What record-keeping guidance will foster carers receive?

Record-keeping guidance for foster carers explains how to create reliable, child-centred records that support safe care, informed decision-making and continuity between the people involved in a child’s life. It covers not only what should be written down, but also how to write it, who may need to see it, and how records should be managed throughout a placement.

The guidance will usually cover the following principles:

• Write objectively: distinguish between what you directly saw or heard, what the child said, and your own interpretation. A record should make clear whether information is a fact, a report from someone else or a professional judgement.
• Use the child’s own words where important: particularly when a child expresses a worry, makes a disclosure or explains their wishes and feelings. Quotation marks should only be used when the wording is accurate.
• Record promptly: making notes as soon as reasonably possible helps preserve an accurate account. If a record is written later, the date and circumstances should be clear rather than giving the impression that it was made at the time.
• Keep language professional: records should be respectful, specific and free from labels, speculation or emotive descriptions. They may form part of the child’s history and could be read by the child in the future.
• Show action taken: where something requires a response, the record should explain who was informed, what advice was received and what happened next. This helps demonstrate that concerns were considered rather than simply noted.

Foster carers are also shown how records fit together. The agency may explain which information belongs in routine placement records, which matters must be reported immediately and which events require a separate form or notification. You should be told who to contact if you are unsure whether something needs recording or escalating. This is especially important where an event could affect a child’s safety, health, behaviour, education, family relationships or placement stability.

Guidance may include practical examples, such as how to document a change in presentation, an unexplained injury, a disagreement, a missed arrangement or a child’s response to contact. The purpose is not to produce lengthy notes about every minor detail. It is to create a proportionate account that helps professionals understand what happened, identify patterns and decide whether further action is needed.

Records should remain child-focused. Entries should explain the impact of an event on the child and, where appropriate, reflect their wishes and feelings. Carers should avoid writing as though the child is defined by a behaviour or incident. A balanced record can acknowledge difficulties while also recording strengths, progress, coping strategies and successful support.

Training and supervision provide opportunities to check whether records are clear and sufficiently detailed. A supervising social worker may help you improve the structure of an entry, identify missing information or consider whether a matter should be shared with the wider professional network. Reviewing records in this way can also help identify recurring concerns or changes in a child’s needs.

Corrections must preserve the original account. If you make a mistake, the usual approach is to follow the agency’s procedure rather than deleting or disguising the entry. For paper records, this may involve a single line through an error, with the correction dated and initialled. Digital systems may have their own audit trail. Your agency will explain the exact process it expects you to use.

Confidentiality guidance will explain how to prevent unauthorised access, including where records should be kept, how electronic information should be protected and what to do if information is lost or sent to the wrong person. Foster carers should not discuss a child’s circumstances on social media or share identifying information with people who are not involved in the child’s care. Information should be disclosed only through appropriate channels and for a legitimate care or safeguarding purpose.

You will also be advised about access, retention and disposal. Foster care records can contain sensitive personal information, so they should not be thrown away, copied or passed on without following the agency’s instructions. The agency can explain how long different records are kept, who is responsible for storing them and how requests to view information are handled.

Record-keeping guidance is normally revisited as the placement develops, particularly if the child’s needs change or a new safeguarding issue arises. Policies and legal requirements can also be updated, so foster carers should use the current forms and procedures provided by their fostering agency and raise any uncertainty with their supervising social worker rather than relying on an old template or informal advice.

Become A Foster Family provides guidance, training and ongoing support to foster carers across the West Midlands, including Birmingham, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Dudley, Sandwell, Herefordshire, Telford, Wolverhampton, Shropshire, Walsall, Warwickshire, Stoke, Solihull, Coventry and Gloucestershire. Its teams can help carers understand the recording standards and procedures that apply to their fostering role.