ABSTRACT
This chapter explores issues relating to the training of foster carers who are relatives or friends of the child they are looking after. National Foster Care Association has a national role as a voice of foster care in the UK. It recognised that social work departments in the UK have shown, to date, varied practices in the use of relatives and friends as foster carers, and that the needs of this group have not been adequately addressed within the public child care system. A dominant issue which is reflected in the carers' experiences, was the lack of consistency in the policies and practice used with this broad group of carers. Raising awareness of what foster carers are allowed to do - for example, relating to parental responsibility, medical treatment, holidays, and baby-sitting - would have lessened some of the potential for conflict with Social Services and ensured the needs of the child being looked after were the main priority.
