Blackburn with Darwen Council is rolling out a new 'Mockingbird' fostering model which provides carers with an extended family of similar parents to provide support.

The first such 'constellation' is currently being implemented at a cost of £80,000.

The authority's children's services department believes the new system will significantly increase placement stability, foster carer retention, placement sufficiency and foster care recruitment.

Blackburn with Darwen Council is the lead authority for introducing the model across the North-West region. It has plans for four more such 'constellations'.

The authority's children's services boss Cllr Julie Gunn said: "The Mockingbird Family Model is an award-winning, evidence-based model of fostering that is implemented through The Fostering Network.

"Mockingbird aims to increase placement stability for children in their foster families.

"We all know that being part of a family network that can offer support when needed, makes life easier.

"Mockingbird is best described as an extended family where at the centre is a hub foster family that is surrounded by spokes of other foster carers, just like an extended family, who can act like aunties, uncles and grandparents, providing the same caring roles that grandparents and extended family do.

"The hub carer will support the foster families in their extended family of foster carers through, school runs, sleep overs, social activities such as visits for tea after school, pizza nights and film nights for example.

"The Mockingbird Model nurtures the relationships between children, young people and foster carers supporting them to build a resilient and caring support network with the emphasis on ‘it takes a village to raise a child’.

"Where Mockingbird has already been implemented there have been positive results in placement stability.

"The Fostering Network reported that 18.5 per cent of placements within a Mockingbird Constellation would have been disrupted without the support provided by the foster carers within the cluster and 10 per cent of foster carers would have resigned which increased the retention of foster carers.

"We are really pleased that we are able to offer this support to foster carers and are confident that this, along with the Fostering Hub will be another great reason to Foster With Us at Blackburn with Darwen.

"We are well on our way to implementing our first Mockingbird constellation, we have recruited to the hub carer role and the liaison worker role.

"We are currently in the process of identifying satellite carers."