Resource area
Running a Children's Home
Day-to-day operational management. Covers admissions, discharges, records, medication, routines, notifications, transport, children's money, emergency planning and operational systems.
20 resources
Start here
How to Open a Children's Home in England
Opening a children's home is not simply a case of finding a suitable property and applying to Ofsted.
The 9 Quality Standards for Children's Homes: What They Mean, What Good Practice Looks Like & How Ofsted Uses Them
A practical guide to the nine Quality Standards in Regulations 6 to 14, plus the separate overarching Regulation 5 duty
Missing From Care: Prevention, Response, Return Interviews and Ofsted Expectations
A practical deep dive into missing-from-care practice for children's homes in England, covering what "missing from care"
All guidance
Children's Home Policies and Procedures: The Complete Guide
Which policies does a children's home in England actually need? This complete guide separates policies explicitly required by the Children's Homes Reg…
Staffing a Children's Home: Ratios, Rotas, Qualifications & Workforce Planning
There is no universal Ofsted staff-to-child ratio. Regulation 13 requires sufficient staffing based on children's actual needs.
Regulation 14: The Care Planning Standard: Referrals, Matching, Placement Plans, Reviews, Stability, Transitions and Positive Endings
A practical guide to Regulation 14 for children's homes in England, covering care plans and placement plans, the Statement of Purpose as the first adm…
Regulation 40: Worked Scenarios, Decision Tools and Audit
The practical companion to the definitive Regulation 40 guide. Twenty worked scenarios, the Hub Seriousness Test, decision recording, notification tem…
Medication Management and Regulation 23 in Children's Homes
A practical deep dive into medication management in children's homes in England, covering Regulation 23, Regulation 23 vs Regulation 10, medication po…
Complaints, Advocacy and Regulation 39 in Children's Homes
A practical deep dive into complaints and advocacy in children's homes in England, covering Regulation 39, what counts as a complaint, complaints vs e…
Children's Records and Regulation 36: Case Records, Daily Notes, Chronologies and Retention
Regulation 36 requires children's homes to maintain case records for every child, containing the information and documents in Schedule 3, kept up to d…
Fire Safety, Emergency Planning & Regulation 25 in Children's Homes: Fire Risk Assessments, Evacuation, Drills, Fire Doors, Alarms, Individual Needs & Ofsted Expectations
A practical guide to fire safety and emergency planning in children's homes in England, covering Regulation 25, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Or…
Monitoring, Surveillance, CCTV & Regulation 24 in Children's Homes: CCTV, Door Alarms, Audio Monitoring, Location Tracking, Privacy, Consent, Data Protection & Ofsted Expectations
A practical guide to Regulation 24 monitoring and surveillance in children's homes in England, covering the four statutory tests, CCTV, door alarms, a…
Contact, Communication, Family & Friends in Children's Homes: Regulation 22, Family Contact, Private Calls, Phones, Social Media, Restrictions, Advocacy & Ofsted Expectations
A practical guide to Regulation 22 contact and communication in children's homes in England, covering family and friend contact, private phone calls,…
Regulation 41: Admissions and Discharges Notifications to the Local Authority
The complete guide to Regulation 41 of the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015. Covers admission and discharge notifications to the host local…
Staff Induction, Supervision, Training and Development in Children's Homes
How to meet the workforce development requirements in the Children's Homes Regulations: induction, supervision, training, qualifications and appraisal…
Preparing for Ofsted Inspection: Understanding the SCCIF for Children's Homes
How Ofsted inspects children's homes under the Social Care Common Inspection Framework: the three judgement areas, how evidence is gathered and how to…
Safeguarding Beyond Regulation 12: Exploitation, Self-Harm, Online Safety and Peer Harm
The specific safeguarding risks that children in residential care face: exploitation, self-harm, online harm and peer-on-peer harm, and how staff shou…
Staff Wellbeing, Retention and Culture in Children's Homes
How workforce stability, wellbeing and team culture affect what children experience in residential care, and how leaders can create a culture where st…
Commissioning, Contracts and Local Authority Relationships for Children's Homes
How children's home providers should manage the relationship with placing authorities, from placement enquiries and information gathering through to c…
The Deputy Manager Role in a Children's Home: Delegated Authority, Shift Leadership and Developing Towards Management
The Deputy Manager role in a children's home: delegated authority, shift leadership, staff supervision, acting in the RM's absence, professional bound…