Children’s services directors have called for private agencies to be banned from offering golden hellos of up to £3,000 to poach foster carers from councils.

Profit-making independent fostering agencies can then sell back foster carers to councils at an inflated rate, a practice that the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) described as ‘immoral and wrong’.

President of ADCS, Dave Hill, said it cost councils thousands of pounds to assess and train foster carers, which was wasted if they then transferred to an agency.

He told the BBC: ‘Then these agencies come along with a golden hello, they take our foster carers and we’re massively out of pocket.

‘We think those resources ought to be spent directly on the care of children in the care system and other children in our area.’

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