Due to leave care soon? The thought of saying goodbye to your foster carers and going it alone might be exciting, nerve-racking or something in between, and you may be wondering what support you’ll receive once you become an adult.
The good news is that as a care leaver in Scotland, you’ll have access to a range of support services that will help you walk confidently into the next chapter of your life. Join us to discover exactly what’s available to you.
What support do care leavers receive?
When you approach the end of your time in care, you’ll have a team around you to provide the support you need to walk confidently into adulthood. People on this team include:
- Local Authority Social Worker: They’ll complete your Pathway Plan or Welfare Assessment.
- Foster Carer: They’ll help you build the skills needed for living independently.
- FCA Scotland Social Worker: They’ll help you access opportunities through FCA Scotland and your placing local authority.
- FCA Scotland Education and Support Co-ordinator: They’ll help you plan and stay on track for life after school.
- Child and Young People’s Support Team: They’ll help you attend job fairs and prepare for interviews.
What is a Pathway Plan?
Around your 16th birthday, your social worker will start working with you to build your Pathway Plan. This plan will include all the details and goals relating to leaving care, so that you’re fully prepared for this next chapter.
Pathway Plans typically include:
- Living arrangements: The area you’ll live in and where you’ll call home. This could be renting from the council or a private landlord; alternatively, you might continue to live with your foster carers until you’re 21 through a Continuing Care agreement.
- Income: How you’ll pay for living costs, such as rent, bills and transport. This could be through a student loan if you go to university, your earnings if you go straight into full-time employment, or government benefits like universal credit.
- Plans for work, training, or further study: Whether you intend to go to university, enter full-time employment or start an apprenticeship.
- Looking after yourself: How you’ll look after your health and well-being when you leave care.
- Support network: Key people in your support network who you’ll be able to lean on.
- Life skills: How you’ll build the life skills needed for living independently, such as cooking, cleaning, budgeting, and time management.
- Family relationships: Whether you’ll have contact with your parents, siblings, or extended family.
- Support services: Details of any additional support you’ll need when you leave care.
Continuing Care Agreements
At FCA Scotland, we don’t expect you to face the world alone as soon as you turn 18. Many of our care leavers continue to live with their foster carers until they’re 21 and in some cases, 26, giving them more time to build life skills and the confidence to go it alone.
Whatever your plans are when you turn 18, we want to make sure that you move into independent living when you’re ready. So if you’d like a little extra time in your foster home, talk to your social worker, who’ll complete an assessment to make sure it’s the right option for you and your foster family.
Opportunities at FCA Scotland
As a young person living with FCA Scotland foster carers, you’ll have access to exclusive opportunities that will help you develop life skills and stand out from other candidates during job searches.
The first is our AQA Unit Award Scheme. Open to all children and young people, you’ll have the chance to complete a huge range of units, such as cooking, money management, and work-related learning. You’ll receive a certificate for every unit you complete, which recognises the work you’ve put in and gives you something to showcase on your CV and in university applications.
As a care leaver, you’ll also have the chance to become a Care Experienced Consultant, which will help you build relationships within FCA Scotland and give you valuable work experience. This is a paid position, and you’ll receive full training that will enable you to:
- Sit on interview panels.
- Mentor other young people.
- Support our participation events.
- Contribute to foster carer training.
- Contribute to our Fostering Panel and Foster Carer Review processes.
Financial support for care leavers in Scotland
If you’re concerned about how you’ll afford to live when you leave care, it’s helpful to know that you’ll be entitled to a range of financial support, depending on your circumstances and what you choose to do next.
This financial support includes a Care Leaver Payment and grants to help you start living independently. You’ll also be exempt from paying council tax until you’re 26, and your local council can provide financial assistance during an emergency.
You could also be eligible for certain benefits – your social worker will help you identify and apply for any monetary support you’re entitled to.
Thinking about going to university?
You’ll be entitled to free tuition at Scottish universities, a Care Experienced Student Bursary (CESB) and a Special Support Loan. You’ll also be eligible to apply for a Summer Accommodation Grant.
As a care leaver in Scotland, Scottish universities will guarantee a place for you at your first choice of university if you meet the entry requirements.
You can find out more about the financial support you’re entitled to when you leave care on the Young Scot website.
Even more support
When you leave care in Scotland, not only will you receive support from us here at FCA Scotland and your local council, but you’ll also have access to resources designed specifically for young people with care experience. These organisations offer impartial advice, guidance, and signposting to whatever it is you need.
Here are just a handful of those organisations:
- Who Cares? Scotland: Sign up for free membership, and you’ll receive access to resources, advice, advocacy, events, and a subscription to their magazine. You’ll also benefit from discounts from brands like Pure Gym.
- Young Scot: They provide the Young Scot Entitlement Card, which is free to all 11- to 26-year-olds living in Scotland. This gives you access to thousands of discounts, free bus travel until you’re 22, and lots more. Their website is also a hub of fantastic resources, all fact-checked and kept up to date, including information about support available for care-experienced young people across Scotland.
- LifeSkills: Created by Barclays, this tool will help you discover your strengths, including your current skills, interests, and personality traits, before finding ways to help you develop them further.
- Shelter Scotland: Their website has lots of useful information about housing, including advice for private renting, house viewings, social housing, and what to do if you find yourself homeless. They also have a 24/7 helpline and a chat function to help you get the support you need.
- National Network for the Education of Care Leavers (NNECL): This charity provides resources and support to help you get the most out of your education and progress onto further and higher education.
- Rees Foundation: Founded to ensure all care leavers have a lifelong network of support, the Rees Foundation can help by providing grants and offering financial advice.
We’re here for you
If you’d like more information about the support services available to you in Scotland as a care leaver, talk to your foster carers and social worker. They’re here for you and will do everything they can to help you take steps towards the future you want and deserve.
You can also find a lot more useful resources on the FCA Scotland care hub to help you manage your money, find your next job, and build life skills so you’re ready to take on the world.
