Aspire Fostering Ltd

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Aspire Fostering Ltd 1 Aspire Fostering Ltd Aspire Fostering Ltd Bradbury House, Merton Lane North, Canterbury CT4 7DZ Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

Aspire Fostering is a small, privately owned fostering agency based in Canterbury, Kent. This is the first inspection of the fostering agency since it was registered in August 2023.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The agency aims to provide a range of placements, including short-term, long-term, emergency and placements for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children under the national transfer scheme.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

At the time of this inspection, there were seven children placed across 4 fostering households.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The manager has been registered since the agency was registered.

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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 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: Aspire Fostering Ltd 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from fun and positive experiences with their carers and feel that they are included in family life. Children contribute to cooking family meals, participate in popcorn and movie nights and have tried activities such as jet skiing. One child spoke about how beneficial their new daily routine was, and the comfort they felt from the consistency and structure in their day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers work willingly and thoughtfully with children's loved ones and professional networks. One professional described how the carers had worked well with a birth parent, so that they felt able to adopt the carers approach to boundaries when the child returned to their parent’s care. Whilse this was not an enduring placement for the child, the time spent with the carers did have a beneficial impact for them when they returned to their family home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into carers homes, they are well prepared about what to expect. They receive an age-appropriate children's guide and are given an individualised welcome gift, which helps them feel valued. When carers have been part of the national transfer scheme supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, translated versions of the guide have been provided and carers have taken steps to support children's linguistic, cultural and religious identity. Children's experience of moving in is warm and welcoming.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The foundations for good quality support to foster carers are in place. For example, foster carers have access to participation groups where experienced carers share ideas with newer foster carers. Both have opportunities to reflect on their practice and support one another. There is also a therapeutic offer being developed to supplement this. One family has benefitted from therapeutic parenting guidance and reflection with the therapist as a complement to the direct work being undertaken with the child. The aim of this is to promote the stability of the child's placement and the overall well-being of the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers birth children are beginning to integrate into the agency’s network and feel that their views and contributions are considered seriously by the agency during assessment and matching. The registered manager is proactively planning future events to strengthen the relationships between fostering families and the agency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

No complaints have been received by the agency from children or professionals during this period. However, children know how to make a complaint and some are confident at giving feedback directly to their carers too. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Aspire Fostering Ltd 3

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

Children report that they feel safe and demonstrate this through their behaviour with their carers. Children describe their carers as kind and thoughtful and say that they feel comfortable speaking to them about their worries.

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

There are appropriate policies in place for carers to address safeguarding concerns. Safer care plans and risk assessments address the vulnerabilities of children and provide carers with clear direction to reduce and mitigate risks and vulnerabilities. Household health and safety is also well-explored and offers clear guidance that is mutually agreed with carers.

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

Matching of children with fostering families is detailed and thorough. Where there have been children placed in an emergency situation, the registered manager has liaised with the relevant local authorities to seek missing information. Staff have worked alongside carers to ensure the relevant risks are explored and plans updated to reflect them.

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

Carers report positively about their experiences during assessment and feel that they are well-aligned with the values of the agency. Birth children's experiences are explored and considered during assessment and during panel discussions. However, assessment quality is variable and this means there are sometimes elements of assessment that do not clearly reflect the vulnerabilities of carers explicitly. In addition to this, the development needs of carers are not always clearly reflected in their personal development plans or traceable throughout their supervision, which is otherwise of a good and robust quality. This may result in missed opportunities to reflect and monitor carers’ development needs.

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

There have been no permanently recruited staff to the agency since registration, but there are plans to increase capacity as the agency develops. The staff employed on a voluntary and contractual basis have undergone recruitment checks, but there are some shortfalls in the recording of these.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has ambitions and a clear vision for the agency. There is a strong core value base that supports and influences each aspect of the work carried out at this agency. The registered manager has a good knowledge of the children and carers and has developed positive relationships with them. The registered manager prioritises the needs of children and is a keen advocate for carers, which helps them feel supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Foster carers feel that they are well-supported by the registered manager and staff at this agency. Carers describe a personalised experience and say that they feel well-aligned in terms of their value base. They describe an approachable and knowledgeable registered manager who they have a transparent working relationship with. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Aspire Fostering Ltd 4 The registered manager offers support with challenge to other agencies on behalf of carers and children when necessary. This has already had a direct impact on ensuring stability for one child, who’s carers are transferring from another agency. The registered manager also seeks creative solutions to meet the needs of children and works well with carers and other professionals to achieve this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The fostering panel consists of an appropriately qualified and experienced membership, including an independent panel chair. Panel is diverse and is thorough in its oversight. Panel members offer a good level of scrutiny and evaluation to inform the agency’s future work with carers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There has been one significant incident that occurred in the period since registration. The carers and agency took appropriate steps to communicate with each other about this incident and liaise with the relevant agencies, including the police, to ensure that the child was safe. The nature and outcome of the incident was significant enough in nature to be notified to the regulator, however this was not completed. The registered manager has reflected on this incident and is taking steps to ensure that all notifiable events are reported in a timely way. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Aspire Fostering Ltd 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that there is a system in place to notify, within 24 hours, persons and appropriate authorities of the occurrence of significant events in accordance with regulation 36. The system includes what to do where a notifiable event arises at the weekend. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 29.1)  The registered person should ensure that the written report on the person's suitability to be approved as a foster carer sets out clearly all the information that the fostering panel and decision maker needs in order to make an objective approval decision. The reports are accurate, up-to-date and include evidence- based information that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third party information. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 13.7)  The registered person should ensure that foster carers' personal development plans set out how they will be supported to undertake ongoing training and

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Recommendations

development that is appropriate to their development needs and experience. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 20.5).  The registered person should ensure that there is a clear record of the recruitment and suitability checks which have been carried out for those working (including as volunteers) for the fostering service, including the date and who carried out the check (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, 19.3)

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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: Aspire Fostering Ltd 6

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Aspire Fostering Ltd

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: Bradbury House, Merton Lane North, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 7DZ

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Independent fostering agency details

Email address: siobhan.hamilton@hotmail.co.uk

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Inspector

Tash Williams, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Aspire Fostering Ltd 7 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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