How does contact with a child’s parents work in family placement fostering?

In family placement fostering, contact with a child’s parents is a formal arrangement that supports the child’s relationships while protecting their welfare. It is normally set out in the child’s care plan and agreed with the local authority, the child where appropriate, the parents and the foster carers. The arrangement may involve face-to-face visits, telephone calls, video calls, letters or other indirect contact.

The starting point is the child’s individual circumstances. Professionals consider:

• the child’s age, wishes, feelings and level of understanding;
• the child’s relationship with each parent and other important relatives;
• any risks linked to the parent’s behaviour, the circumstances that led to the placement or the child’s experiences;
• the likely emotional effect of contact before, during and after it takes place;
• court directions, the local authority’s care plan and any safeguarding requirements; and
• practical matters such as travel, school, health appointments and the availability of suitable venues.

Contact can take place in a family home, a contact centre, another agreed community setting or a virtual setting. Some visits are supervised by a professional or another approved person. In other circumstances, contact may be supported rather than directly supervised, meaning that someone remains involved to help the visit run safely without observing every interaction. The level of oversight can change as the child’s needs and circumstances develop.

Family placement fostering can make contact more complex because the foster carer may already be related to the child or know the parents well. Personal relationships, family disagreements and existing expectations must be kept separate from the carer’s fostering role. A foster carer should not make private promises about visits, change arrangements independently or use contact to resolve adult disputes. The agreed plan provides the boundaries that everyone is expected to follow.

Before contact begins, the professionals involved should clarify practical details, including:

• the date, time, length and frequency of visits or calls;
• who will arrange and supervise the contact;
• where the child should be collected and returned;
• what information or belongings can be passed between the child and their parents;
• how parents should communicate changes or cancellations;
• what to do if a parent does not attend or arrives in an unsuitable condition; and
• how concerns, incidents and the child’s response will be reported.

The foster carer’s role is to help the child attend safely and to provide practical and emotional support before and after contact. Children may show changes in mood, sleep, behaviour or communication around visits. A carer should listen without pressuring the child to give an account, avoid criticising the child’s parents and pass relevant observations to the child’s social worker or supervising social worker. The child should not be made to feel responsible for maintaining contact or for managing adults’ feelings.

Parents may also need clear information about the boundaries of the arrangement. This can include rules about taking photographs, giving gifts, discussing court proceedings, using social media, making unplanned visits and sharing the foster placement address. These safeguards are not intended to prevent appropriate family relationships; they help reduce confusion and protect the child’s privacy and safety.

Contact arrangements are reviewed rather than treated as permanent. A review may be needed if the child becomes distressed, a parent’s circumstances change, a visit repeatedly breaks down, the child’s wishes develop or new safeguarding information comes to light. Contact may then be increased, reduced, changed to a different format or paused while professionals assess the situation. Only the appropriate authority can make changes where a court order or formal care plan requires this, so foster carers should raise concerns promptly rather than altering the arrangement themselves.

Where contact is missed, the foster carer should follow the agreed reporting process and support the child without making promises about the next visit. If a parent asks for an arrangement that has not been authorised, or if a carer believes a child may be at risk, the matter should be referred to the child’s social worker or the relevant fostering professional. Immediate safeguarding concerns should be dealt with according to the placement’s emergency procedures.

Good contact planning recognises the child’s need for stability as well as their need to understand and maintain important relationships. Foster carers receive guidance on their responsibilities, recording observations and managing difficult conversations. The child’s social worker, the fostering service and other professionals should work with the carer and family to review what is working and identify any support needed.