Apply to register an independent fostering agency

Question 1

Who needs to fill in the form

Accepted Answer

The person who needs to fill in the SC1 form depends on the type of provider you are.

Organisations, including limited liability partnerships

To fill out the form, you must be in one of the following roles, or be authorised by someone in one of the following roles:

a director acting for the company
an individual performing the same or similar functions as a director
a partner
a trustee, director or chairperson acting for a charity or statutory body
a chairperson or committee member acting for a committee

Partnerships not registered as limited liability partnerships

To fill out the form, you must be one of the partners acting on behalf of all the partners in the partnership.

Individual providers

If you are an individual provider, you must fill out the form yourself.

If you are a group of individuals (not operating as a partnership or company), one of those individuals must complete the form.

Question 2

Information you will need to provide

Accepted Answer

We will ask for information about the independent fostering agency you want to register with Ofsted, and those who will be associated with your service.

You will be asked for:

your company’s registration details (which must match the details recorded by Companies House)
your unique reference number (URN) if you have applied to register, or been registered with Ofsted previously for any type of service
your previous applications and registration details for children’s social care services
your previous applications and registration details for any early years provision
your previous applications and registration details for adult social services
information about the independent fostering agency you want to register
details of your premises and any offices that you propose to operate from
the range of fees that you will charge
the date you plan to open your independent fostering agency
the Care Quality Commission (CQC) registration number, if you hold a registration with CQC
individuals you want to link to the registration, such as managers
an original Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificate for everyone who needs one
details of a responsible individual who can submit their Apply to be associated with a children’s social service SC2 form as part of the application

The form asks for a lot of information. It can take several hours to complete. Gather everything you need before you start.

You can save your progress and come back to it later if you don’t have all the information.

Previous Ofsted applications and registrations

If you have applied to register any social care or early years provision with Ofsted before, we will need its URN.

Question 3

Unique reference number

Accepted Answer

Your URN will be on correspondence regarding the relevant registration, and will follow a certain format:

For registrations before 2015, the URN starts with SC and has 6 digits, for example SC123456
For registrations from 2015, there are 7 digits, for example 1234567
For early years registration before 2015, the URN starts with EY and has 6 digits, for example EY123456

We also need the URN of:

any holding companies registered with Ofsted
any registered services in which you have a financial interest

Holding company and subsidiary details

If you are a holding company with subsidiaries registered with Ofsted, you will need to tell us the name, trading start date, URN, address and contact details for each subsidiary.

If your organisation is a subsidiary of a holding company, you must tell us the holding company’s name, trading start date, registered company number (or charity number, if applicable), address, and contact details. You must also tell us about all the other subsidiaries of your holding company.

You must also give us the accounts for the last 2 years for your holding company and all its subsidiaries.

Previous applications and registrations

Ofsted must know about all of your previous applications and registrations for early years or social care children’s services and adult social care services.

You will be asked if you have:

made a previous application
had a previous application refused
been registered or licensed to run a service
had a registration cancelled

If you answer yes to any of those questions, we will request further information.

The information we need about previous applications includes the URN. If you do not have a URN for that service (for example, adult social care services), then you will need to tell us about the type of service, dates of application, reason for the refusal (if relevant) and which public authority dealt with the application.

We also need to know who you registered with, how long the registration was for and the type of service. If you have had a registration cancelled, you need to provide either the URN or details about the service, including dates of registration and why it was cancelled.

Question 4

Documents required for your application

Accepted Answer

We cannot accept your application unless you have provided all the documents that we need, and all the people who need to provide an Apply to be associated with a children’s social service (SC2) form have done so.

With the SC1 form, you will need to provide:

your statement of purpose
your guide for children
confirmation that your premises has the necessary agreements in place, where applicable
if the property is mortgaged or leased, proof that you can operate an independent fostering agency
your certificate of public liability insurance or written confirmation that insurance will be provided
your missing child policy
your safeguarding policy
your behaviour management policy, including the use of restraint
your complaints procedure
your managing allegations policy
your equalities policy
your parent and child policy (where this is a proposed element of the service)
your business plan
your cashflow forecast
if you are registering as a company, your last 2 annual reports and accounts (if available)
reports for any holding company and any subsidiaries if applicable
your charitable objects if applicable
your partnership agreement (for applications from partnerships)

Trusts that carry out local authority functions (not NHS trusts) have an alternative option to providing a business plan, cashflow forecast and the last 2 annual reports. We require the latest set of accounts, but instead of the other financial documents you can provide in writing from the local authority:

assurance that the local authority is content with the financial viability of the trust
the mechanisms in place to review the ongoing performance of the trust

When you are completing the SC1 or SC2 form you are required to disclose other information that the Care Standards Act 2000 identifies as relevant to your application. We will also ask to see other policies at different stages of the process, for example during a site visit.

Statement of purpose

You must have a unique statement of purpose and children’s guide for each independent fostering agency that you are applying to register. Their contents will vary according to the type of agency that you intend to operate.

The statement of purpose should meet the requirements of the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011.

We will take the quality of the statement of purpose and children’s guide into account when making our decision about your fitness to practise.

Children’s guide

All applications must include a children’s guide. When creating this, it is important that you have in mind the level of understanding of those who are going to read it. The choice of words and format you use, the pictures you include, and the level of detail you go into should help every child who reads it to understand the important things about your independent fostering agency and what they can do to tell you if they think that something is not right.

Premises

All independent fostering agencies must have a physical address linked to the application.

For all arrangements related to the premises of the fostering service, you will need to demonstrate how the proposed operation will meet the needs of the foster carers approved by your service, and the children placed with them. This may include:

the working arrangements for staff
the arrangements for panel, training or support meetings
the arrangements for confidential meeting space
the arrangements for storing confidential records

Where it is expected that staff will be home based for some or all of their work, the inspector will look at the arrangements that the fostering service has made to ensure:

the health, safety and well-being of their staff
secure arrangements to store records safely

You will need to confirm that any property you propose to use for the purpose of operating the fostering agency has the necessary agreements, including appropriate planning permission, in place.

These could include (but are not limited to):

for a purpose-built office: if this is a new development, that the necessary planning permission is in place
for a serviced or shared office: that a copy of the lease is in place
for a private property: confirmation that this can be used for the purposes of operating a fostering agency without any additional permissions or, if these are necessary, copies of the respective permissions that are in place

Certificate of insurance

You must get a certificate of insurance for death, injury, public liability, damage or other loss before your independent fostering agency starts to operate.

We appreciate that some insurers will not provide this until registration is granted. In this case, you must give us written confirmation that you will have a certificate of insurance before you start to operate. If the name and address of the agency are not included on the certificate, you must prove that it is covered before you start to operate.

Policies

It is important that the policies you have reflect your statement of purpose and match the needs of the children in your fostering service.

Policies must follow relevant government guidance but should be tailored to those who will be using and working in your agency.

Missing child policy

This should tell foster carers what the fostering service expects them to do to prevent the risk of children going missing from their foster homes, and what procedures should be followed if children do go missing. The procedures for reporting missing children should reflect local area protocols.

Safeguarding policy

This policy should reflect local authority protocols for safeguarding and child protection. It should explain how to work with the child’s placing authority if there are safeguarding concerns.

It must also explain:

who is responsible for safeguarding in your organisation
who manages any concerns raised about the nominated safeguarding lead

Behaviour support policy

This should include the agency’s approach to the prevention of bullying and use of restraint. It may include how children and foster carers are included in decision-making and how foster carers help children to understand and manage their emotions and behaviour.

Complaints policy

This policy should explain:

how staff respond to complaints from children and adults
how complaints are investigated and how long this takes
how people can escalate a complaint if they are not happy with the outcome
how children are involved in the complaints process
how children can contact someone outside the fostering service if they want to raise a concern

Managing allegations policy

This sets out procedures in the case of allegations and includes:

guidance
financial information
legal information
insurance details

Evidence of financial viability

Unless you are applying from an NHS trust, you must include with your application:

your business plan
your cashflow forecast
your last 2 annual reports, including reports for any holding company and any subsidiaries
your last 2 annual accounts
the name and address of the registered or principal office if you are a subsidiary

If you are a type of trust, other than an NHS trust, we will need your latest annual accounts, but you do not have to provide all of the above. Instead, you can provide in writing from the local authority:

assurance that the trust is financially viable
details of how it will review the trusts performance, including its finances

Business plan

As a minimum, the business plan should cover:

background information
a financial plan
a contingency to sustain financial viability during the initial period after registration, while recruiting foster carers and agreeing children’s placements
an operational plan including an assessment of the strengths and vulnerabilities of the proposed service

Cashflow forecast

Your cashflow forecast should estimate the projected monthly income and expenditure for the first 12 months of operation. This is simply a summary of the money that is expected to be paid into and out of the independent fostering agency, in cash terms, over the period. This is usually broken up into a month-by-month forecast.

Annual reports and accounts

If you are already operating, you must provide up to the last 2 annual reports and accounts. Where applicable, you should also include the annual reports for the holding company and any subsidiaries of that holding company.

New companies do not need to submit annual reports or accounts.

If relevant, you should provide a copy of any partnership agreement and any charitable purposes as set out by the Charities Commission.

Fees

You must pay a children’s social care registration fee as part of your application. Once you have submitted your application and we have all the documents to process it, we will send you an invoice for the fee. This fee is non-refundable.

You must also pay a registration fee for each application for a registered manager, including if the manager changes during the application process. This applies to registered managers for both a new and an existing independent fostering agency.

Once your independent fostering agency is registered, you must pay a children’s social care annual fee.

When you apply for a new registration, we always check whether you owe us fees from any previous registrations. We will consider any outstanding fees when assessing your fitness to practise, your integrity and financial viability to provide a new independent fostering agency.

Question 5

Recommended document file size and formats

Accepted Answer

You can upload documents in the following formats:

PDF
Microsoft Word (.docx)
Excel (.xlsx)
PowerPoint (.pptx)
image file (.jpeg or .png)
OpenDocument formats for a word processing document (.odt), a spreadsheet (.ods) or a presentation (.odp)

Documents must not be more than 2 MB in size.

If you need to reduce the size of your documents, try to:

reduce the size of images before putting them in a document
remove any unnecessary images
save a Word document to the latest version of Word or as a PDF document
save a PDF document to the smallest file option

If you are unable to upload any documents with your application due to format or size, send them via email to sc.admin@ofsted.gov.uk. Quote your name and application or submission reference number. Upload a blank Word page to your application with just the date you emailed the documents to Ofsted and the comment: ‘Document emailed to sc.admin@ofsted.gov.uk’.

Question 6

Registration visit and interviews

Accepted Answer

We usually carry out a registration visit for each application and visit all the buildings that are included in the application. During the visit, we assess the premises and services that you intend to offer and interview all those associated with the application. An inspector will contact you to discuss whether any reasonable adjustments are required.

Documents required during inspector’s visit

Before or during the visit, the inspector will ask for specific documents that were not part of your original application. We ask for these to check whether you are ready to operate. You will only have this information, such as staff member details, after we accept your application. We are unlikely to make a decision about your registration without this information. It helps Ofsted judge how well you can care for children and keep them safe.

We will always ask for the following information during the visit, and as part of any suitable or fit person interviews:

your original birth certificate for your identity when you were born
original certified documents relating to each name change you have had since birth
proof of your address and photographic evidence of your identity, for example a driving licence
qualification documents
the original DBS certificate for the manager and the responsible individual
confirmation of your registration with any relevant professional body, for example Social Work England, as applicable to the role that you have been appointed to

If you have changed your name, Ofsted will want to see a clear audit trail of those changes and your original birth certificate.

This is an important part of our safeguarding role. If it will be difficult for you to provide original documents, you must tell us as soon as possible so that we can help you to resolve the problem.

Staffing and the central panel list

We will need to see that you have enough people with the right experience and qualifications to fulfil your regulatory function in relation to the recruitment, preparation, assessment, approval and support of prospective foster carers. We do not expect a full staff team to be in place, but there must be enough staff for your agency to open and be ready to assess your first foster carers.

You must have available all recruitment records for the staff you have recruited before the registration visit, including those of the proposed manager and, where applicable, the responsible individual. If you normally hold these records elsewhere, you must arrange for them to be available at the registration visit.

If you are proposing to use independent social workers or consultants, we expect to see evidence that you have made sufficient appointments for your agency to be able to open.

Training policy for foster carers and for staff

This should set out the agency training frameworks and expectations. Where a fostering agency is providing kinship placements, the arrangements for friends and family foster carers should also be covered.

Supervision of foster carers policy

This policy should set out the arrangements through which the independent fostering agency will provide support and supervision to foster carers, including the nature and level of any support provided.

Parent and child policy

You will need to show the inspector your parent and child policy where relevant. This policy should include the proposed services offered to parent and child placements and how the service will meet the expectations set out in statutory guidance.

Assessment process

You will need to have your assessment process available if you have not included it in the statement of purpose or application information.

Record-keeping systems

You will need to provide examples of any paper-based or electronic systems that you intend to use to record children’s and foster carers’ information.

Registration visit

The inspector will:

ask whether any reasonable adjustments are required before each interview
read and discuss, as necessary, documentation you have provided
interview people in certain roles of responsibility
assess and evaluate all the information we have gathered

After the visit and interviews, the inspector will go over with you:

a summary of the evidence that they have collected
what happens next
whether you need to submit further information or whether further interviews are required

Where a provider is proposing to operate virtually, the registration visit will still take place face to face. This will usually be at the address that you have given for the application. Where this is not possible, and you are unable to offer a suitable alternative, this may be at an Ofsted regional office.

Registration interviews

Interviews may take place on different days and will be arranged with each individual concerned. Inspectors will usually interview both the proposed manager and the appointed responsible individual, even if the responsible individual has been interviewed by us before.

Interviews are an opportunity for individuals to demonstrate their skills, expertise and knowledge for their role. The interview will draw out their experience and values to see how they will use these to provide safe and effective fostering services.

Responsible individual’s interview

The responsible individual’s interview will be an opportunity for them to demonstrate their knowledge and skills relating to:

the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011
the national minimum standards
associated statutory guidance relevant to independent fostering agencies
the role of the responsible individual
safeguarding and child protection
their ability to carry on the independent fostering agency
the business and management skills required to supervise the agency
the financial skills and expertise required to ensure long-term financial viability
the capacity the responsible individual has to carry out regular evaluation of the quality of care provided

We will explore and assess how they will exercise their responsibilities, for example how they will:

maintain regular and effective oversight of the agency
respond to any emerging leadership matters that affect foster carers and children’s security and well-being
support and challenge the manager and provider to promote best outcomes for children
represent the views of foster carers and children to the manager and provider
be available for Ofsted to discuss Regulation 35 reports or serious incident notifications made under Regulation 36
inform and discuss with Ofsted any referrals made under the ‘Prevent’ duty
be available for feedback on an inspection
inform Ofsted when the manager will be absent for more than 28 days or leaves

Managers’ interviews

Managers must show that they have the skills to lead, manage and improve an independent fostering agency and that the agency has the capacity and capability to meet the required national minimum standards.

When enquiring about management skills, we explore and assess the manager’s experience and skills in:

supervising others who are carrying out an assessment and or care role including any registered social worker employed to carry out assessments
managing staff performance
safeguarding children and taking appropriate action to protect them
building relationships with children and foster carers
taking into account the views of children and foster carers
setting out and using quality assurance systems to drive improvement
understanding and managing risk
co-ordinating multi-agency resources to help children thrive
understanding the statement of purpose for the agency
understanding how to meet the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011, national minimum standards and statutory guidance
having oversight of the fostering panel, including its quality assurance function
ensuring the delivery of a high-quality fostering service through the support of staff and foster carers

We will also explore and assess the manager’s experience and skills in:

understanding the needs of the children who will be placed with the agency
understanding the range of services that the agency will provide
assessing and supporting foster carers to meet children’s needs
understanding the specialist aspects of recruiting, assessing, approving, supporting, training and reviewing foster carers
ensuring that staff are suitably trained and experienced to undertake their roles
understanding the role of the panel in assuring the quality and safety of the service that the agency provides
identifying and minimising risk and helping children to make progress

Manager qualifications and experience

The national minimum standards set out the requirements of anyone applying to be the registered manager of a fostering agency. These are:

a recognised social work or professional qualification at least at level 4
a qualification in management at least at level 4
at least 2 years’ experience relevant to fostering within the last 5 years
at least one years’ experience supervising and managing professional staff

If the manager does not have a level 4 qualification in management at the point of application, they must enrol on a suitable course within 6 months and obtain the qualification within 3 years of appointment.

Ofsted will consider relevant experience outside an independent fostering agency, such as working in a local authority. They will be expected to show how this experience will help them to do this job and effectively manage an independent fostering agency.

Question 7

Changes to your application

Accepted Answer

During the registration process, you must tell us straight away if there are changes to any of the details in your application.

If you want to make changes to your application before we have granted registration, you must write to tell us about changes to:

the name or address of the proposed provider, responsible individual or manager
the person who is applying to be the provider, responsible individual or manager
the members of a partnership
a director or any other person who has submitted an SC2 form
the conditions that you are applying to register

If these changes involve a new person in one of the above roles, they will need to fill in an SC2 form. If they do not do this within 12 weeks of you paying your registration fee, we may write to you to tell you that your application has been closed because we have been unable to process it without the relevant information.

Question 8

What happens next

Accepted Answer

When you apply online to register an independent fostering agency, you will get a submission reference number. This is 14 characters and includes numbers, hyphens and uppercase letters, for example ABCD-1234-1234.

This reference number will be on the email sent to you, confirming that your application has been accepted.

All managers, responsible individuals or partners linked to the independent fostering agency must tell Ofsted about themselves separately by completing an SC2 form. You will need to provide them with your submission reference number so they can complete their application forms. Your application to register an independent fostering agency is not complete until all application forms are completed. We will get in touch if we have any questions.

Questions about your application

We know that your application is very important to you, and sometimes you want to speak to us to ask us for an update.

If you have questions and are unable to find the information you need in our independent fostering agency guidance for applicants at the start of your application, you can contact our social care applications team by email at sc.admin@ofsted.gov.uk. The subject line must say, ‘Social care application’. Provide your full name and reference number for someone to contact you.

Once we have sent your application to our regional team, an inspector will be allocated to your application. They will speak to you and let you know how to contact them.

You are responsible for supplying us with full, correct and suitable information to support your application. 

It is an offence under the Care Standards Act 2000 to provide a false or misleading statement in an application.