Fostering, adopting and looked after children
The Council provides services to children who are looked after by, or in the care of, the Local Authority and to their families.
Our main aim is to provide children with a safe and secure home since all children need to belong and to know where they will be living for the rest of their childhood. For some children this means returning to their family, for others it means moving on to a permanent substitute family. For a very few children, who cannot cope with a family environment, it means living in a group care setting.
We also work to ensure that our children achieve their potential in terms of the five outcomes identified within the Every Child Matters document and the Children Act 2004:
- We want our children to be physically and emotionally healthy
- We want to keep them safe from harm and protected from abuse
- We want them to do well at school and to enjoy their free time
- We want to help them make choices and grow up into responsible members of society
- And we want to help them become young adults who are financially secure
The following services are provided through the Looking After Children’s Division:
- Looking After Children’s Social Work (4 Teams)
- The Leaving Care Service
- The Fostering Service (3 Teams)
- The Adoption Team
- 2 Children’s Homes
- The Corporate Parenting Team
The Commissioning Team (commissions placements for children other than those provided by Barnet)
Children, young people and families
