Regulating children and families services

Our regulation of children and families services covers children’s social care.

We register children’s social care services to:

protect children and young people
ensure that the services meet the requirements of the relevant legislation
ensure that providers and managers deliver high quality outcomes for children and young people that keep them healthy and safe, ensure they enjoy and achieve, make a positive contribution and develop skills for the future
provide information about the quality of the provision to a range of key stakeholders, including children and young people, parents and carers, and commissioners.

We register five types of children’s social care.

children's homes
residential family centres
independent fostering agencies
voluntary adoption agencies
adoption support agencies.

This is what happens when someone applies to provide children’s social care.

A prospective provider uses our guide to help them apply for registration.
Before sending their application to us, the applicant needs to have all documents and procedures in place; have a Disclosure and Barring Service (this replaced the Criminal Records Bureau on 1 December 2012: www.homeoffice.gov.uk/dbs) disclosure for everyone who needs one; and have their premises ready.
The applicant completes all the forms in the children’s social care application pack. The person who will manage the children’s social care service must also complete an application. The applicant sends the forms to us with the application fee.
When we get the application and fee, we will process it. We carry out checks and get references for each person connected with the application to make sure they are suitable. We carry out interviews and visit the premises that will be used.
When we have completed the registration visit, all the checks are complete and, where necessary, the applicant has completed any actions required, we will decide whether to grant registration or refuse it.

Granting registration

If we decide to register the applicant we issue a certificate of registration. A provider cannot begin running a children’s social care service until they have their certificate. The provider must display the certificate where people can see it.

Refusing registration

If we intend to refuse registration we write to tell the applicant.

Refusing registration is a serious step and may prevent the applicant from working in children’s social care or running a service.

If we refuse registration, then the applicant can appeal.

Registration fees

The application fee covers the process of registration. After registration the fees that affect providers are:

annual fees
fees to register a new manager
fees to vary a condition of registration.

How long will my application take?

Ofsted’s timescales for the registration process are published in our Guide to registration for children’s social care services. Applications are not subject to tacit approval under the EU Services Directive. Tacit approval relates to a situation in which an authority does not process an application for registration within the published timescales and the application as a result becomes deemed as having been granted. It does not apply to applications to Ofsted for registration as a children’s social care provider because different arrangements are in place for overriding reasons relating to the public interest, namely the need to safeguard and protect children’s welfare (Provision of Services Regulations 2009, regulations 19(5) and (6)).

We aim to carry out our work smoothly and without incident. However, if you are dissatisfied with any aspect of the registration process please contact us. The details of our complaints procedure are available here: Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted.

Further information

For more information go to the children and families services providers registration pages.