Elite Fostering Limited

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 1 Elite Fostering Limited Elite Fostering Limited International House, 963 Wolverhampton Road, Oldbury, West Midlands B69 4RJ Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

Ofsted registered Elite Fostering Limited in December 2018. The registered manager is also a director of this agency. The agency undertakes recruitment, assessment, approval and support of foster carers. The agency currently has 33 fostering families and 60 children placed.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The independent fostering agency provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff provide a high level of support to foster carers. Supervising social workers have a manageable caseload which means that foster carers receive the support they need to look after the children in their care. Foster carers who have transferred to this agency are pleased to have done so.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are settled and happy living with their foster carers. Foster carers know the children well and children are making progress. Since the agency became operational, only eight children have moved out of their foster homes in an unplanned way. When this does happen, the agency reflects on its practice and identifies any lessons to be learned.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency monitors children’s progress and provides additional support to children and foster carers when needed. Children’s views are gathered on a regular basis. Children speak positively about living with their carers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers and agency staff work collaboratively with schools to ensure that each child’s educational needs are properly assessed and met. The agency’s and foster carers’ advocation for children’s education has meant that all children are in education and have good attendance. This is good progress for some children who previously struggled to attend school.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers are effective in supporting and advocating for children seeing their families. Inspectors heard of one foster carer who had improved a child’s relationships with his sibling because of the work he had completed with the child in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Specialist support is available when the children have emerging needs, for example referrals are made to child and adolescent mental health services. Foster carers ensure that all children’s health appointments are maintained.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and foster carers are overall well matched. Many foster carers have transferred to this agency with children already in their care. The agency’s placements officer does consider the foster carers’ skills and abilities and will not place children with foster carers who cannot meet a child’s needs. However, the decision-making is not always documented as well as it could be in the matching document.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Current and prospective foster carers are positive about the agency and describe the agency as a large family. Foster carers’ feedback to inspectors was overwhelmingly positive. This was particularly about the ongoing support provided by the agency during the COVID-19 pandemic. This included online support groups. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 3

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Safeguarding incidents are minimal. If concerns do arise, the agency responds to them appropriately. The agency is responsive to foster carers’ and children’s needs when incidents do take place. Foster carers have access to out-of-hours support.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Foster carers respond quickly when children go missing from their care. Children can talk to their social workers and foster carers when they return home. Missing from home incidents are minimal because appropriate support and strategies are implemented.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

There has been one incident of a child being restrained by a foster carer. The registered manager did not review and record the incident of restraint or document the child’s views. However, the agency could verbally explain what happened and what they did at the time. The lack of recording undermined the good work that took place.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Safer care plans and risk assessments reviewed by inspectors varied in quality. Some were child focused and contained clear strategies for the foster carers to follow. Others missed information about recent events. This is a missed opportunity to develop clear strategies for the foster carers to follow. Because children are settled, and foster carers know the children well, the impact of this is currently low.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The panel continued to meet online during the pandemic and remained quorate throughout. The central list has varying members with different experiences. The panel minutes capture the discussions that take place and the rationale for recommendation. Reports presented to panel are generally of good quality and the agency’s decision-making is clear. This means that good-quality and safe foster carers are being employed.

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good

The registered manager is well respected and valued by foster carers and staff at the agency. As a result of this, a large proportion of foster carers within the agency have transferred from other agencies to work with him. This agency has a core set of foster carers who are skilled and experienced and provide stability to children.

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good

The agency has been without an active responsible individual for over 12 months. However, a new responsible individual has been appointed and is due to start imminently. In the interim period, an experienced practitioner has been completing regular supervision sessions. She is also the agency’s decision-maker.

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good

Foster carers have confidence in the registered manager and the support he provides. He has worked tirelessly to ensure that foster carers feel supported to look after the children in their care. This has been vital during the pandemic. Foster carers and staff cannot speak highly enough of the registered manager and his commitment to them and the children. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 4 The registered manager has developed the agency and appointed a new staff team following many staff leaving during the 12 months prior to the pandemic. The registered manager’s ability to make everyone feel valued and part of the team during the pandemic was a big achievement.

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good

The registered manager has monitoring systems in place that help him review and monitor the service. He completes monthly audits and quarterly quality-of-care reviews. However, the completed quality-of-care reviews are not sent to Ofsted, the last being received in January 2020. Furthermore, the updated statement of purpose has not been sent to Ofsted.

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good

The agency does not always rigorously challenge placing authorities that have not provided required documents to foster carers in a timely manner, such as the delegated authority, children’s placement plans and care plans. On one occasion, the lack of information provided by the local authority left the foster carers ill prepared to care for a child. The agency did everything it could to maintain the placement, but it was not successful. Had the agency received the required information, it is possible it would not have matched that child with those foster carers. The agency does ensure that a placement meeting is held soon after children move in with foster carers.

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good

Foster carers’ training is monitored by a training coordinator and reviewed annually at the foster carers’ review. Foster carers are proactive in attending training, and attendance has increased further since online training was introduced during the pandemic. However, foster carers do not have personal development plans that identify their learning needs, what training they need to attend and when by. This has resulted in a small number of foster carers not having some key training such as first aid, safer care, and allegation training. Despite some gaps in training, foster carers report that the training that is delivered is of excellent quality.

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good

The agency has received one complaint. The registered manager dealt with this formally and in a timely way. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 5

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

keep under review and, where appropriate, revise the statement of purpose and children’s guide,

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Requirement Due date

notify the Chief Inspector of any such revision within 28 days. (Regulation 4 (a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to updating and sending the statement of purpose to Ofsted. 12 November 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person in respect of an independent fostering agency must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

the welfare of children placed or to be placed with foster parents is safeguarded and promoted at all times. (Regulation 11 (a))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that matching documents, risk assessments and safer care plans are up to date and contain all relevant information. 12 November 2021

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Requirement Due date

The fostering service provider must prepare and implement a written policy on acceptable measures of control, restraint and discipline of children placed with foster parents. (Regulation 13 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to reviewing and physical interventions that take place. 12 November 2021

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Requirement Due date

The fostering service provider must provide foster parents with such training, advice, information and support, including support outside office hours, as appears necessary in the interests of children placed with them. (Regulation 17 (1)) 12 November 2021 Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 6 This relates to a foster carer having a training plan that identifies and monitors training that they complete.

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Requirement Due date

The fostering service provider must ensure that, in relation to any child placed or to be placed with a foster parent, the foster parent is given such information, which is kept up to date, as to enable him to provide appropriate care for the child, and in particular that each foster parent is provided with a copy of the most recent version of the child’s care plan provided to the fostering service provider under regulation 6(3)(d) of the Care Planning Regulations. (Regulation 17 (3))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the agency requesting children’s documentation from the placing local authority and escalating this request if this information is not received. 12 November 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain a system for—

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Requirement Due date

monitoring the matters set out in Schedule 6 at appropriate intervals, and

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Requirement Due date

improving the quality of foster care provided by the fostering agency.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide the Chief Inspector with a written report in respect of any review conducted for the purposes of paragraph (1) and, on request, to any local authority. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the agency ensuring that the quality-of-care review report is completed and sent to Ofsted. 12 November 2021

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011 and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 7

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Elite Fostering Limited

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: 1 Gorsey Way, Aldridge, Walsall, West Midlands WS9 0EQ

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Independent fostering agency details

Email address: bjoseph@elitefostering.com

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Inspectors

Lisa O’Donovan, Social Care Inspector Debbie Holder, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Elite Fostering Limited 8 to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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