Visions and Principles

When Lorimer Foster Services was launched in February 2004 our vision was to offer a range of placements which can meet a young person's care needs, improve life chances and facilitate positive outcomes for looked after children from a wide range of backgrounds.

Our extensive experience as a proven and established provider of residential facilities for young people helped inform us that, whilst this provision suited some children, others required a placement that was more closely modeled on family living.

Our Approved Foster Carers offer short, medium and long term placements across the North-West of England. The Lorimer Group's approach is one of nurture, promoting the welfare of the young person and unconditional positive regard at all times.

Within this framework our service principles are that:

• The service has a duty to placed children, young people and their families and foster carers to make sure that all aspects of the service are as safe as possible.
• All placed children and young people have the right to form secure attachments within a warm, nurturing and respectful fostering household.
• All placed children and young people should have the opportunity to achieve their fullest potential, and the role of the foster carer and the fostering service is critical within this.
• Everyone has the right to say so if they are not happy with arrangements, and to be listened to, and taken seriously.
• The needs and welfare of placed children and young people are paramount and will be the primary consideration of the agency at all times, including where this may be at variance with the financial interests of the agency or the foster carer.

At Lorimer Foster Services our aims and objectives are:

• To provide looked after children and young people with foster placements that are safe, warm and nurturing.
• To ensure that placed children and young people are given every support they need to take full advantage of their educational opportunities.
• To ensure that placed children and young people are provided with the means and the support to be healthy.
• To ensure that placed children and young people are well supported to move on to independence or to a permanent placement.
• To ensure that the voice of young people is heard, and is central to the development of the service.
• To ensure that foster care assessment is safe, thorough and completed in a timely fashion.
• To ensure that foster carers receive good quality, appropriate supervision and support, in the fostering task.
• To ensure that foster carers receive regular high quality training that assists them in the fostering task.
• To develop a service that is appropriately responsive to the expressed needs of carers and provides opportunities for consultation in relation to development.