Making a referral to Be My Parent (website)
How to make a referral to Be My Parent online and manage enquiries.
Making a referral to Be My Parent online
In order to make the most of the facilities on offer, agencies need to be registered with our online service if they want to refer children to the website. Please contact us to get set up on the system.
Making a referral
Agreement to publicity
Involving children
Use of photographs
Publication
Dealing with enquiries
Be My Parent follow-up services
After placement
Payment terms and conditions
Making a referral
To make a referral to Be My Parent online , you will need to fill the child or children’s details on our website, including the text of their profile (you can have a longer version for the online service), photograph(s), as well as drawings or wish lists from the children. If for legal or other reasons, you are not able or do not wish to use a photograph, you can still refer the child. Guide to using photographs.
You can also add a video clip to the profile Guide to using video clips
Security notice: The Be My Parent system has been designed to log users out if their login has been inactive for 20 minutes. Please ensure you save details entered into web pages at regular intervals to ensure it is not lost.
You can also fill in and send a Referral Form, the child’s profile and photograph, and, if applicable, a purchase or official order form. You can download a Referral Form here:
BMP referral form 2008-09 print and fill in - PDF (427 KB)
BMP referral form 2008-09 electronic version (2.1 MB)
Please note that if the referral is not complete, we will fax you once asking for the missing item. The signature of an authorised person is essential for a child to be featured.
If you choose to use a referral form, send all the documents in your referral at the same time and as soon as they are ready. This will help us to process them smoothly and if it becomes necessary to contact you, to be able to do this in good time. For security reasons, we strongly advise that you send your referral by post or fax, and not via email - the most secure way of sending your referrals is to use our online system. You can email revised profiles or JPEGs of photographs to bmp@baaf.org.uk, but please always include:
- child’s first name (no surname) and date of birth, preferably in subject line
- social worker and agency’s names.
Creating a new profile for a single child
Click on the ‘Create Child Profile’ link in the menu. Complete the form fully, ensuring all mandatory fields (marked *) are filled in. Please use the ‘Save and Continue’ buttons at each stage of the process to ensure the information is not lost. If you are going to be away from your computer during the process, click ‘Submit Child Profile’ at the bottom of the page and log out of your account. To resume the process, follow the procedure for editing a child profile (see below).
If referring the child to our newspaper, please complete the ‘Print description’ input box.
If referring the child to our website, remember to indicate which area you would like the profile to appear in:
- open area,
- subscribers' area, or
- CRB-checked families only area.
Then please complete the ‘Web description’ input box for the full profile page (maximum 500 words for a single child and 900 words for a sibling group), as well as the ‘Short web description’ for the child’s summary page (around 50 words) if the child is going in the open area of the website (i.e. can be seen by all website users not just subscribers).
When you have completed all fields, click ‘Submit Child Profile’.
At this stage you will have created a child profile that you can still edit before making the final referral to Be My Parent (see below). You will now be prompted to add photographs. Follow the instructions as appropriate.
Chasing up information takes up time, so please take extra care to fill in all the relevant sections when creating a child profile or referral.
Editing a child profile
Until you have made a referral, you are able to edit the profile by clicking on the ‘Child Profiles’ link in the menu. The Child Profiles page lists all the children you have entered into the system. It also indicates the referral status of each child. Until a referral is created, the child will not be entered into the newspaper or website.
Click the ‘Edit Profile’ link in the child’s summary box to edit the child’s details.
Update the fields as necessary and click ‘Submit Child’.
Making a referral - single child
Note: Until you have made a referral, the children in the system will not be entered into the Be My Parent newspaper or website.
To make a referral, go to the Child Profile page and scroll to the child you want to refer. Preview the child by clicking on the ‘read more’ link. If you want to edit the details, click the Back button to return to the Child Profiles page. Click on the ‘Edit Profile’ link for the child.
Repeat the editing process.
Return to Child Profiles page.
Click the ‘Make Referral’ link for the child. Complete the ‘Make Referral’ form and click ‘Submit’. Your child profile will now be sent to the Be My Parent team for editing.
Creating a sibling group profile
In order to create a sibling group profile, you will first need to create individual child profiles for each child in the group (see above). Once there is a profile for each child, click on the ‘Create a Sibling Group’ link in the left menu. Select the siblings from the list of children by checking the relevant boxes.
Complete the remaining fields in the form and click ‘Submit Sibling Group’. You will now be prompted to add photographs. Follow the instructions as appropriate.
If you are going to be away from your computer during the process, click ‘Submit Sibling Group’ at the bottom of the page, log out of your account and return later to complete the process. To resume the process, follow the procedure for editing a sibling group profile (see below).
Editing a sibling group profile
Until you have made a referral, you are able to edit the profile by clicking on the ‘Sibling Groups’ link in the menu. The Sibling Groups page lists all the siblings you have entered into the system. It also indicated the referral status of each group. Until a referral is created, the group will not be entered into the newspaper or website.
Click the ‘Edit Sibling Group’ link in the siblings group’s summary box to edit their details. Update the fields as necessary and click ‘Submit Sibling Group’.
Making a referral - sibling group
Note: Until you have made a referral, the siblings in the system will not be entered into the Be My Parent newspaper or website.
To make a referral, go to the Siblings Groups page and scroll to the group you want to refer. Preview the sibling group by clicking on the group’s name link. If you want to edit the details, click the Back button to return to the Sibling Groups page.
Click on the ‘Edit Sibling Profile’ link for the sibling group. Repeat the editing process. Return to Sibling Groups page.
Click the ‘Make Referral’ link for the sibling group. Complete the ‘Make Referral’ form and click ‘Submit’.
Your sibling group profile will now be sent to the Be My Parent team for editing.
Repeating a feature
- Repeats booked at the same time: Discounts are available if you book a child or sibling group for two or three consecutive months at the same time. If you would like to make brief amendments to the profile or send a new photograph at any time during that period, please contact us via email or telephone Contact us.
- Repeats booked at a later date: Once you have featured a child, their details will remain in the system so all you need to do to feature a child again in Be My Parent online is to log in, go into that child’s profile and make a new referral. If you would like to make changes to the text of the profile, please contact us via email or telephone Contact us.
Four-month review
As part of Be My Parent’s service to our users and to promote good social work practice, we undertake to review the child’s profile and photograph at least every four months, and will discuss with you any suggestions that could help the child to be linked with a family.
Agreement to publicity
It is essential that at least one person or body with parental responsibility should consent to publicity. Good practice requires that birth parent/s, where possible, are consulted and kept informed.
Be My Parent only accepts referrals for children where there is consent to publicity either from the local authority, or the birth parents. Read more about consent to publicity
Note: If you confirm that you have the relevant consents and agreements (by ticking the relevant boxes when creating a child profiles), you will be accepting responsibility for the referral, and any consequence of the referral.
Temporary change in DfES advice about featuring children needing adoptive placements: The DfES has ‘relaxed’ its advice regarding ‘advertising’ children for adoption. This follows agencies expressing their concern to BAAF about delays for children. BAAF asked the DfES to consider this temporary variation in their advice and this has been agreed. Read more
Involving children
If the children you are featuring in Be My Parent are of sufficient age and understanding, they should sign the Referral Form or a freestanding sheet, which you can scan and send to us as a JPEG. As part of the referral form, you will be asked about the degree of involvement which the child or children had with their profiles being put together, on a scale of 0 to 5.
Child's agreement to be featured in BMP (102 KB)
Use of photographs
Photographs are an important way for prospective families to connect with the children featured. To be effective, photographs should be of high quality, so we may ask you for a replacement if we feel that the one sent might not reproduce well. Guide to using photographs
Some older children may be extremely reluctant to have their photograph published in Be My Parent. For other children there may be legal considerations. In these exceptional circumstances, you could replace the child’s photograph with either a drawing, an image of something significant to the child, a poem or quotes (from the child, carer, teacher, etc.). We can also help you find an image and suggest some clipart to replace the photograph. Please discuss this with us. The same fee will apply.
Publication
Preparing for publication
All profiles are checked and edited by experienced staff at Be My Parent, in consultation with a child placement consultant with social work background, to give children the best opportunity to find a family. You may be contacted by telephone to discuss any query we may have regarding the profile.
The child referral approval process
Once the Be My Parent team has completed the editing process, the draft profile will be faxed to you. If you have referred to both the newspaper and online service, we may send you two different profiles. We may also have some queries if we were not able to reach you on the phone. If you would like to respond to these queries or do not agree with the Be My Parent changes, please call the editorial team on 020 7421 2664/63/58 to discuss further.
Please note that if we do not hear back from you within:
- 10 working days (for online profiles)
- 3 working days (for newspaper profiles)
after you have received our email, we will assume that you are happy with the profile as it is and publish it on the website or in the paper.
Once you have approved the profile and there are no outstanding queries, it can be published on the website straightaway, or go to the printers for that month’s issue of the paper.
For web referrals, the profile could be live on the website within as little as a working week from receipt of the complete referral, provided there are no issues with the referral (for instance regarding consent).
For web and newspaper referrals we aim to have the web referral live approximately three weeks before the newspaper is published.
Making payment
There is no need to send payment with your referral, please pay when you receive our invoice, which will be sent to you after publication of the profile.
Dealing with enquries
Receiving enquiries from families
Online profiles
Once the profile has been published on the website, families will be able to view it and make enquiries directly to you.
When a website subscriber makes an enquiry about a child, an email is sent confirming the enquiry, including the child’s name. For details about the enquirer, log into the Be My Parent system with your email and password. Click on the ‘Child Profiles’ link or ‘Sibling Groups’ link to display a list of your children. Scroll down to the child/sibling group receiving the enquiry and click on ‘View Enquiries’.
The ‘Enquiries’ screen will list all enquiries made for the child, detailing the name and contact details of the enquirer, plus additional information to assist with your assessment of the family.
When prospective adopters or foster carers contact you, please respond to them within seven working days, even it is with a short standard email acknowledging receipt of their enquiry.
Profiles in the newspaper
After the profile has been published, we take telephone enquiries from prospective families and child placement agencies, and note their full details.
We then give out the name of the child’s social worker, agency, telephone number and, if you agree, your email address.
When prospective families contact you:
- Be aware that you will start receiving enquiries just before the dates that families will receive the paper.
- Make sure that you are available to take calls or emails, or have made suitable arrangements. If you are going to be unavailable, please let us have, in good time, an alternative contact to give out to enquirers.
- Please inform us of any changes in your details.
- Inform enquirers as soon as possible – by phone, letter or email – why they have not been considered suitable for a particular child.
- Please try to respond to enquirers within seven working days.
Support with managing enquiries
To help you manage enquiries for children you have featured, especially when you are receiving a large number or circumstances change, you can choose not to receive enquiries directly from families. You can do this by logging into your online account, going back to the Child Profiles or Sibling Groups page and clicking ‘Withdraw Profile’, giving the reason as ‘Temporary Withdrawal’, or by contacting Be My Parent.
To reinstate a profile, call Be My Parent on 020 7421 2666/5/4 or email us.
If circumstances change (such as a child being placed, or permanence plans being altered), it is important to withdraw the child from Be My Parent online to prevent further enquiries. Go to the Child Profile page or Sibling Groups page and click on the ‘Withdraw Profile’ link. When withdrawing a child, you are prompted to select a reason for withdrawal. Choose the applicable option.
You may want to temporarily withdraw a child. The process is the same, but choose ‘Temporary Withdrawal’ from the options.
To reinstate a profile, call Be My Parent on 020 7421 2666 or email us.
Be My Parent follow-up services
- We will send you monthly information about enquiries received for each child featured.
- We also provide general, non-identifying statistical information about children and families. To this end, we will contact you to discuss the children’s placement progress, within three months of publication.
After placement
Please inform us within 28 days if children have been linked with a family, you can do so by logging into your online account and closing this profile, indicating the reason why you are closing the profile.
Remember that a placement fee is due for children placed through our services.
Payment terms and conditions
Payment conditions
For all referral and placement fees:
- rates do not include VAT, which will be added
- do not send a cheque or BACS remittance until you are sent an invoice, after your first booking,
- if applicable, send a purchase or official order form at the same time as the Referral Form, and remember to include the child’s first name on the form; if this is not done, regrettably, we will have to issue invoices without the order number.
Referral fees
Please note that referral fees apply to one child or to a sibling group featured together in the same profile (whatever the number of children), and that children can be booked for one, two or three consecutive months at the same time. Guide to costs and deadlines
Placement fees
A placement fee is due for children placed through Be My Parent. By referring children online, the referring agency agrees to inform Be My Parent staff – within 28 working days – that a featured child has been linked at panel (useful for statistical purposes). This fee is applied only in cases where a placement results. This enables us to maintain referral fees at more affordable levels. Guide to costs and deadlines
Discounts
- Reduced fees when referring to both the newspaper and website: If you are already referring a child or children to the Be My Parent newspaper, it only costs an additional £85 for the profile to also appear on the website.
Cancellations
Please inform us if you wish to cancel a referral which is published in Be My Parent online. It’s best to inform us as soon as possible, as less work will have been done to process the referral. Guide to cancellation fees
Last updated: 04 March 08
