National Union of Professional Foster Carers Reviews 83

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Robin has been very supportive of me when I went through issue with an agency I worked for. It went to arbitration and was resolved and then I moved to a new agency, who have been brilliant to work for. Robin was always there when needed.

I feel if I needed them I would get the support I need

They have a personal touch feel they care great having them in your corner . The work they are doing to acknowledge foster care as a legal profession is very important.

We had an allegation against us and the union advised us extremely well throughout the whole process. The union rep (Chris) who dealt with our case was always either available when we called or messaged, or phoned us back the same day.

When we were unlucky enough to be faced with allegations and LADO. We felt alone and anxious so contacted the union. So glad we did Robin responded straight away even though it was late into the evening. He has supported us with empathy and professionalism.
Definitely recommend joining the support was outstanding

My wife and I are kinship carers for two beautiful amazing children. Though we are just now going through our fight against Social Services ( toughest time of our lives) I felt it would be good for me to write a review though we have no conclusion yet. It occurred to me that there could be carers like us elsewhere who are being put through the same anguish as we are by Social services through this festive Christmas period, so I decided to write this review already so it could be a little help to anybody considering things.

We contacted the NUPFC after being advised to do so by another support charity. ( Enza at Kinship Carers Uk). We were not already members ( which we really regret) and we promptly ( though nervously) paid the £1000 to contribute towards help from NUPFC. We’re not wealthy people so we were quite unsure.

Over the past week or so we have been in touch with councillors, children’s advocates, a range of solicitors, as well as other professionals and Robin & Sandra from NUPFC. We have to say , though we have not had the result we need yet, we definately feel the £1000 we payed was the best spent money ever. Robin and Sandra have been so amazing. They are the only professionals and individuals who have been here for us and available to us all day every single day. As one can imagine, all other professionals went dark a minute after 5pm and over the weekend; however NUPFC have been working for us and the children, and have been available to help us, to answer our panicked nervous questions and guiding us at all hours of every single day. They have been the quickest to act, quickest to make moves, most supportive and understanding. If I could chose to have one organisation with us I would chose NUPFC, without a doubt. It is my intention, once we come out of this difficult time, to keep my membership and continue contributions as much as possible whether the future has us being carers or not.

Thankyou so much NUPFC, specifically Robin and Sandra. You guys are no less than guardian angels.

Spoke to union about 3pm today, regarding issue previous evening, no support off La or agency! Robin replied and has taken full control of the situation and stood up to bullying tactics! Has also checked in on me this evening checking in on mine and the children’s welfare
First time ever needing a union but very highly recommended and very grateful as a carer

The National Union of Professional Foster Carers has been an exceptional source of support and expertise. Their advice is consistently clear, practical, and rooted in real experience, which makes a substantial difference when navigating complex fostering situations. The guidance they provide is accessible, timely, and genuinely empowering, helping foster carers feel confident and well-informed.

What stands out most is their commitment to protection and advocacy. They work tirelessly to ensure that foster carers’ rights, safety, and voices are upheld, creating a sense of security that is invaluable in this profession. Their depth of knowledge in fostering policy and best practice is remarkable, and they communicate it in a way that is both professional and compassionate.

The care they show for both foster carers and the children we support is evident in everything they do. This is an organisation that truly understands the challenges and rewards of foster care and is dedicated to elevating the profession. I highly recommend the National Union of Professional Foster Carers to anyone seeking strong, informed, and caring support.

We've found the support offered by the union invaluable. They have consistently been there when asked, providing expert advice and support during meetings with the council. Without them I'm not sure we would have had the positive outcome we did.

We contacted the union after we had a couple of stressful years following our complaint that was upheld against a SW and the service. We felt we were being bullied, this resulted in an Allegation ( which was unfounded almost straight away) and a concern. We had to go to panel, which then changed to an Early review. We challenged the reports as they kept changing the reasons and wording to be biased against us, and there was certainly no transparency as things were added without our knowledge. As soon as we said the union was interested and wanted the information we saw a difference. Before Chris spoke at our first meeting with our SW she was backtracking and apologising for aspects that were not transparent. At panel, Chris reminded the chair about minimum standards, he spoke precisely and to the point. Our outcome was positive but we are quite sure it wouldn't have been if it wasn't for the union and especially Chris. Our only regret is that we didn't join earlier when our long term child had to leave us. Thank you for all your support

As usual a few questions I needed answering with ongoing issues , nothing major , just wisdom regarding moving forward with our fostering journey .
As usual immediate , valuable insight and guidance for us
Particularly Sandra Scoular who continues to be amazing as always

Response was quick and info really helpful

You need the union behind you 100%. Just having them brought into emails often, makes sure everyone is doing everything in their power to support and resolve your issues within your workforce.
It’s so apparent. When bringing up a problem you have confidence with the union on board, it also gives confidence to carers to also speak up… Knowing you are doing the right thing as you have run it past them. We need to be strong the union empowers you for sure. I cannot rate them highly enough! Join today don’t hold back you have every thing to gain. Nothing to loose x

We cannot thank Robin and the team enough for their advice and support throughout our DBS investigation. We lost our children to an allegation in 2024. Unfortunately we were not members of the NUPFC at the time. When we were fostering whenever the NUPFC was brought up there was such a negative response from Social Workers implying they were just there to upset the apple cart and foster carers had the free support of our LA's chosen support organisation which was enough. We were kept in the dark throughout our allegation. A highly anxious time along with the grief of losing the children and not being able to contact them and no support other than our family and friends. The night before our allegation meeting we were allocated a representative from the LA's chosen support organisation. We met with the representative an hour before our meeting. Who advised us how it would be and the allegation hadn't come from the children. We thought our representatives experience of being a foster carer and their years of experience as an allegations representative we would be ok. We went into the meeting thinking our representative was there as our voice of experience. We quickly found out our representative was there with no voice just an observer. We were on our own very anxious and fighting to keep our good name. It was very clear they'd already made their minds up whatever we said was twisted to their own narrative. We left the meeting heartbroken knowing what the outcome would be. 2 weeks later we were informed the allegation was unsubstantiated but they were substantiating emotional harm. We were given the choice of resigning or going to panel. We resigned we couldn't put ourselves through anymore. 6 months later the NUPFC was recommended to us by a friend. After communicating with Robin and learning the benefits of being a member of the NUPFC we joined and thank goodness we did for what was to come next.

The DBS papers came a year after the allegations. If we didn't already feel like monsters we certainly did now. We experienced the meaning of corruption, being scapegoats and gaslighting. I got in touch with Robin at NUPFC who replied straight away with advice and told me what to do. Robin got things in motion from their end and I did what had to be done from our end. We was able to use the NUPFC solicitor as members. What an absolute pleasure Jonathan the Solicitor was to work with. We cannot thank Jonathan enough for his tireless work on our representation and his understanding of how the DBS works. He wrote an absolutely fantastic representation. He clearly went through the DBS papers with a fine tooth combe picking up on so much I hadn't. For the past year we have felt like we have been in a courtroom drama knowing the truth but nobody was listening until the NUPFC and Jonathan got involved.

We so wish we had been members of the NUPFC while foster carers. We have no doubt we would not have been put through this living hell for the last 15 months if we were. Please ignore your organisations if they talk negatively about the NUPFC and join today for your own piece of mind and to help the NUPFC to grow and help foster carers and a fostering system work for children and their carers.

Unbelievable support and knowledge.
Really is excellent work, having been in unions before who felt baggy and immobile there’s a genuine sense of things being achieved here.
Cannot recommend joining highly enough.

Had a problem over the weekend, the advice we received from Robin was perfect he gave great advice and supported us all weekend

The NUPFC, are there for Foster Carers. Do yourself a big favour and Join them. They fight for Foster carers rights.

Been getting messed about by L A for over a year over an insurance claim. Got in touch with NUPFC and got paid out within 3 months. Chris was brilliant and kept me informed all the way. If you are a foster carer, my advice is to join NUPFC

What can we say without Chris helping us fight we really don’t know if we would have the strength to keep going. He’s helped us so much and kept us updated throughout everything. If you’re not in the union we would highly recommend you join it. Thanks so much.