Regional fostering partnership to be strengthened

Plans to help boost the number of foster carers so that more children can live in stable, loving family homes closer to their communities have been approved by Derbyshire County Council.

The proposals will bring the recruitment, assessment and approval of carers under one regional partnership to speed up the process and ensure consistent support is in place throughout the fostering journey.

Derbyshire is already part of the existing Foster for East Midlands Councils (FFEMC) partnership together with Derby City, Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County councils.

The four authorities work jointly to attract and recruit potential foster carers up to the point they apply but then follow their own processes for assessing and approving carers in their areas.

On 2nd July 2026, Cabinet agreed to join the Department for Education’s End-to-End Fostering Hubs programme to bring more of this process together and to create 10,000 additional foster carer places nationwide by 2029.

The regional hub will bring together the recruitment, assessment and approval of foster carers, helping to tackle the national shortage and reduce the use of high-cost residential placements.

Since FFEMC launched in March 2024, it has attracted almost 2,700 enquiries from potential foster carers, and to date has approved 75 brand new fostering households with many more on their journey to approval.

Ongoing support will be provided through additional training, support groups and through mentoring by fostering families with lived experience supported by a Hub home carer and a liaison worker.

The hub model is intended to:

• Increase the number and retention of foster carers
• Improve stability and outcomes for children in care
• Reduce reliance on expensive residential care, helping council budgets
• Make fostering processes more consistent across the region
• Strengthen work with third-sector partners and Independent Fostering Agencies.

As part of the plans, Cabinet also approved the delegation of regional fostering panel functions to Nottinghamshire County Council, which currently hosts Adoption East Midlands.

This will allow Derbyshire to benefit from existing regional systems, specialist expertise and consistent panel arrangements, while keeping strong oversight and safeguarding in place.

Councillor Paul Maginnis, Derbyshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Families, said: “This decision means more children will be able to live with a loving family closer to their communities, rather than in costly residential placements.

“By sharing our expertise and resources more effectively, potential foster carers will get consistent, strong support throughout their journey which can only be a good thing for children and young people in our care.”

The ‘design phase’ will run from February to June 2026 and the fostering hub is expected to go live from September 2026. From then, all fostering enquiries, assessments and approvals will be managed through the hub, led by a head of service and overseen by a regional governance group.

Foster carers, partner councils, third-sector organisations and independent fostering agencies will be involved throughout the design phase to help shape the new arrangements and support a smooth transition to the expanded regional model.