Staying Put

Staying Put in York should mirror family life.

It is about a young person remaining part of a family and not about living in a supported lodging arrangement. Nothing should change overnight just because a young person is 18, unless by prior agreement or for housing legal reasons. However, as the young person becomes a young adult there are a number of underlying principles that need to be considered, by the carers, workers and young people themselves. See Appendix 2: Living Together Agreement for details.

In order to stay put, the young person must be an Eligible child as defined in the Children Act 1989 Volume 3. The young person must be living at their placement 24 hours prior to the staying put arrangement commencing.

From the age of eighteen young people are no longer legally in ‘Care’ or ’Looked After’ and therefore fostering arrangements and regulations no longer apply. Where a young person remains with their previous foster carer/s this becomes a Staying Put arrangement, according to the following conditions, that:

• Immediately prior to the young person’s 18th birthday the Staying Put carers were registered (or remain registered if other fostered children remain in placement) as foster carer/s via the use of Schedule 3, Regulation 27 of the Fostering Regulations as a minimum standard;
• The young person was Looked After immediately prior to their 18th birthday and continues to reside with their former foster carers. The young person must be living with their staying put provider 24 hours prior to a staying put arrangement commencing;
• The young person is defined as Former Relevant under the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000;
• A proportion of the allowance paid to the Staying Put carers is paid by City of York Council Children’s Social Care under Section 23C;
• The Pathway Plan sets out that the young person is remaining with their former foster carer/s under a Staying Put arrangement.

In circumstances where a young person returns to a Staying Put placement during higher education or residential further education vacation periods the above criteria must continue to apply.

A young person can stay put if they are 18 years of age and are in a foster placement provided by the City of York Council under Section 20 or Section 31 of the Children Act (1989).

• A young person in residential care;
• A young person with special guardianship;
• A disabled young person who could not be expected to live independently by the age of 21. This young person would continue to be subject to transitional care arrangements and would possibly be referred to the Adult Placement Scheme before the age of 18. Staying put is not intended to replace the process whereby disabled young people who meet the relevant criteria transfer to adult case services such as ‘shared lives’ placements. A shared lives placement could continue post 21 whereas a staying put placement will end at 21.

Discussions start at 15 years or earlier, as part of transition planning.

Family Placement worker talks to foster carer (to ascertain if Staying Put is a consideration). If yes, they inform the Pathway Accommodation Officer, Social Worker and Pathway Worker. There would then be a planning meeting and the accommodation officer would provide all parties with the staying put information.

If after this discussion, the foster carer is unable to commit to staying put then consideration should be given around moving the foster child’s placement.

The decision is then formalised in the young person’s Pathway Plan at the next statutory child care review. The Pathway Plan is reviewed by IRO within statutory timescales.

The Staying Put arrangement will be formalised by the completion of a Living Together Agreement (Appendix 2: Living Together Agreement). The Living Together agreement, for housing and legal liaison be referred to as a licence. The agreement (licence) enables Universal Credit to accept Staying Put as a commercial arrangement.

The Pathway Accommodation Officer is responsible for ensuring that an Agreement is completed and signed by all parties prior to the start of each Staying Put arrangement.

The Agreement may be needed as proof of rent where a claim for Universal Credit is to be made. The Agreement must contain information such as the rent details, amenities cost, notice period, and house rules.

Young people remaining with foster carers post eighteen will become adult members of the household and will require a valid enhanced DBS check, in households where foster children are living. The Family Placement Worker for the foster carers is responsible for ensuring that the check is completed by the young person’s 18th birthday.

The young person’s Pathway Plan will contain details of the Staying Put arrangement which will include the agreed aims and objectives of the placement. It will also list roles and responsibilities of the young person, the carer and the Pathway Worker.

The first review of the Staying Put arrangement will be three months after the young person’s 18th birthday (or the start of the arrangement, whichever was more recent). After that, Staying Put Arrangements should be reviewed as part of the Pathway Plan Review (a minimum of every six months.) This should include a review of what is working well and any problems or difficulties that may have emerged.

A review can be arranged earlier by agreement between the young person, former foster carers, and the professionals involved.

Staying Put offers training opportunities to carers in order to help to prepare them to support teenagers into adulthood in a planned and individual way. The training offered will complement the Training Support and Development standards for foster carers.

Foster carers will have the opportunity to attend training provided by the City of York Workforce Development Unit (WDU). The family placement worker will be responsible for ensuring foster carers receive the WDU calendar and for supporting them to apply for courses.

Training for the young person in Staying Put will be provided by their carers. Additionally, training for the young person will be facilitated by the Pathway Team, with additional assistance from older care-experienced young people.

The complaints and compliments process is exactly the same for Staying Put carers and young people as for any other services run and managed by City of York Council. Please contact City of York Council on 01904 551550 to request a copy of the “Have your Say” leaflet.

See also: Complaints and Representations Procedure.

If a young person joins the armed services the former carer can be paid a reservation allowance of 25% of the Staying Put payment while the young person completes the first six months of basic training. This is an acknowledgement that within the period of basic training, the young person may decide not to pursue a career within the Armed Forces and may wish to return to the Staying Put carers, whilst they plan their future ETE. Young people are not expected to contribute to the reservation allowance. After the basic training ends, a reservation allowance will not be paid.

Where a young person’s room has been kept exclusively for their use, and the young person returns to stay for a period of time, (such as during a period of leave from the Armed Forces), the former carers will be paid at the full current Staying Put rate, for the period of the stay. The young person will be expected to make a contribution to this depending on their income.

If the young person returns to former carers but their own room has not been kept exclusively for them (i.e. if they are using a temporary/sofa bed) they will be expected to contribute to the cost of their stay, at a rate agreed between the young person and their former carers. The Accommodation Officer can assist with this negotiation, if required.

A reservation allowance will not be paid when a young person is living away at University. Pathway is paying for the young person’s university accommodation.

During breaks from University the former carer will be entitled to the full Staying Put rate if the young person returns to their own bedroom.

If the young person returns to former carers but their own room has not been kept exclusively for them (i.e. if they are using a temporary/ sofa bed) the former carers will be paid an allowance of 50% of the standard Staying Put payment, while the young person is staying with them.

The accommodation officer is responsible for:

• Setting up, advising on and monitoring Staying Put arrangements;
• Consulting the family placement link worker to calculate the ‘staying put’ placement cost and informing the Pathway Practice Manager;
• Arranging a meeting prior to the young persons 18th birthday to enable all parties to sign the staying put agreement;
• Co-ordinating the Staying Put placement review process.

The accommodation officer will offer information about Staying Put to:

• Foster carers;
• Young people;
• Social workers;
• Pathway workers;
• Independent reviewing officers (IROs);
• Families;
• Other professionals / agencies where identified.

The accommodation officer will advise colleagues, foster carers and young people on related housing matters, such as:

• Universal Credit Claims;
• Moving on from Staying Put (accommodation options);
• Applications for Council accommodation.

The accommodation officer will signpost foster carers to agencies who will be able to give advice on matters such as:

• Income tax;
• Universal Credit;
• Insurance;
• Complaints.

The accommodation officer will provide support to Foster Carers when there are no other LAC in the Household. (to replace support of Family placement worker).

The supervising social worker is responsible for:

• Initiating discussion with foster carers about ‘staying put’, to explore their interest;
• Discussing the foster carers’ decision with the young person’s social worker, pathway worker, accommodation officer and relevant service managers;
• Continuing to support the foster carer, when a foster placement becomes a ‘staying put’ arrangement and there are other young people in their care (LAC);
• Ensuring a DBS check is completed for the young person Staying Put, where there are other foster children in the household;
• Identifying and recording the training needs of the former foster carer and presenting these to the Workforce Development Unit;
• Ensuring the former foster carer receives information about training courses available to them.

The Pathway Worker is responsible for:

• Supporting the young person from age 17½ to age 21 or 24 if in higher education;
• Assessing the level of financial contribution / rent the young person will pay towards the staying put arrangement;
• Supporting the young person to maximise their entitlement to benefits (Universal Credit), if they are not in employment or are on a low income;
• Ensuring that all claims for benefits are submitted in a timely fashion that minimises any potential disruption or delay to payments. The pathway worker will (together with the young person) follow up claims for benefits until a decision has been made and payment commences. In certain circumstances it may be necessary for the pathway worker to agree with the pathway practice manager contingency arrangements so that the former carer‘s income is not disrupted;
• Supporting the young person to review the pathway plan. The plan will include the staying put agreement and state the purpose of the ‘staying put’ arrangement, clearly identifying what needs to be done by when and by whom to enable the young person to be prepared for the next stage of their life. It will be important to consult the staying put carer in this process and details of specific support areas and goals will be included in the young persons pathway plan;
• Ensuring that the young person understands the terms of the ‘staying put’ agreement. This may include reinforcing what the young person is expected to purchase from their own income, supporting the young person to apply for relevant funding and benefits, and helping them to establish a method of making any regular payments from Universal Credit, to the former carer or to City of York Council;
• Continuing to provide support to the young person throughout the ‘staying put’ arrangement and advising them on pathway finances.

The foster carer is responsible for:

• Making an informed decision whether or not to offer a staying put arrangement to a young person placed with them;
• Working with the young person to prepare them for future independent living;
• Support the young person to develop skills with money management, planning, preparing and cooking healthy meals and other household tasks;
• Promoting health, healthy lifestyle, positive leisure, education, training and employment;
• Supporting the young person to maintain family contact;
• Where the foster carer continues to foster children for North Yorkshire County Council, alongside a “Staying Put” arrangement, their approval status will remain the same.

Where a foster carer does not have space to continue fostering, a discussion must take place between the Pathway Accommodation Officer and the Supervising Social Worker with consultation from the Fostering Team manager to determine appropriateness of de-registration or nominal on hold status for a period of time, particularly if the foster carer intends to return to fostering.

The ETE Adviser is responsible for:

• Supporting the young person to explore education options, including applying for college, claiming the 16-19 bursary, applying for university;
• Working with the young person to identify and access appropriate training opportunities, including work experience placements, apprenticeships etc.;
• Helping the young person to prepare for employment and maintain employment;
• Informing the pathway worker and pathway practice manager of any concerns where a young person is not engaging in ETE activity.

The Pathway Service Manager is responsible for:

• Managing the annual budget for ‘staying put’ arrangements;
• Making financial decisions where placements request extra funding;
• Liaising with the family placement service manager;
• Ensuring that the Accommodation Worker, Pathway Worker and ETE Adviser receive regular professional supervision.

The young person is responsible for:

• Engaging in an ETE activity or actively seeking to become engaged in ETE activity;
• Applying for Universal Credit, if not in employment;
• Attending all benefit appointments as required or advised, to support their claim;
• Forwarding any Universal Credit payments, made directly to them, either to City of York Council Pathway Team, or to their carers;
• Working with the carers, to prepare themselves for a future move to independent living.

There is an expectation that a young person in a Staying Put arrangement will contribute towards the cost of their placement, as any young person of their age would have to, in any other setting.

The amount of the young person’s rent contribution will be agreed prior to the Staying Put arrangement commencing and should be proportionate to their income. The amount of rent a young person will be expected to pay will be determined by Universal Credit.

For Universal Credit and legal reasons, the young person will also pay a weekly amenities charge to cover heating, lighting, hot water.

As a young adult, if not in paid employment, the young person will be expected to claim Universal Credit or other appropriate benefits.

Staying Put finance can be paid in a number of ways:

1. It is expected that if a young person is not waged, then they will claim national benefits to provide themselves with an income and pay the amenities charge to their staying put provider. A Universal Credit claim will be made to cover the rent costs;
2. If a young person is working, then the young person will contribute to the rent and amenity costs. The rent costs will be determined by The Housing Department.

An exception to the above is when a foster carer does not want the young person to claim national benefits as they wish the young person to look for employment. City of York Council will then pay the full staying put payment. See Appendix 5: Staying Put - Young Persons Payment Guidance Sheet.

LHA can be claimed by the young person Staying Put, if they are at college, on a low income or unemployed, and if no meals are provided in the support element, by the carer.

“If you are a care leaver under 22, or live with a care leaver under 22 who is your partner, and have no dependent children your benefit will be based on the one bedroom Local Housing Allowance rate” (LHA rules)

Under LHA rules, payment is usually made direct to the young person and it is their responsibility to pass the payment on to the foster carer. It is possible for the payments to be made directly to ‘the landlord’ as Care Leavers are classed as a vulnerable group. Reasons for this request and any evidence must be attached to the LHA claim form, in order to set up this payment arrangement.

Where a young person needs to claim LHA there may be a number of issues to consider, such as if a Staying Put carer is claiming benefits in their own right:

• Individual circumstances would need checking to see if a claim by the young person would impact on the carer’s benefits;
• If a young person shares a room and does not have sole occupancy of a room, benefits may not be payable, as the carer is already claiming benefit for the room space.

If meals are included in the support element provided by the carer, Universal Credit can be claimed and will be assessed on an individual basis.

In order to satisfy Universal Credit, the Staying Put rent is set at a market value i.e. a rate at which that accommodation could be rented to the general public.

LHA and Universal Credit can only be claimed for actual rent. They cannot be claimed for support costs, amenities, food or fuel.

When claiming benefits it is the young person’s responsibility to attend appointments with that agency. Failure to do so will result in the benefit being suspended or stopped until a new claim is made. The young person will be supported in this area by the Staying Put carer and the Pathway worker.    

Where a young person is claiming universal credit for housing costs, it should be requested that this is paid directly to the Local Authority as the young person may have difficulty in managing their financial affairs. The staying put carers will then be paid the full weekly amount by CYC Finance team.

Where it is identified and agreed that the rent amount will be paid via Universal Credit, if the young person refuses to make a claim this will result in a reduction in the level of allowance the staying put provider receives. This may result in the young person being asked to leave. The young person should be advised that if they do not make the Universal Credit claim:

• It may impact on their future ability to claim Local Housing Allowance or Universal Credit;
• If the failure to pay results in the “Staying Put” arrangement being terminated the young person may be considered to be ‘intentionally homeless’ by the local housing authority.

If the young person cannot claim Universal Credit the Local Authority will compensate by paying an amount equivalent to Universal Credit to the former carers.

If the young persons Universal Credit is stopped it will impact on the Staying Put carers’ income, which is clearly a financial problem for the carers and may lead to the placement ending.

CYC can agree to pay the foster carer the Universal Credit amount until payments are back on line but the young person may not get backdated Universal Credit unless they have a valid reason for lapsing their benefits. If this money cannot be recouped, this would impact on the Pathway budget and would not be sustainable.

There is an allowance for each care leaver in the City of York for their Christmas and birthday. It will be agreed who is best placed to use this money to get the young person a gift. This will be paid under section 23c of the Children Act 1989 and therefore disregarded for benefit purposes.

The ethos of Staying Put is to support young people to take on more responsibilities and learn about the adult world. The Staying Put carer or the Pathway worker will support young people with benefit issues, however where a young person does not engage with the support offered and persistently lapses their benefits, consideration will be given to ending the placement.

The financial package for the former carer will reflect the change in expectations. The Staying Put provider will not be expected to purchase things that were previously included in the fostering allowance, in order to enable the young person to develop budgeting skills. This would include clothes and toiletries, and should cover social and leisure activities.

The young people Staying Put are young adults and are able to claim benefits in their own right if they are not in paid employment. As young adults they will increasingly be responsible for the cost their own clothes, travel and leisure activities.

Staying Put Carers will be paid a basic weekly allowance (made up of support costs and rent costs).

The ‘Staying Put’ support cost is paid directly to the Staying Put carer by CYC finance team on a weekly basis. In addition to this, the rent cost will be paid to the Staying Put carer, either by CYC finance team, or Housing team or the Young Person, depending on the circumstances.

Legislation regarding the treatment of payments to Staying Put Carers is complex, and individual financial circumstances vary. It may be necessary to advise the carer to seek specialist advice (from Citizens Advice Bureau, for example) about their specific circumstances and the effect of the Staying Put arrangement on their tax, national insurance, welfare benefits, and working tax credit or child tax credit.

Where a Staying Put carer agrees to a young person and their baby living in their home they will be entitled to the current basic fostering rate in addition to the Staying Put allowance, if the baby is a Child in Care.

On a young person's 18th birthday, the legal basis on which they occupy the property (former foster home) changes and they become an 'excluded licensee' who is effectively lodging in the "Staying Put" carer/s home.

The associated changes from foster child to adult member of the household, and for the carer from foster carer to landlord (Staying Put carer), should be carefully and sensitively planned in order to ensure that both the young person and the carer understands the nature of the arrangement and that the positive aspects of being in foster care are not diminished by the new legal and financial arrangements.

An excluded licensee can be asked to leave the property by the landlord (Staying Put carer), who must give reasonable notice. In extreme circumstances it may be considered reasonable for the landlord (Staying Put carer) to give very short notice and ask the young person to leave on the same day.

Staying Put carers are covered by CYC public liability insurance. Household contents and car insurance are the responsibility of individual carers. Where the Staying Put carers insurance company will not pay out, CYC insurance will seek to offer remuneration.

York foster carers are covered for legal protection insurance through their membership of Fostering Network, which is paid for by CYC. Fostering Network do not provide such cover for Staying Put carers, who must be informed that this legal protection insurance cover does not continue under a Staying Put arrangement.

It is advisable for carers to inform the Insurance Company providing their household insurance when a young person is no longer a fostered child but remaining in their home as an adult lodger, and to check that existing insurance arrangements still provide adequate household cover under this arrangement.

Foster carers need to be given information about the income tax and national insurance implications of the Staying Put arrangement. Former carers can no longer use the ‘foster care relief’ scheme, but

Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs Department (HMRC) have stated that the same arrangements that apply to Adult Placement ’Shared Lives’ carers also apply to Staying Put arrangements. That is, that the payments are classed as an allowance and there is a weekly amount that can be received without incurring any tax.

Adult placement / ’Shared Lives’ Carers are treated as self-employed for tax purposes and can pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions in order to qualify for basic state pension. Staying Put carers are not able to claim Home Responsibilities Protection to protect basic state pension and other entitlements, as they are caring for an adult, unless they qualify due to their own personal circumstances.

Further information about Tax, Benefits and caring, is available on the GOV.UK website.

Carers who are in receipt of welfare benefits, need to receive advice about whether Staying Put payments will be disregarded or considered as income, for means tested benefits. These payments may include:

• Rent payments paid to the carer (from Universal Credit);
• Payments from the young person to the carer;
• Payments from CYC to the carer (made under The Children Act 1989 or from Supporting People Grants).

If not in paid employment or on a low wage, a young person can claim Local Housing Allowance (LHA) if the Carers are already in receipt Universal Credit or LHA to meet their own housing costs. This issue will need careful consideration in order that it does not affect the carers total benefit income.

In circumstances where all the funding for a Staying Put arrangement comes from the Staying Put budget, the payment can be made under Section 23c of The Children Act 1989. In these circumstances, a letter can be written to the former carer by the Pathway Accommodation Officer confirming that payments are being made under Section 23c of the Children Act 1989 to support the young person in education, and that the payment should be disregarded for income tax and benefit purposes.

Where carers offer multiple staying put arrangements and the total payments exceed Adult placement rules it is important that CYC allowances are paid under section 23c CLCA (2000) to avoid the Staying Put carer paying tax on Staying Put payments. See GOV.UK website for latest allowance levels.

If the carers are tenants themselves, it is advisable for them to check their tenancy agreement and ensure that their lease allows them to have a lodger/Staying Put young person.

If the carer is out of pocket due to Council Tax, the LA or Young Person will make up the difference.