Parent and Child Fostering ServiceOfsted inspection, 21 Aug 2026

Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 1 Parent and Child Fostering Service Parent and Child Fostering Service Limited Maker Works Unit, Studio 1, 261 Ealing Road, Wembley HA0 1ET Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The focus of this independent fostering agency is to provide parent and child placements. The agency also offers short- and long-term fostering placements for children.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

The agency registered with Ofsted in May 2012. A new manager started on 2 August 2026 and they have submitted their application to Ofsted.

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Information about this independent fostering agency

At the time of this inspection, the agency had 5 approved fostering households, with 4 children placed with foster carers, 2 parent and child placements and one child staying put.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 2

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Summary of findings

Children benefit from safe, nurturing and stable foster homes where they develop trusted relationships, feel loved and make positive progress. Foster carers provide effective support that helps children overcome the impact of trauma, achieve in education, maintain good health and develop their interests and aspirations. Children are well protected through clear risk management, effective safeguarding practices and strong partnership working. The agency’s specialist parent and child provision helps parents develop their parenting skills while promoting children’s welfare. Leaders and managers provide a supportive and reflective culture, although some shortfalls were identified in the quality of fostering assessments, panel documentation and management oversight.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from trusted relationships with their foster families and safe, nurturing homes. They develop a strong sense of belonging and feel loved. The care and support they receive help them to overcome previous experiences of neglect and trauma.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The agency also specialises in parent and child placements. All carers receive specialist training to help them support parents and children effectively. Parents report feeling well supported by their carers and gaining confidence in their parenting skills. One parent said, ‘[Name of carer] treats me like one of the family. When I am stressed, she knows how to help. My child is settled and happy.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Foster carers value the agency’s ‘family feel’ and report feeling well supported by managers and supervising social workers. Children experience high levels of stability and develop positive attachments with their foster carers. Children remain with their foster carers through long-term fostering arrangements and, where appropriate, through ‘staying put’ arrangements beyond their eighteenth birthday.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A key strength of the agency is its careful consideration of the suitability of foster carers to meet children’s needs. Where children are placed with carers from a different cultural background, carers receive appropriate training to help them understand, promote and celebrate children’s culture, heritage and identity. The agency ensures that all relevant information about children is obtained before children and parents move into carers’ homes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Planning meetings are held with local authority social workers to ensure that transitions are smooth and child-centred. This approach is also applied to emergency placements. As a result, several emergency placements have developed into long- term arrangements, providing children with stability and continuity of care. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 3 Foster carers and social workers help children maintain relationships with people who are important to them. Children receive support to move on in a planned and positive way when placements end. Foster carers often keep in touch with children who have moved on and speak with pride about the progress children have made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers support children’s educational attainment and promote their emotional, social and psychological wellbeing. When children are at risk of exclusion or have unmet special educational needs, carers and agency staff advocate for additional support and work effectively with virtual schools to help ensure this is secured without unnecessary delay. The agency provides carers with access to therapeutic support, which helps them to understand children’s experiences and respond to their needs in a trauma-informed way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Carers take an active role in identifying and supporting children’s interests and talents. Children enjoy a wide range of activities and experiences, including trips, which helps to build their confidence, social skills and aspirations. One child is learning to play the guitar and another plays football. Children spend time with friends and are encouraged to develop aspirations for their future. One child is attending university and has received an award for academic excellence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well understood and supported. Children attend routine health appointments and receive the healthcare they need. Foster carers complete tailored health training to help them provide safe, high-quality care. This enables carers to identify when children require more specialist support and to take appropriate action to secure this.

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

Foster carers set clear and consistent boundaries that promote positive behaviour. They use effective strategies to support children who may display complex behaviours, and encourage positive responses. Carers receive training in positive behaviour management and safeguarding, which helps them to respond appropriately when children become distressed.

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

In parent and child placements, carers are skilled at building positive relationships with parents and supporting them to develop their parenting skills. This contributes to placement stability and helps to reduce risks while parenting assessments are being completed. Placement planning meetings support effective safety planning and identify and address risks throughout the duration of the placement.

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

There have been no significant safeguarding incidents since the last inspection. Leaders and managers regularly monitor incidents to ensure appropriate oversight and follow-up action, where necessary. The agency responds promptly to concerns raised about foster carers. Effective monitoring and review processes help to ensure that children remain safe and that carers receive appropriate support and guidance. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 4 All children’s records include detailed risk assessments and safe care plans that clearly identify their specific safety needs. These documents outline known risks and the actions required to reduce them. They are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect children’s changing needs. Carers report that these plans help them to respond effectively to risks and provide consistent care. The agency works effectively

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

with partner agencies to ensure that robust multi-agency safety plans are in place when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last full inspection, a new manager was appointed on 2 August. The manager has extensive knowledge of the agency, having previously managed the service and held other roles within the organisation. This has helped to provide continuity and stability for children, foster carers and staff during a period of management change.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have been highly successful in nurturing a culture and ethos where staff and foster carers have a strong sense of belonging and of being part of a family. They are approachable and accessible, and foster carers consistently describe the support they receive as highly valued, particularly from their supervising social workers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have addressed the requirements and recommendations raised at the last inspection. They have clear processes in place to review the impact of the service on the quality of care provided to children. Leaders and managers are open to learning and have embedded reflective discussions into practice. Regular monitoring of incidents, safeguarding concerns, placement stability and children’s progress ensures leaders and managers maintain effective oversight of the service and ensure it remains focused on achieving positive outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Foster carers receive excellent support and supervision from their supervising social workers and managers. They have access to a wide range of training opportunities, including training tailored to meet the specific needs of children, such as health needs and behaviour. Foster carers also benefit from individual consultations with a therapist that enhance their understanding of children’s experiences and strengthen their ability to meet children’s needs using a trauma-informed approach.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The agency’s central list of panel members includes individuals with a wide range of expertise and experience, including in education, care experience and social work. The recent addition of an independent foster carer further strengthens the knowledge, experience and perspective available to the panel when considering fostering approvals and reviews.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have identified the need to recruit additional foster carers to increase the number of available placements. The number of approved foster carers has decreased since the last inspection. A development plan is in place that identifies Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 5 the actions the agency will take to recruit more carers, including targeted campaigns within diverse communities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The fostering panel considers the approval of prospective foster carers and the reviews of approved foster carers effectively. The agency decision-maker reported that the quality of reports presented to panel has improved. However, some reports did not robustly address all relevant issues. This was also identified in a small number of fostering assessments reviewed during the inspection. In addition, the quality of panel minutes was variable, with some records lacking sufficient detail to fully capture the panel’s discussion and scrutiny. Leaders and managers had not identified these shortfalls through their monitoring processes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The agency recently approved foster carers who had previously been approved by the agency but had not cared for any children before choosing to deregister. The fostering assessment did not sufficiently explore the reasons for this or robustly consider any potential challenges that may affect the carers’ ability to provide care for children. This limits the quality of information available to inform the agency’s decision-making. Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the reviews of each carer’s approval include an appraisal of performance against clear and consistent standards set by the agency, and consideration of training and development needs, which are documented in the review report. The foster carer’s personal development plan should be reviewed and the effectiveness of training and development received evaluated. In particular, the foster carer’s view of their performance against standards should also be included. Reviews should take into account the views of each child currently placed with the foster carer. (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, 20.6)  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 need in order to make an objective approval decision. The reports should be accurate, up to date and include

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Recommendations

evidence-based information that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third- party information. The reports should be prepared, signed and dated by the social worker who assessed the prospective foster carer and countersigned and dated by the fostering team manager or a team manager of another of the provider’s fostering teams. (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, 13.7)  The registered person should ensure that the panel/s provide quality assurance feedback to the fostering service provider on the quality of reports being presented to panel. (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, 14.2)  The registered person should ensure that the panel chair makes certain that written minutes of panel meetings are accurate, clearly cover the key issues and views expressed by panel members and record the reasons for its recommendation. (‘Fostering services: national minimum standards’, 14.7)

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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: Parent and Child Fostering Service 7

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider: Parent and Child Fostering Service Limited

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Independent fostering agency details

Registered provider address: Continental House, 497 Sunleigh Road, Wembley, Middlesex HA0 4LY

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Independent fostering agency details

Responsible individual: Abimbola Ladipo-Aridegbe

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Inspector

Angela Reid, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for independent fostering agency: Parent and Child Fostering Service 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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