children are placed with carers while intensive work is carried out by Trust social workers with the birth parents over an agreed period, to consider whether or not the child can quickly and safely return home.
If the child cannot return home to live the plan for the baby or child will change to adoption, with the concurrent carers becoming the prospective adoptive parents.
The main benefit of Concurrent Care is that the baby or young child is given the chance to have a close emotional relationship with a primary carer in the early days of their life, while having the opportunity to build significant relationships with their birth parents. If this cannot be achieved the baby or young child can remain with the Concurrent Carers who have been looking after them, which ensures that they do not have any disruption or change to their care.
Who needs Concurrent Care?
In most situations, babies and young children needing a Concurrent care placement have been born into families where their birth parents are leading difficult lives that might prevent them from meeting their child’s emotional and care needs.
These parents may have issues with alcohol or drug misuse, there may be concerns about domestic violence or abuse, and previous children born to into these families may have already have been adopted or removed into care.
Concerns about the well-being of their baby or young child will have been identified by Social Services and discussed with the birth mother /family. Social workers will have assessed the birth mother/family’s willingness to work with a concurrent care plan and will have agreed this with them.
Is Concurrent Caring for you?
Concurrent Caring is not for everyone, and requires a particular approach and understanding.
In order to become a Concurrent Carer, you need to:
- Have the ability to be child-centred and put the needs of very young children to live in the right family for them before your own needs to become a parent through adoption.
- Have the ability to respect and work with birth families, through actively supporting contact with the child.
- Have the ability to cope with stress and live with uncertainty.
- Have a strong support network through family and friends.
- Be able to give up work at relatively short notice when a child has been identified for you.
Who are we looking for?
Family Care Adoption Services is working with the five Trusts across Northern Ireland to recruit and assess families to be concurrent carers for babies and young children. We will be there to support you throughout the process; from initial enquiry, assessment and approval, matching and placement and on to either the adoption or rehabilitation of the child.
Full support will be given to you during the period of fostering, both in relation to contact between the child and birth parents, and in financial terms in the form of foster care allowances.
If the child is unable to quickly and safely return home, and adoption becomes the care plan, you will be supported throughout the legal process and the full range of post-adoption support services will be available to you.
If you feel that you could become a Concurrent Carer please contact us.
We would be very happy to hear from you on:
Family Care Adoption Services. Belfast Telephone: 028 90 691133
Information Pack
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