The ‘Staying Put’ arrangement is a lifeline for thousands of young care leavers and their foster families across the UK, which allows young people in care to stay with their foster families after they turn 18. Let’s learn more about how this crucial arrangement is improving prospects for young care-experienced people in the UK.
What is ‘Staying Put?’
Prior to the ‘Staying Put’ legislation, many young people were required to leave the homes where they had been placed and become comfortable in, long before the average young person is ready to leave. The legislation has been seen the most significant reform for young people in care for a generation and hopes to mitigate the uncertainty young people face and better equip them to succeed in life.
This arrangement alleviates much of the uncertainty and anxiety that young people felt when forced to leave their foster homes as soon as they legally reached young adulthood. The ‘Staying Put’ arrangement means that care leavers are now allowed to stay with their foster carers until they turn 21 if both the young person and their foster parents agree. Local Authorities have a duty to provide financial support for every young person who wishes to stay with their foster carers until they are 21.
Easing the transition into young adulthood
Talking about life for a foster child before the Staying Put legislation came into effect, our staff member Naomi said:
“For a lot of young people who had been placed with their carers for a number of years, it once again reminded them that they were in the ‘looked after system’ and very often plans were not confirmed until the last minute, creating greater anxiety.”
Chief Executive of the ‘Who Cares?’ Trust, Natasha Finlayson, said:
“Too often young people describe their experiences as feeling like being pushed off the edge of a cliff. It is absolutely indefensible to leave them– in some cases– living in dirty, verminous hostels around very unsavoury people who pose a risk to them.
A high percentage of care experienced young people struggle to thrive under these conditions, with a lack of support and struggles with the cost of living leading some to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs, or even ended up in the criminal justice system. Young motherhood is also common for care-experienced girls, with one study finding that a quarter of young women leaving care were pregnant or already had children, and it’s so important that we ensure as a society that these young women and their children receive proper support.
‘Staying Put’ and practical concerns
While ‘Staying Put’ is a fantastic opportunity for young people and their foster families who they have formed a close bond with, some foster parents expressed concerns over the challenges of offering the opportunity for young people to Stay Put.
While in a ‘Staying Put’ home arrangement, Local Authorities must pay foster parents an allowance in order to cover the costs of the young adult living with them; however, there are no national minimum allowance standards in terms of how much money foster parents receive. Naomi, one of our staff team, said:
“Whilst ‘Staying Put’ gives young people and their foster parents the option for the placement to continue, there still remains some uncertainty for them. Foster parents would like the same level of support to remain in place when a young person turns 18. Some foster parents have even experienced pressure from Local Authorities to work directly with them under a ‘supported lodging’ arrangement.”
Another practical concern is that, with more young people in ‘Staying Put’ arrangements, there are less spare rooms available for younger children in desperate need of foster families, compounded by what is already a severe shortage of foster placements.
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