SWIIS Foster Care Limited

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 1 SWIIS Foster Care Limited SWIIS Foster Care Limited Swiis Foster Care Ltd, 15 Warwick Road, Old Trafford, Manchester M16 0QQ Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

SWIIS Foster Care Limited is a branch of a privately run national fostering agency.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The agency approves and supports a range of foster carers who provide emergency, short-term, long-term and parent-and-child foster placements.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

At the time of this inspection, the agency had 58 fostering households with 77 children in placements.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2025.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The inspection involved a blended approach of both on-site and off-site activity.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

Children and foster carers were spoken to during the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The independent fostering agency provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the independent fostering agency contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 12 September 2022

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 2

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outstanding

Children are central to the care and support this agency provides. Foster carers referred to the ethos of the agency as ‘children being at the heartbeat’. Foster carers feel exceptionally well supported and valued by agency staff, which impacts positively on the outcomes of children who are thriving in their foster families.

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outstanding

Foster carers feel extremely proud to foster for this agency. Children and foster carers spoke positively about the care and support they receive. One foster carer said, ‘It is the small things that really make a difference, they get it, they get fostering, they get us and more importantly they get the children.’ One child said about the support they receive from a support worker, ‘She helps with my emotions and talking to me about what matters.’

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outstanding

The agency is diverse and there is an exceptional commitment to promoting equality and diversity in a meaningful way. The agency demonstrates a strong commitment to inclusivity by actively promoting the full participation of children whose first language is not English.

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outstanding

Children’s identity needs are fully promoted and understood through direct work and well-planned events and activities, which provide children with the opportunity to meet each other, socialise and develop friendships and create lasting support networks. The agency recruits a range of foster carers who can meet the diverse needs of children who are looked after.

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outstanding

There is an established stability and support team, which is led by a passionate and enthusiastic manager who co-ordinates support quickly to avoid delay for children and foster carers. The agency provides robust, wraparound support to help foster carers understand and manage children’s behaviour in the context of their lived experiences. Trauma-informed practice is securely embedded throughout the agency amongst staff and carers, which helps to create stability and permanence for children.

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outstanding

Support for ‘staying put’ arrangements is robust, ensuring that young people can remain with their foster families beyond the age of 18. This commitment to creating stability and security reflects a meaningful, needs-led approach to care that prioritises long-term outcomes for young adults.

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outstanding

Children’s relationships with family members are well supported and promoted by agency staff and foster carers arranging events and family time in line with children’s plans. This demonstrates that agency staff and foster carers recognise how vital family relationships are for children.

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outstanding

Children’s health needs are extremely well understood and foster carers meet these needs effectively. Foster carers are quick to respond when children need medical Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 3 attention. They support children to attend health appointments and to make healthy choices in line with their age and stage of development. Innovative research projects inform social work practice, which enables carers to have a deeper understanding of the health needs of those children who are seeking sanctuary.

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outstanding

The agency benefits from an experienced and enthusiastic education adviser and carer participation worker, who co-ordinate education support for children. Foster carers actively promote children’s education and there is a collective approach amongst all agency staff to improve the outcomes for children’s education. One child recently enjoyed a trip abroad as part of their college course. This meant the child had the same opportunity as their peers to enjoy new experiences.

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outstanding

Children are regularly seen by social workers and other involved professionals from the agency. This provides children with the opportunity to speak to workers independent from their foster carers. The agency promotes safer caring, and unannounced visits take place twice a year as a minimum.

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outstanding

Feedback from children is sought regularly and creatively. This makes children feel consulted and that their views are heard. Children spoke enthusiastically to the inspector about their positive experiences of being cared for by their foster carers and the agency. Foster carers are exceptionally strong advocates for children, and there is effective challenge from social workers and managers when children do not have appropriate access to the services they require.

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outstanding

Social workers and managers share information effectively with other professionals to deliver coordinated, child-centred responses when children express concerns. The agency acts promptly and sensitively to reassure children that their voices are heard and valued.

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outstanding

Although the frequency of children going missing from home is relatively low, carers are vigilant to these risks and understand how to respond. When children go missing, foster carers react quickly and search the local area, contact the child’s friends and work in partnership with others, which enables them to locate and return children swiftly.

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outstanding

When children struggle with their emotions, the agency delivers expert packages of support, which are assessed and reviewed periodically. This support is provided through a therapeutic lens and enables foster carers to use effective trauma- informed de-escalation techniques to help children co-regulate and feel safe.

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outstanding

Specific needs-led workshops have been developed to increase the knowledge, skills and expertise of foster carers who are providing care to children with additional needs and challenges. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 4 Highly effective post-approval training ensures that foster carers have the relevant skills and knowledge to undertake the fostering role and to meet children’s needs and to consistently improve outcomes for children.

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outstanding

The recruitment, assessment and preparation of foster carers have a strong focus on ensuring that the safety of children is paramount. The agency helps to prepare foster carers for the impact of abuse and neglect on children, so that they have realistic expectations of the care and support they are required to provide to children.

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outstanding

Comprehensive, analytical assessments are undertaken. Quality assurance processes ensure that the agency’s high standards are maintained and that applicants are suitable. Annual review processes are robust and ensure that foster carer reviews are completed within required timescales. Highly effective safer recruitment practices are embedded at the agency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The agency benefits from having an experienced management team that provides strong leadership and is ambitious and committed to continuously improving outcomes for children, foster carers and staff. Although new to the agency, the manager has made changes that have been well received and valued by the foster carers and agency staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Since his appointment, the manager has gone above and beyond to build relationships with children, foster carers and staff, and he has been integral in delivering positive needs-led outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A small team of qualified supervising social workers undertake the supervision of foster carers. Social workers have manageable caseloads and are in weekly contact with their foster carers. Foster carers also receive fortnightly support visits during their first year of fostering. This ensures that any problems are quickly identified and addressed. This high level of support to foster carers is key to placement stability.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular, reflective practice-related supervision, which equips them with the knowledge and skills needed to excel in their roles. These sessions highlight any gaps in information and ensure that the escalation process is used effectively when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The development of team meetings is evident with the addition of monthly practice sessions led by social workers. The sessions focus on research-informed practice, which staff can then disseminate to foster carers to increase their knowledge and skill set.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Social workers feel well supported by the management team, which is available to provide advice, guidance and support. Social workers describe managers operating an ‘open door policy’ and being available and supportive to staff during working hours, as well as when they may require out-of-hours support and advice. This Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 5 ensures that foster carers receive consistent, timely advice and support to help them support the children in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The agency has developed positive and effective working relationships with other professionals for the benefit of children’s continued development. When decisions are made that may not be in the child’s best interests, these are respectfully but confidently challenged and escalated when necessary.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Management oversight of staff practice is achieved through robust monitoring systems that enable managers to have full oversight of all aspects of the service. Quality assurance is highly effective and provides an additional layer of scrutiny, which helps to continuously improve the quality of practice across all aspects of social work practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The fostering panel provides an effective quality assurance function and is led by a chair whose experience and leadership have been pivotal in ensuring rigorous, consistent and fair processes. This ensures that children remain central to all decisions. Annual reviews of foster carers are rigorously conducted by experienced independent reviewing officers, promoting high standards and driving continuous improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The two requirements and one recommendation raised at the previous inspection have been met. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all staff’s work and fostering activity is consistent with the 2011 Regulations and National Minimum Standards and with the service’s policies and procedures. (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, (25.3)

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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: SWIIS Foster Care Limited 7

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: SWIIS Foster Care Limited

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: SWIIS Foster Care Ltd, 15 Warwick Road, Manchester M16 0QQ

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Inspectors

Michelle Greenhalgh, Social Care Inspector Caroline Bertram, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: SWIIS Foster Care 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 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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