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*What's in this section?* The Our House carers Profiles of the two sets of foster carers who run the Our House project. Functions Details of the many functions and services that the Our House project can provide. Our track record We are proud of Our House's track record, and of the wealth of experience that our carers bring to the task. On this page you can read about this, as well as positive feedback that we have had about Our House Economies and efficiencies Primarily for Local Authorities, this section explain how Our House has proved to be both a practical and an economical fostering solution.

Keeping siblings together We believe that it is often beneficial for siblings to be kept together in foster care placements, and research supports this idea. Rushton et al. (2001), Wedge and Mantle (1991) and others found that sibling placements tended towards beter outcomes. These outcomes included greater stability, fewer emotional and behavioural problems and fewer placements (Thorpe and Swart 1992, Drapeau et al. 2000, Smith 1998 and others).
			What is Our House? Our House is a foster care project that was inspired by Ingrid Chamberlain (see The Our House carers). It has specialised in keeping challenging siblings together and in recognition of the numbers of children and their needs the project has two sets of foster carers who together provide 24 hour care. Our House can take up to seven siblings at any one time. However, the approach is not exclusive to sibling groups. Our House's approach to intensive, tailored and flexible foster care is suitable for many troubled, and difficult to place, children and young people