Understanding your child’s placement

The placement takes place in several stages.

• In an emergency: If the situation demands it, your child may be placed in care immediately to guarantee their safety. This will be followed by an assessment to plan what should happen next.

• Medium- or long-term placements: There is an admission process, with a number of meetings, to prepare how your child will be looked after as carefully as possible.

• Drawing up the placement plan: An initial meeting is organised to draw up an individual placement plan for your child. This is an opportunity for us to decide together on what we are trying to achieve and what needs to be done to ensure your child’s well-being and development.

The people who attend the initial meeting are:

• You, as the child’s parent 
• The team from the residential home, or their representatives
• The Child Protection Officer, representing the SPMi
• The child, depending on their age and situation

What we will do together: Together, we will fill in a document setting out who will take which decisions during the placement. Often, these decisions have already been taken by the court.

Useful information for regular follow-ups: We encourage you to provide any information you can to help us offer your child the best possible care (dietary habits, sleep, allergies, health problems, etc.).

Regular follow-ups:

• We will review your child’s situation at least every six months. This is a chance to see how things are working and how your child is developing. The purpose of the placement will be explained and discussed with you, because your point of view is important.

• If your child is in a residential home, they will have a weekly meeting with their key worker. As a parent, you can also have meetings with their key worker at a frequency agreed with the care team.