Jay Fostering

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Jay Fostering 1 Jay Fostering Jay Fostering Limited Jay Fostering Ltd, Unit I, Edward House, Grange Business Park, Enderby Road, Whetstone, LEICESTER LE8 6EP Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

Jay Fostering is an independent fostering agency based in Leicestershire. It is a stand-alone company but is part of the National Fostering Group. The agency provides a wide range of fostering placements, including emergency, short-term, long-term, bridging and parent and child placements. At the time of this inspection, there were 134 children placed in 81 fostering households.

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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

Date of last inspection: 1 November 2021

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

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

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care from skilled and experienced foster carers. Foster carers speak warmly about children and have a deep understanding of their needs. Children are embraced into everyday family life, enjoying holidays, activities and days out with their foster carers. Foster carers show a deep commitment to the children in their care. As a result, children benefit from long-term placements and feel part of their fostering family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to do well in education. The agency has a team of education advisors who support children and foster carers. For example, children can receive targeted support to help them achieve in their year eleven exams or when they are unable to attend school. Foster carers and staff have high aspirations for children, encouraging them to aim high. For instance, one child is being supported to access private education and has ambitions to be the Prime Minister.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers are well supported to meet children’s health needs. Where children have complex health issues, specialist training is provided to both the foster carer and supporting supervising social worker. This helps children’s overall health to improve. For one young child with complex diagnoses, they are making considerable progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers and staff receive training in trauma-informed care. This helps foster carers to understand children’s underlying needs and respond in a way that is helpful to the child. The agency’s psychotherapist provides expert advice and support through one-to-one and group consultations and training. This helps to upskill foster carers and staff and strengthens placement stability.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to develop appropriate independence and life skills. The agency promotes a course of silver, bronze and gold independence awards where children complete tasks and earn rewards and recognition. Workshops are also provided for older children to learn about important topics, such as curriculum vitae writing and financial management.

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

The agency has effective systems in place to monitor and manage risk. Managers attend weekly safeguarding meetings where high risk matters are identified and reviewed. Additionally, the wider fostering group provide a safeguarding board whereby senior managers review the agency’s safeguarding themes and trends. This ensures that risks are reviewed and monitored at every level.

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

The managers and staff know children well and have meaningful relationships with them. They are seen regularly by supervising social workers and their views are gathered in ‘voice of the child’ sessions. Children are also seen in response to an Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Jay Fostering 3 incident or when there are important topics to discuss. This provides children with an opportunity to share their worries or concerns regularly and at pertinent times.

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

Children’s risks and vulnerabilities are well understood. Risk management and safety plans are thorough and written in a sensitive way. Support workers spend time with children who are at an increased risk of harm. For example, a child with self- injurious behaviour, has weekly sessions with a support worker to talk about their feelings and worries. Another child is learning how to keep themselves safe through sensitive conversations around drugs and sexual relationships. This targeted work helps to promote children’s resilience and overall wellbeing and helps to reduce the risks children are exposed to.

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

Foster carers are confident in using a trauma-informed approach to managing behaviour. They understand the importance of implementing consistent boundaries with empathy and understanding. Foster carers feel well supported by their supervising social worker and have access to support outside of normal office hours. In addition to this, the agency’s psychotherapist provides specialist support, helping to strengthen foster carers understanding and practice.

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

There have been a small number of incidents of restraint, to keep the child or others safe. Where needed, support has been provided to foster carers to help them manage children’s behaviour and improve their practice. However, not all restraints are appropriately reported and the information recorded lacks sufficient detail. There are also gaps in the manager’s oversight and review of each restraint. This is an area for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The newly registered manager is dedicated and due diligent in her approach to improving practice within the agency. She is genuinely invested in children’s experiences and wants the best for them. The agency provides a range of activities and experiences for foster carers, children and staff, such as Christmas parties, theme parks and gaming competitions. This helps to foster positive relationships and creates a family-like feel within the agency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The agency provides a high level of support and training to staff and foster carers. Training relates to the specific needs of the children placed. Social work staff receive the same training as foster carers, which means that there is consistency in the approaches in the care of children and supervision of foster carers. Foster carers are creatively engaged in the training offered to them. For example, a virtual reality headset is used to create what feels like real life scenarios. This helps foster carers to literally put themselves in children’s shoes, making training experiences more meaningful and impactful. Staff receive specialist training in their areas of interest, such as therapeutic life story work and Dyadic Development Psychotherapy, helping to strengthen and enhance the service provided to foster carers and children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The panel functions well and applies proportionate scrutiny before reaching recommendations. The panel’s objectivity and scrutiny are welcomed by the Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Jay Fostering 4 manager, who is receptive to feedback and learning. Panel members receive appropriate training and are skilled in their remit. There is good diversity, including people from different backgrounds, ethnicities and work experience.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Foster carers are recruited through planned events such as coffee mornings and podcasts, and also through ‘word of mouth’. At the time of the inspection, there were 22 household in assessment. Applicants complete a comprehensive three-day training course prior to being approved. They are also provided with a ‘buddy’, ensuring they are supported through the process by an experienced foster carer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has oversight of all applicants at each stage of the assessment process. This helps her to understand foster carers strengths and vulnerabilities. The quality of assessments is good.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has systems in place to monitor children’s care. The manager carries out regular checks and audits. Any concerns or shortfalls are appropriately ad- dressed. Learning from incidents and reviews are used to improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has not had sufficient oversight of children who are in receipt of disa- bility benefits. Therefore, there are no assurances that these benefits are being spent to promote the best interests of the child. There is also no evidence that chil- dren in receipt of these benefits are meaningfully consulted about how such monies are being spent. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Jay Fostering 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

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.

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Requirement Due date

The fostering service provider must take all reasonable steps to ensure that foster parents are familiar with, and act in accordance with the policies established in accordance with regulations 12(1) and 13(1) and (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: Jay Fostering 6

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Jay Fostering Limited

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered manager: Nicola Markides-Arrowsmith

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Independent fostering agency details

Email address: enquiries@jayfostering.com

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Inspectors

Emma Dacres, social care inspector Kayleigh Spinks, social care inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Jay Fostering 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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