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Contents 

1. Placement Planning Meetings
2. Disruption Meetings

1. Placement Planning Meetings

The purpose of Placement Planning Meetings is to ensure that children's Placement Plan (recorded in the Placement Information Record) are brought or kept up to date and continue to meet the needs of broader or wider plans, such as a Care Plan, Personal Education Plan or Pathway Plan.

Where the proposed placement has the effect of disrupting the arrangements made for the child's education and training - see Education of Looked After Children Procedure.

1.1 Frequency of Meetings

1. Before a child is placed: once a placement has been identified, a Pre-Placement Planning Meeting should be convened either to confirm and/or plan the arrangements for placement including the drawing up of a Placement Plan/Placement Information Record.
2. After a child is placed on a planned basis: within a week of the child’s placement, then at other intervals determined by the manager in consultation with the social worker (e.g. after a Looked After Review). 
3. If the child is placed on an Emergency basis or there is a risk that the placement will breakdown: an Emergency Placement Planning Meeting should be convened within 3 working days of the event.

1.2 Arranging and Chairing Meetings

Meetings will be arranged by the child's social worker but may be chaired by the children's home manager or foster carer's Supervising Social Worker.

1.3 Who should contribute to Meetings

The people listed below should contribute to the meetings (if the child has been placed on an emergency basis, it may not be possible to notify/invite all those listed. However, it is essential that the following people are invited/contribute in some form):

1. The child’s social worker and/or other professional associated with the child e.g. Personal Advisor or Advocate
2. The child
3. The child’s parents
4. The child’s Keyworker/carer(s), and/or Home Manager
5. The carer’s supervising social worker

1.4 Preparation and Conducting Meetings

If the child has been placed on an emergency basis, it may not be possible to undertake all of the following arrangements.

Before the review the chairperson should obtain or be updated on the following, if available:

• The child’s Placement Plan/Placement Information Records
• Any work which has been undertaken by key professionals involved in supporting the child’s placement
• If relevant: the child’s Care Plan, Personal Education Plan and Pathway Plan.

The chairperson should also ensure that the child, parent(s) and others who have been asked to contribute understand the purpose of the review, how it will be conducted and are given the opportunity to put their views and suggestions.

During the meeting, the chairperson should ensure that consideration is given to the appropriateness of the placement within the context of the child’s Care Plan or Pathway Plan and the need for the Placement Plan/Placement Information Records to be drawn up or amended as appropriate. 

This does not mean that amendments to Placement Plan/Placement Information Records may only be made at Planning Meetings.  When Placement Plan/Placement Information Records are formulated and at each Planning Meeting, the social worker and manager/chair should agree the extent to which they can be amended between Planning Meetings or without consultation. 

The chairperson should consider whether the child requires an Advocate or the appointment of an Independent Visitor; if so, this should be raised with the Placing Authority.

If there are concerns about the suitability of the placement, consideration should be given to the following:

• whether it is possible to sustain the placement until the next Looked After Review by, for example, providing additional support to the placement;
• bringing forward the date of the next Looked After Review;
• ending the placement

2. Disruption Meetings

Disruption Meetings should be convened in relation to children whose placement in a children’s home or foster care has ended abruptly or on an unplanned basis. Strenuous efforts must be made to seek to resolve the unplanned endings of placements for children.  An emergency placement planning meeting, should always be held where there are fears that a placement is at risk of disruption.

Where a placement breaks down or ends on an unplanned basis, the manager of the home must convene a Disruption Meeting within 5 working days.

The manager of the home or an independent manager should convene and chair the meeting.  Those invited, or asked to contribute, should be:

1. The social worker
2. The Keyworker or carer(s)
3. The parents and child
4. Other relevant staff/professionals
5. The supervising social worker
6. The child's Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO)

The meeting will ensure the child (depending on his or her age and level of understanding) is given the opportunity to understand the reasons and be supported with transition - including return home and independence. Foster Carers must supported to maintain links with children who leave their care.

The precise agenda will depend on the child/circumstances, but the manager/chair should ensure the circumstances leading to the disruption are properly reviewed, and that all concerned are provided with opportunities to express their views freely with a view to establishing:

• How and why the disruption occurred
• To learn from what happened and avoid the same thing happening again - for the child or others in the home
• To contribute to the future planning for the child
• To identify work to be done and to ensure it is completed.
• To ensure that appropriate notifications and other post placement arrangements have been undertaken - as set out in Post Placement Arrangements Procedure.

The manager should keep minutes, which must be circulated to all concerned.

End