Following a recent inspection, Quality Foster Care has received a Good Ofsted rating.
The report recognises that the overall experiences and progress of children and young people are “good”, providing elements of what are described as “exceptional support for children and foster carers”.
The team are recognised for “carefully matching” children to their fostering family, meaning they are “flourishing in homes where they feel safe, nurtured and loved”.
The report commends Quality Foster Care for meeting children’s holistic needs, actively seeking local support systems to ensure “children retain a keen sense of positive identity”.
Children are recognised as “thriving” in families where they have lived for some years, owed to a well-planned, gradual process of introductions with foster families. This approach helps to “reduce trauma and anxiety for the children”, “helping them to settle with their foster family”.
The report acknowledges the exemplary performance of staff and carers, who work cohesively to ensure an effective “team around the child” approach. Many foster carers are recognised as operating at an “enhanced level”.
Quality Foster Care effectively supports children’s mental well-being with high levels of “bespoke emotional therapeutic support”.
Equipped with an awareness of individual risks, and appropriate training, foster carers are working effectively to ensure child safety is “at the core of everything they do”.
Children are identified as “fully embedded members of the fostering family”, with one child describing their foster carers as “everything”. They are encouraged to set future goals, pursue their interests, and are recognised as making positive memories with their families.
Despite significant changes in management since the last inspection, Quality Foster Care is seen as providing “good” training for foster carers. In addition, regular targeted therapeutic support groups and individual therapeutic consultations for children and foster carers have contributed to what is described as a “strong support offer for foster children and birth children”.
The report identifies management as dealing effectively with the recent acquisition, ensuring it retains its “core identity.” Some areas are recognised as requiring improvement, but senior managers are identified as having “a clear sense of direction” and having plans to “drive improvement”.
The report highlights a need for improved monitoring and oversight. Nevertheless, the agency is recognised for ensuring that children and young people are “at the centre of decision-making”. The ethos and culture of the agency are modelled and retained by what is described as “a committed and effective staff team”, enabling children and foster carers to “receive the high levels of support that they have come to expect from the agency”.
Read the full 2023 Ofsted report for Quality Foster Care.