Wellcare Fostering Services

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 1 Wellcare Fostering Services Wellcare Fostering Services Limited company number 04963908 Suite 504, Olympic House, 28-42 Clements Road, Ilford, IG1 1BA Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

This is a privately owned independent fostering agency based in Ilford. The fostering agency was first registered with Ofsted in October 2004. The manager is in the process of being registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The fostering agency provides the following foster care placements to children: emergency placements, respite and bridging, short-term and long-term, parent and child, placements for children seeking asylum and targeted care placements. A number of young people continue to live with their foster families in staying put arrangements.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

At the time of the inspection, the agency had 45 approved foster families, and the fostering agency was providing placements for 45 children. Eight children were spoken with during the inspection.

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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: 14 February 2022

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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: Wellcare Fostering Services 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency provides high-quality care. Outcomes for children are positive. Children develop secure attachments with their foster families and have a very strong sense of belonging. Children receive personalised care that meets their needs. Children say that they feel listened to. They are aware of how to make complaints, but do not do so. Children influence the development of the agency through good levels of consultation. For example, the agency’s engagement officer works with children directly to ensure that their views about their experiences are known.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from the agency identifying foster carers who are well suited to meeting their needs. The agency’s matching process is effective. However, recording tools do not always highlight all placement support needs and how these are to be met. Records of placement planning meetings and care plans are not always available. This means that at times it is not clear what the agreed placement goals are, or who is responsible for achieving these and within what timescales.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency pays good attention to children’s identity needs. For example, staff work hard to ensure that sibling groups are in placement together, children are encouraged to practice their chosen faith if they wish, and foster carers ensure that children who do not have English as their primary language have access to interpreters and translated information.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live healthy lifestyles. Foster carers and staff promote their physical, emotional and social well-being. Children have excellent access to primary healthcare services. They receive advice and support from specialist services when required. This is particularly the case for children with disabilities and those who have complex health needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s learning outcomes are good. Most attend school or college regularly and they make good progress from their starting points. Foster carers are strong advocates for children’s educational success, and they are very much involved in promoting this ethos. Foster carers and staff acknowledge and celebrate children’s academic and more general achievements. This further motivates children to do well. Children enjoy a good range of leisure activities, some which are organised by staff of the agency. For example, children and their foster families recently took part in a gala celebration of the agency’s 20 th anniversary of opening.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency prepares older children well for adulthood. They benefit from the input of their foster carers and the agency is due shortly to launch a formal independent skills programme. Several young adults remain living with their foster carers in ‘Staying Put’ arrangements. This allows them to remain living with their foster families and maintain existing relationships as they prepare for adulthood. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 3 Children have contact with their parents, brothers, sisters, and others when it is safe for them to do so. The agency manages arrangements for contact carefully, ensuring that they are in the best interests of children and young people.

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

The agency protects children from neglect, harm, abuse and bullying. Children say that they feel safe and well protected by their foster carers. The staff team and foster carers ensure that children’s safety and well-being are central to the agency’s work.

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

The agency has detailed child protection and safeguarding policies and procedures, which are adhered to. However, not all staff have a good understanding of whistle blowing procedures that are intended to ensure that any observed poor practice is reported. The agency ensures that foster carers are aware of children’s vulnerabilities and of the underlying causes of any challenging behaviours. Foster carers work sensitively with children. They set clear structures and boundaries which helps to promote children’s positive behaviour.

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

Risk assessments are of a poor quality. These do not consistently highlight current, historical or anticipated risks and some are not updated. Risk assessments do not provide staff and foster carers with strategies that help to reduce risks to children.

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

The assessment, preparation and supervision of foster carers have a strong focus on child protection and support the safe care of children. Foster families and individual children’s safe care policies outline how fostering households will keep children safe. Foster carers and staff receive useful training that helps them protect children. These include training on safeguarding, first aid, internet safety, children who go missing from care and providing trauma informed care.

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

Safeguarding incidents, such as when children go missing or are at risk of criminal exploitation, are managed well. Staff and foster carers take effective action that helps to safeguard children. Staff and foster carers work effectively with other pro- fessionals to promote children’s safety. Staff communicate frequently with partners and highlight placements issues as soon as they arise. Staff and managers partici- pate in regular professional network meetings that explore safeguarding concerns and how to best to resolve them. This helps keep children safe from harm.

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

Managers ensure that their communication with safeguarding professionals, such as designated officers and the police, is regular and effective. Staff request, attend and contribute to strategy and professionals meetings to devise safety plans to protect children from abuse and harm. Managers’ investigations into allegations or complaints against foster carers are prompt, comprehensive and make appropriate recommendations that promote the safe care of children.

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

Managers largely ensure that the vetting and recruitment of staff is robust. However, gaps in applicant’s employment histories are not consistently explored as required. This is not in the best interest of children. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 4 Foster carers’ homes are safe and secure. Staff routinely conduct two unannounced visits to each fostering household every year. They conduct checks that ensure that homes are comfortable, well-maintained and that there are no health and safety concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are ambitious and strive for continual improvement. The leadership and management of the agency are generally sound. The manager is an experienced, registered social worker who has completed relevant leadership and management training. The manager is in the process of being registered with Ofsted and receives good support from the agency’s responsible individual and a full-time consultant. The agency has successfully resolved all issues identified for improvement at the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and leaders’ monitoring and reviewing systems are largely effective and this helps to drive improvement. For example, leaders meet on a weekly basis to explore the functioning of the service and to identify any placement issues. On a quarterly basis, managers complete a comprehensive quality of care review to highlight the strengths of the service and areas requiring improvement. These reports include actions plans to support service development and reports are shared with staff, Ofsted and others.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The monitoring of some key records is not consistently effective. This is particularly the case for the review of support plans, risk assessments, and records of placement planning meetings. These are of a poor quality or are not always present on children’s files. Support plans and risk assessments are insufficiently detailed. Some children’s files fail to include the outcome of their looked after children’s reviews. This makes it harder to ensure that all parties are clear about placement goals and how they are to be achieved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers’ communication with other professionals is effective. Stakeholders, both within and external to the agency, identify managers as being visible, approachable and highly skilled. This is also the overwhelming view of foster carers. A foster carer said, ‘I transferred from a larger fostering agency. I wanted to work with one that was small and local. The staff here are always available, even out of hours. The support here is outstanding.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The agency provides foster carers, staff and panel members with excellent training. The training programme is extensive and of a high quality. It equips foster carers with good knowledge and skills and helps them to care for children safely.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Members of the staff team are equally complimentary about the management of the agency and staff say that managers are strong leaders and lead the team well. A member of staff commented, ‘I’m very well supported, I receive monthly supervision. It’s a learning environment; someone is always here to assist.’ Another staff member said, ’Managers are very clear about the expectations of supervising Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 5 social workers. There are opportunities to reflect as an individual and as a team member. It’s an open environment’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff largely receive regular supervision that is meaningful, although one staff member’s file evidenced significant gaps in the recording of their supervision. Staff and panel members’ appraisals are completed every year.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The agency’s fostering panel operates effectively. The panel undertakes an appropriate analysis of the work that is presented at panel meetings. The administration of the fostering panel is effective. However, expertise in health is lacking on the panel. Staff complete foster carer assessments comprehensively. Foster carers’ annual reviews are presented at the fostering panel every year, or more so if required. This promotes the regular review of foster carers’ suitability to continue to care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose is a clear and comprehensive document that outlines well the aims and objectives of the service, its ethos and the services provided. The children’s guides are creative, easy-to-read written summaries. The fostering agency is meeting its stated aims and objectives. Managers and staff work very effectively with other professionals. There is close partnership working with children’s social workers, independent reviewing officers and others. This ensures that children’s identified needs are very well met and that children thrive and have positive experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A local authority team manager said of staff and managers, ‘The service effectively works with us in identifying the needs of our service and to match children with suitable carers, giving consideration of long- and short-term plans. Staff then work with the carers to ensure that the needs of the children in their care are met. Any concerns I have raised has been addressed in a timely way. Overall, there is good communication, good teamwork, good knowledge and experience in the management team.’ Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 6

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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 registered person must maintain a system for—

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Requirement Due date

improving the quality of foster care provided by the fostering agency. (Regulation 35 (1)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that risk assessments, support plans, matching tools, placement planning meetings and the decisions of Looked After Children's reviews are accurately recorded on children's files. 15 March 2025

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1), a person is not fit to work for the purposes of a fostering service unless that person—

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Requirement Due date

has the qualifications, skills and experience necessary for the work they are to perform,

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Requirement Due date

is physically and mentally fit for the work they are to perform, and full and satisfactory information is available in relation to that person in respect of each of the matters specified in Schedule 1. (Regulation 20(3)(a)(b)(c)) 15 March 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered provider must ensure that a written record is kept by the fostering service detailing the time date and length of each supervision held for each member of staff. The record is signed by the supervisor and the member of staff at the end of the supervision. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 24.5)  The registered person must ensure that the number, skills, knowledge and experience of persons on the central list are sufficient to enable the fostering service to constitute panels that are equipped to make competent Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 7 recommendations to the fostering service that the service caters for. This relates to the appointment of a panel member who has expertise in health care. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 14.8)  The registered person must ensure that there is a whistle-blowing policy which is

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Recommendations

made known to all staff, volunteers, foster carers and panel members. ('Fostering services: national minimum standards', 19.6)

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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: Wellcare Fostering Services 8

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Wellcare Fostering Services Limited company number

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: Suite 504 Olympic House, 28-42 Clements Road, Essex, Ilford, IG1 1BA

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Independent fostering agency details

Email address: info@wellcarefostering.co.uk

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Inspector

Sandra Jacobs-Walls, social care inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Wellcare Fostering Services 9 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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Inspector

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