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We are the UK’s leading membership organisation for professionals working across adoption, fostering and kinship care.
Find out moreWhat's new
Private Fostering Survey 2025: Findings and analysis
CoramBAAF's Private Fostering Survey 2025 highlights the ongoing lack of national data on privately fostered children and presents findings from 61 local authority responses across England and Wales, showing a significant increase in participation compared to 2024.
Find out moreParental consent and children/young people who are living in private fostering arrangements
This Practice Note explains that private fostering does not require parental consent, either written or verbal. The local authority must assess and monitor any such arrangement under the Children Act 1989 and the Children (Private Arrangements for Fostering) Regulations 2005, focusing on safeguarding and promoting the child’s welfare rather than how the arrangement came about. While parental involvement is encouraged, it is not a legal requirement.
Download herePrivate Fostering Awareness Day 2025: Hear from carers, young people, and practitioners
CoramBAAF’s Private Fostering Awareness Day highlights the importance of notifying local authorities when a child lives with someone who isn’t a close relative for more than 28 days. Join us for events including a Breakfast Briefing and Lunch & Learn session to explore private fostering, hear from carers and young people, and discover key findings from this year’s survey.
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New Child Health assessment forms | Supporting better outcomes for children in care
CoramBAAF’s newly updated Child Health assessment forms (2025) offer a more child-centred, collaborative approach to statutory health assessments, supporting improved long-term outcomes and aligning with forthcoming national quality standards.
Find out moreUpcoming training, events and conferences
Exploring Expertise: Keeping children in care connected to their cultures
11 November | 11.30am - 1pm | Zoom
In this session we will share key messages and highlight practice tips for practitioners, managers and organisational leaders. It will provide an overview of the SELF cultural framework. And it will provide an A-to-Z practice prompt to encourage practices that can be more intentional, more curious and more respectful.
Child health assessments
17 November | 9.45am - 3.30pm | Teams
This course explores the Medical Adviser’s role in adoption, focusing on conducting thorough child health assessments and preparing detailed adoption medical reports. It also covers advising agencies and panels, understanding parental health impacts, and managing complex situations to support informed care planning for children.
Working with relinquished babies and their families
18 November | 9.45am - 4pm | Zoom
This open course will look at the relevant statutory frameworks and recent case law, the challenges of working with relinquished babies and their parents, some of the complexities of the background histories of relinquished babies, the importance of counselling for relinquishing parents, care planning and the support needs of relinquished children and their adopters.
In our bookshop
All Books
Recruiting and retaining foster carers
Foster carer recruitment and retention are huge challenges that have attracted much research and reporting, without leading to widespread positive change. But some key best practice has been learned. What forms of recruitment have proved most useful, and what advertising encourages applications? How have some agencies successfully reached a range of diverse applicants? What do carers value most in a fostering service, making them more likely to stay – and what factors may push them to leave?
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Undertaking a Kinship Care Assessment: A guide to collecting and analysing information for Form K (England)
'Undertaking a kinship assessment' is designed to help social workers to manage and complete a comprehensive and evidence-based assessment of kinship carers/connected people/family and friends who wish to foster or be special guardians to a known child or children.
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Adoption starter pack
Essential reading for newly qualified social workers
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Fostering starter pack - bumper bundle
Save when you purchase five of our best selling fostering titles in our new bumper bundle pack! Essential reading for newly qualified social workers.
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