Developing Europe's Foster Training
“DEFT” Developing Europe's Foster training
Funded in 2005 by the Leonardo da Vinci programme. The aim of the project was to develop training materials with a transeuropean relevance for social care professionals in their role as trainers/supporters. Furthermore, the material was tested in a pilot project.
The project produced a trainer handbook, a trainee handbook, a course handbook and a trainer licensing process. It also produced an accredited training programme.
The education for care professionals at university level in the health and social work sector does not supply professional expert knowledge of how to educate, train and support foster carers, i.e. the trainers do not obtain the tools they need in their profession.
The DEFT project devised a core system for the skills' development by elaborating the content of train-the-trainer material that can be used with regional variations and in translated versions across Europe.
This means to identify new skills and competences and learn from and build upon the experience and expertise of sector specialists across Europe.
Primary target groups are care professionals with a high-quality training to make them professional educators and coaches, for foster carers being in training.
Secondary target groups will be local authorities, training organisations, universities.
Targeted end beneficiaries are young people in care.
The main activities will be the development of training materials with a trans-European, testing and refining of these materials, validate existing formal and non-formal learning and accreditation and implementation in the partners' regular training.