Foster care is at the heart of Scotland’s commitment to care-experienced children. Yet fostering services face increasing strain amid rising demand, placement instability, and a shortage of carers. The challenge now is how to reform and strengthen fostering to deliver on the ambitions of The Promise while responding to urgent pressures in practice.
Scotland has committed to transformational change across the care system through The Promise, aiming to create a landscape where children grow up safe, loved and respected. In fostering, this demands not only structural reform, but a cultural shift in how we understand, value and support care relationships. Translating this into practice requires alignment between national policy, local delivery, and lived experience.
The sector is also contending with practical pressures – a shrinking pool of foster carers, growing complexity of needs among children, and variability in support and outcomes across the country. While there is innovation and dedication at every level, there remains an urgent need to confront inconsistency and inequity in fostering services.
At the same time, there are new opportunities through trauma-informed models of care, increased understanding of children’s rights, and a growing emphasis on multi-agency collaboration across health, education and social work. Ensuring the sustainability of fostering must now involve deeper support for carers, better placement matching, and stronger infrastructure for participation and advocacy.
With key developments in national care service planning, inspection frameworks, and workforce strategy underway, the future of fostering in Scotland is entering a pivotal phase – one where clarity of vision, shared responsibility, and practical action must come together.
This conference examines the future of foster care in Scotland, focusing on three themes:
Topics to be discussed
Who should attend
This conference is intended for all those working in the provision and support of foster care in Scotland and is suitable for both organisations and individuals. It is relevant to everyone directly and indirectly involved in fostering and fostering-related supporting activities. This includes but is not limited to:
Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise
Scottish Government
Chief Executive
Care Inspectorate
Fostering Recruitment Coordinator
Care Visions Fostering Scotland
Principal Solicitor and Chief Executive
Clan Childlaw
09:25 Chair's opening remarks
Session 1: Delivering The Promise – policy, strategy and reform
09:30 Keynote speaker
Natalie Don-Innes MSP, Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise, Scottish Government
scotgov ScotGovEdu
09:45 Question and answer session
09:55 Implementing The Promise in fostering – progress and what’s next
10:10 Regulating for better outcomes – the role of oversight in fostering
Jackie Irvine, Chief Executive, Care Inspectorate
CareInspect
10:25 Question and answer session
10:40 Comfort break
Session 2: Supporting foster carers – recruitment, retention and practice
10:55 Recruitment and retention of foster carers: turning the tide
Eilidh MacDonald, Fostering Recruitment Coordinator, Care Visions Fostering Scotland
CVFostering
11:10 Healing homes: embedding trauma-informed approaches
11:25 Resilience, recognition and support for foster carers
11:40 Question and answer session
11:55 Comfort break
Session 3: The child’s experience – rights, voices and outcomes
12:10 Power in practice: putting the child at the centre
Alison Reid, Principal Solicitor and Chief Executive, Clan Childlaw
clanchildlaw
12:25 Education and health in foster care: building better pathways
12:40 Placement stability and the journey through foster care
12:55 Question and answer session
13:10 Chair's closing remarks
Natalie Don-Innes MSP
Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise
Scottish Government
Natalie Don-Innes was born in Paisley and grew up in Bridge of Weir. Natalie attended Gryffe High School and then went on to study History at University of Glasgow.
Before and during her time at University, Natalie worked in a variety of sales roles working her way up to Manager of a local food retailer. After graduating university, Natalie started a role as a constituency assistant and caseworker for a member of the Scottish Parliament.
She was elected as a local councillor for the Bishopton, Bridge of Weir and Langbank ward in 2017 and then member of the Scottish Parliament for Renfrewshire North and West in 2021. She was appointed as Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise in March 2023. As well as her professional roles, Natalie has spoken openly about her own experiences growing up in poverty, and highlights the benefits and importance of having people with lived experience in decision making roles.
Jackie Irvine
Chief Executive
Care Inspectorate
Jackie qualified in Scotland before starting her career in London, moving back to Scotland in 1991.
Jackie has been a Chief Social Work Officer for over 10 years and came to the Care Inspectorate from her previous post as Service Director, Children and Families and Justice Services within the City of Edinburgh Council.
Jackie has over 30 years’ experience of working in the public sector and has also managed community health services for children.
Eilidh MacDonald
Fostering Recruitment Coordinator
Care Visions Fostering Scotland
With over 20 years of experience supporting statutory and independent organisations, Eilidh Macdonald brings a carer-focussed approach in supporting fostering to achieve the best possible outcomes for children and young people.
Her current role of Recruitment Coordinator for a Scotland-wide service (Care Visions Fostering) is instrumental in ensuring that new carers are best prepared and understanding of their role and that they feel valued throughout the process of becoming a carer. Improving the understanding of fostering, including the support that’s available and tackling some of the misconceptions around it, has also been a key aspect of her work.
Eilidh comes from a background of working with Children and Families, supporting complex needs in challenging circumstances. Therefore she understands the experiences of children who come into care and how we can best support their needs. Her collaboration with social work is informed by high level experience in her roles of Supervising Social Worker and agency management.
Alison Reid
Principal Solicitor and Chief Executive
Clan Childlaw
Alison was enrolled as a solicitor in 1996. She worked in civil litigation in private practice for four years before being employed as a Reporter to the Children’s Hearings. Having recognised the need for a specialist, outreach, legal representation service for children and young people in Scotland, Alison co-founded Clan Childlaw in 2008 and continues to be employed as its Chief Executive and Principal Solicitor. During her tenure, Clan has been involved in four supreme court cases defending children’s rights and won awards in the Pro Bono category of the 2017 Scottish Legal Awards and 2019 The Herald Law Awards of Scotland. Alison leads on the delivery of the pioneering Lawyers For Children Certification Course with the Law Society of Scotland, which was launched in 2024.
Alison is a member of the Scottish Civil Justice Council Family Law Committee. She is a court reporter and curator ad litem in relation to contact and residence disputes in the sheriff court and a curator ad litem and reporting officer in relation to adoption and permanence proceedings. She has experience as a safeguarder in the children’s hearings system, and as a member of the Law Society of Scotland’s Access to Justice Committee. Alison is a Law Society of Scotland Certified Specialist in Trauma Informed Practice.
Alison loves most sports and enjoys camping and walking in the Scottish hills.
This conference takes place online.
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