Diversity Foster Care Ltd

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 1 Diversity Foster Care Ltd Diversity Foster Care Ltd Anerley Business Centre, Anerley Town Hall, Anerley Road, London SE20 8BD Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

This privately owned independent fostering agency is based in Bromley, south east London. The service aims to provide short-term care, bridging placements, long- term care, respite care, emergency care, and parent-and child and brother-and- sister placements.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

At the time of inspection, the fostering service had 16 approved fostering households, with 19 children living with its foster carers.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The independent fostering agency registered with Ofsted in November 2017. The manager was registered at the same time.

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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 outstanding

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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: good

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good

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

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children develop secure and trusted relationships with their foster families and receive good, individualised care that meets their needs. The agency provides a nurturing environment in which children are encouraged to develop confidence, stability and a sense of belonging. Children who spoke to the inspector say that they feel cared for, listened to and respected. One child said of their foster experience, ‘When I met my carers and agency, I wasn’t really sure about them, as I never trusted anyone. But I started talking to them, everyone was kind, I felt listened to and I trusted them, and I can say now that I am proud of being part of a good family.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The strength of the agency lies in the secure base model that is evident within its framework and policies. The agency’s matching process is well considered and robust. One commissioner said, ‘If we are lucky enough to be offered a potential carer, the carers are always of good quality, well matched and have the relevant skills.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The management team ensures that preplacement viability meetings take place between the local authority and potential carers to ensure that all information is shared, giving foster carers opportunity to work collaboratively with local authority social workers. This helps to establish a transparent and positive foundation for effective communication, enabling everyone to work together to achieve the best outcomes for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Matching decisions take good account of children’s religious beliefs, culture, heritage and language. The agency makes important information accessible by providing guides in each child’s first language and audio versions for those who struggle with reading. This approach provides a sense of security and autonomy, which is especially important for children seeking refuge or asylum.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s physical and emotional health needs are met well. Foster carers support children to live healthy lifestyles and to meet their developmental milestones. Foster carers work closely with health professionals to ensure that children attend appointments and receive specialist support when needed. Staff and foster carers understand children’s health needs and manage children’s health and treatment plans safely.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to develop independence skills that are appropriate to their age and understanding. Specialist therapeutic support is commissioned by the agency for foster carers and children to support their emotional health. This enables carers to better understand the child’s experiences, enhancing their ability to provide consistent, nurturing care, which then promotes stability. Foster carers demonstrate warmth, patience and resilience in meeting children’s complex needs. Carers have a Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 3 strong understanding of the agency’s tenets regarding trauma-informed care, and they use this effectively to support children’s wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers ensure that children’s educational needs are met, with many children showing improved engagement with education and making good progress from their starting points. Agency staff and foster carers advocate strongly for children’s attendance, learning and additional support needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s achievements are celebrated at awards evenings held by the agency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s opinions are sought and listened to by the agency. Children offer valued insight and feedback for their carer’s annual reviews; any ideas and suggestions by children are considered and acted upon whenever possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are aware of how to make a complaint. The transparent and collaborative approach of the agency staff and managers means that complaints are rarely made. Complaints that have been made are responded to sensitively and effectively.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with family members, friends and other people who are important to them safely. Foster carers and agency staff work closely with the local authority to ensure that these arrangements are always in the best interests of children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carer assessments are of a good standard; they are comprehensive and analytical in determining whether applicants are suitable to be approved as foster carers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency’s foster carer’s annual review process is robust. Foster carers say that their needs are considered sensitively; they are reviewed by the assessor and the fostering panel, where questions posed prompt reflective discussion and encourage learning. This approach means that foster carers remain motivated and well equipped to deliver consistently good care to children. Personal development plans are in place and identify training and development needs for foster carers. Foster carers say that the agency training offer is excellent and that the offer can be individualised for them and for the needs of the children in their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers describe receiving excellent support from their supervising social workers and the management team. They say that staff are ‘always available, supportive, knowledgeable and responsive’. Support for foster carers is timely and effective. Supervising social workers are highly skilled; they are accessible and provide both professional guidance and emotional support, assisting carers to manage challenges confidently.

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

Children say that they feel safe in their foster homes and that they can talk with their foster carers when they are worried. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 4 Foster carers and agency staff identify, understand and manage risk well. Children are supported to understand risks in a developmentally appropriate way, including with regard to online safety and negotiating peer relationships. Placement plans and risk assessments are reviewed and updated regularly. Individualised safer care plans for foster carers are in place and are regularly reviewed.

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

The agency’s management team has created a safeguarding strategic plan that it regularly reviews and updates, ensuring that all are aware of any recent concerns, patterns or trends in behaviour.

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

Strategies to minimise risks are appropriate and individualised to each child’s presenting needs. This helps to ensure that children are kept safe. Supervising social workers meet separately with the children and communicate with the child’s allocated social worker if there are any concerns.

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

Foster carers receive and attend relevant safeguarding and child protection training in line with the agency’s required timescales. If new risks emerge, foster carers are quick to attend specific training and can access specialist therapeutic support to help them to further understand and support the child. This helps them to feel confident in understanding and minimising risk for children. Supervising social workers support the carer, the allocated social worker, the therapist and the child to implement agreed behaviour strategies. This close, coordinated approach helps to strengthen safeguarding for the child.

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

The agency collaborates closely with partner agencies to monitor risk. Foster carers and supervising social workers share pertinent information with external partners promptly. A child’s social worker said that the safeguarding response in relation to an incident was ‘amazing’ and ‘responsive’, commenting that the agency handled the situation very well.

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

Children rarely go missing from their foster homes. When children have gone missing from home, foster carers have responded appropriately and acted in accordance with the child’s plans. There is clear management oversight of incidents, with appropriate notifications made and reflective follow-up to support carers and to protect children.

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

Investigations into allegations are prompt and effective. These investigations are managed sensitively and keep children central to all enquiries. The agency follows up on recommendations made. Foster carers who are subject to complaints or standard of care investigations receive appropriate support. Additional training and therapeutic support are provided to foster carers to ensure that they are equipped with the skills and knowledge to keep children safe.

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

Managers ensure that staff, foster carers and panel members recruited to the agency are safely vetted and suitable to work with children. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The leadership and management of the agency are outstanding. Leaders have a clear and ambitious therapeutic vision that is embedded across all aspects of the service. They consistently prioritise children’s emotional wellbeing, focusing on supporting children and providing them with long-term stability. A mental health professional commented that this approach means that the agency delivers ‘consistent and comprehensive, highly-emotionally attuned and responsive care’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers maintain close oversight of children’s placements and demonstrate a detailed understanding of children’s experiences and needs. They know the children and foster families well; this helps managers to respond quickly and sensitively to any emerging needs or risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Relationships between managers, children, staff and foster carers are warm, trusting and respectful, contributing to a culture where all feel valued and listened to. Matching processes are carefully considered, with managers taking into account the child’s emotional history, cultural and identity needs and the capacity of foster carers to provide them with therapeutically informed care. This well-considered approach results in stable placements and positive experiences for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders are highly organised and demonstrate excellent evaluative skills. They use a range of information, including foster carer reviews, children’s feedback and placement outcomes to monitor the quality of care and to inform service development. Learning from practice is used to improve outcomes for children. Managers are open to challenge and show a commitment to continuous improvement. The registered manager completes regular and comprehensive quarterly management reviews of the service. However, monitoring reports have not consistently been sent to Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The fostering panel is well managed and chaired effectively. Panel members bring appropriate experience; they are professionally curious, child focused and offer good scrutiny and challenge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers ensure that panel recommendations are clearly recorded and quality assured. Decision-making by the agency decision-maker is robust, demonstrating careful consideration of panel advice and the best interests of the children. The decision-maker challenges the panel when appropriate and advises on further learning for the foster carers if necessary. This gives additional assurance that foster carers recruited by the agency have the skills and resilience to care for children and keep them safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Supervising social workers are well supported to work reflectively with carers, helping them to understand children’s behaviour through a therapeutic lens. Staff receive effective and regular supervision and appraisals. Staff say that they feel valued and enjoy their job. One staff member described the agency as being a ‘family’. Managers offer and support student placements and promote career Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 6 development and training opportunities for staff. For example, the agency sponsors staff in attaining further formal post-qualifying qualifications, such as in practice education.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers provide foster carers with excellent support and supervision. Foster carers value the training workshops and meet with each other formally and informally to share experiences and gain peer support. The agency regularly arranges activities and opportunities for foster carers to come together and holds annual social events and awards evenings. These initiatives, including ‘the men who foster’ group session, are valued by foster carers and demonstrate the agency’s commitment to ensuring the wellbeing of their foster carers. One carer said, ‘The commitment, in my book, goes far beyond just the semantics of finding good, loving homes for the children. It keeps everyone’s wellbeing at the forefront, in order to avoid placement breakdowns and ensure that help and support are readily available.’ Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 7

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that management of the service ensures that all fostering activity is consistent with the 2011 regulations. This is related to specifically ensuring that monitoring reports are always shared with Ofsted. (‘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: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 8

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Diversity Foster Care Ltd

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: Anerley Business Centre, Anerley Town Hall, Anerley Road, London SE20 8BD

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Independent fostering agency details

Email address: info@diversityfostercare.co.uk

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Inspector

Amanda Burrows, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Diversity Foster Care Ltd 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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