Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has considered broadening the range of foster care representative bodies it engages with on policy development.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education is keen to ensure that the department meets with stakeholders from across the fostering sector, so that a variety of voices are heard. Departmental officials meet with foster carers and young people who have experienced the fostering system, as well as fostering charities, unions and those who represent and oversee fostering services.

The department also runs a fostering advisory board, which brings together strategic leaders and people with lived experience of fostering to advise on government policy. This is just one of the ways that the department interacts with fostering stakeholders when considering policy. Departmental officials also meet bilaterally with several fostering organisations and have recently hosted a roundtable meeting which had representation from a wide range of stakeholders.

Finally, the department also ensures that the voices of children and young people are heard when formalising policy. This includes our Children and Young People Advisory Board, which aims to give children and young people a say in the services that directly affect them. This provides an opportunity for them to feed into policy development and create a feedback loop to show them where their views are being incorporated. The Board is run by the National Children’s Bureau on behalf of the department, with membership for those aged 11 to 25.