Step Up Step Down

Step Up Step Down is a pioneering approach to supporting families on the edge of care. It demonstrates a reduction in the numbers of children coming into care, and improved outcomes for children and families. At its heart are specialist, highly trained family support foster carers, who provide time limited, preventative support to up to four families at any one time. The programme gives parents the support of a foster carer who can ‘step up’ if the family needs additional support and ‘step down’ when parents are in a better place to support their children.

About Step Up Step Down

The programme gives parents the support of a foster carer who can ‘step up’ if the family needs additional support and ‘step down’ when parents are in a better place to support their children.

The partnership model is embedded within children’s social care services. However, as it’s delivered by The Fostering Network, with a needs-based approach, this helps overcome barriers many families face to receiving support.

The support provided for families depends on individual family needs. It includes:

Home based activities focused on key family times such as bedtime, mealtimes and getting to school
A programme of activities focused on learning and achieving as a family
A programme of learning and play activities for parents and children together
Intensive support at times of family crisis
Sign-posting and support to access additional services
A regular programme of home visits to plan and review support
Developing and delivering a peer support model for families

The programme’s success in Northern Ireland saw it win the Family Support Award at the 2019 Children and Young People Now Awards.

A birth mother relays the impact Step Up Step Down has had for her;
“Our Step Up Step Down foster carer was able to see what I was doing well, things that I couldn’t see, and she supported me to make changes. I have achieved so much more with SUSD support than I would have alone.”

“Our role is unique because we are foster carers and we can just do life with them in a non-judgemental way. It’s amazing how families open up to us.” – Family Support Foster Carer

Step Up Step Down across the UK

After seven successful years of delivery in Northern Ireland, in partnership with the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust, the programme is now being rolled out across the UK. In the words of an 11 year old who took part in the programme, “I think every family that could use Step Up Step Down support should get the opportunity to have it." We are working hard to make her vision a reality.

Thanks to support from Welsh Government and the KPMG Foundation, our programme in Wales launched in spring 2023.

If you want more information on bringing Step Up Step Down into your area, please contact jade.irwin@fostering.net

Step Up Step Down is one of several innovative programmes run by The Fostering Network.

For media enquiries regarding the programme email media@fostering.net or phone 020 7620 6441.

Step Up Step Down in Northern Ireland

Step Up Step Down operates in partnership with the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust in Northern Ireland.

215 children and 130 parents have been supported so far. Children are referred to the programme because there is a risk of care admission, or to support reunification plans to re-unite families where children have already been placed in care.

‘This is the best example of trauma-informed practice I have seen.’
Dr Una Lernihan (Department of Health)

‘Step Up Step Down truly keeps families together safely and well, especially during the pandemic when so many other services were reducing or closing.’
Sheila Simons (Safeguarding Lead, South Eastern Trust)

Supporting families to flourish

Through a range of supports including mentoring for parents, short breaks for children, training, community support and family activities, Step Up Step Down works in trauma-informed, nurturing and solution-focused ways.

A 12-year-old who struggles with emotional regulation who attended one of our summer schemes said, ‘I love this summer scheme. I can be myself and I feel easy-going here.’

An independent evaluation by RFA Associates found additional positive outcomes including reduced levels of family support required, increased school attendance, higher parental employment and parents gaining new life skills.

The pilot of Step Up Step Down was funded by The National Lottery Community Fund as part of their Reaching Out Supporting Families programme.

Step Up Step Down in Wales

Cymraeg

We are pleased to announce that Step Up Step Down launched in Wales in 2023. Supported by the KPMG Foundation and Welsh Government, the programme offers an opportunity to dramatically improve outcomes for families with children on the edge of care. We will seek to sustain delivery beyond the grant funded period and demonstrate a scalable model for further roll out within Wales and beyond.

The Fostering Network invited expressions of interests from the 22 Welsh local authorities. We have identified Pembrokeshire County Council and Powys County Council to pilot Step Up Step Down as part of our demonstration programme.

Melanie Evans from Pembrokeshire County Council expressed that Step Up Step Down makes her ‘hopeful and aspirational’ for families, teams, services and communities.

The level of partnership and collaboration within Step Up Step Down between The Fostering Network, Local Authorities, families and communities is an example of excellence. Commitment from the fostering team, safeguarding and family support teams, foster carers, parents and the children and young people themselves is essential for the programme is to be of real value.

Cascade will undertake a formal evaluation of the programme, and we are excited to trial the For Mi app as a key part of our data gathering and reporting processes.

If you would like more information on the programme itself or the expression of interest process, please get in touch by contacting wales@fostering.net or the Programme Manager, Rhian, on rhian.smith@fostering.net

Expression of Interest Documents