Ofsted | Children’s homes & provider groups
Ofsted Ongoing Compliance Strong oversight. Every day.
Registration is only the beginning. Delphi helps children’s home providers build reliable compliance routines, strengthen safeguarding and support Registered Managers and Responsible Individuals with clear governance and practical, ongoing assurance.
Clearer assurance across your home or group.
For children’s home owners, Registered Managers, Responsible Individuals and multi-site providers in England.
0330 133 3002Beyond the registration certificate
Compliance cannot depend on the next inspection.
Policies, monitoring visits and reviews must reflect the reality of children’s experiences and the work of your staff, not just the documents held in a folder.
Actions are drifting
Recommendations are recorded, but ownership, deadlines and evidence of completion are unclear.
Safeguarding needs scrutiny
Incident patterns, notifications and care records need more consistent management review.
Leadership is stretched
Managers and Responsible Individuals need independent challenge and reliable oversight.
Multiple homes, different systems
Provider groups need a more consistent view of risk, assurance and improvement across services.
Core children’s home monitoring duties
Regulation 44 and 45. Clear responsibilities, connected insight.
Independent visits and internal quality reviews are different duties. Both should inform the same safeguarding and improvement priorities.
Independent person visits
An appropriately independent person must visit the children’s home at least once each month, consider children’s safeguarding and wellbeing, and provide a written report.
- Independent scrutiny of the home and relevant records
- Attention to children’s experiences, safety and welfare
- Report to Ofsted by the end of the following month, including where the home has no children
Quality of care reviews
The registered person must review the quality of care, consider children’s experiences and feedback, identify improvement actions and produce a written report.
- Review patterns, outcomes and progress for children
- Use feedback from children, staff and stakeholders
- Send the completed review report to Ofsted within 28 days
What ongoing compliance support includes
Six ways to strengthen oversight and consistency.
Support can be arranged around one home or across a provider group. The exact visits, reviews and reporting arrangements are agreed for each engagement.
Monthly compliance audits
Focused reviews of records, routines and risk controls to identify issues early and help managers track outstanding actions.
Regulation 44 & 45 support
Discuss monthly independent visits, reports, six-monthly quality review preparation and practical follow-through on findings.
Safeguarding audits
Review safeguarding culture, incidents, allegations, notifications and escalation pathways with a focus on children’s experiences.
Responsible Individual support
Practical role-based advice, independent challenge, governance reviews and support for leaders overseeing one or several homes.
Policies & system reviews
Examine complaints, behaviour support, restrictive practice, recording and internal procedures to check they work in practice.
Group governance frameworks
Improve risk reporting, accountability, compliance dashboards and board-level visibility across multiple services.
Less reactive compliance. More confident everyday oversight.
Work with experienced children’s services specialists who can help your team understand the gaps, prioritise practical actions and maintain momentum between visits and reviews.
Turn oversight into a regular rhythm
A compliance calendar that keeps the whole picture visible.
Statutory duties should be tracked alongside additional reviews that help managers understand performance and act before problems accumulate.
Regulation 44 independent visits and reporting, supported by appropriate internal monitoring and follow-up.
Thematic compliance audits, safeguarding deep dives and leadership or provider-level assurance reviews.
Regulation 45 quality of care review completed by the registered person, with the report submitted within 28 days.
Annual Regulation 46 location suitability review, plus optional wider governance health checks and improvement planning.
Listen. Review. Act. Revisit.
Strong oversight connects children’s lived experiences, staff practice, independent findings and leaders’ decisions.
How an engagement works
Not another report to file. A clearer route to improvement.
We begin by understanding your home, its registered arrangements, existing monitoring and any concerns that need additional attention.
Agree the priorities
Understand your home, safeguarding context, governance systems and required statutory reporting.
Review the evidence
Examine appropriate records, children’s experiences, processes and leadership oversight within the agreed scope.
Make actions useful
Set clear priorities, responsible owners, timescales and measurable evidence of progress.
Keep improvement visible
Use the next audit, visit or quality review to assess whether the actions are working.
Sector expertise you can explore
Support shaped by children’s home experience.
Sophie Lawrence, Delphi’s Registrations and Compliance Manager for Ofsted Projects, has hands-on experience managing a high-risk children’s home supporting young people with complex needs. Her published work focuses on safeguarding, governance and practical inspection readiness.
Read about her children’s services background and approach to regulatory support, then explore recent guidance written for Registered Managers and Responsible Individuals.
Meet Sophie LawrenceSophie has great attention to detail and has been helpful in providing action plans to improve the documents we have created.
Guidance for children’s home leaders
Keep your knowledge current. Keep your evidence meaningful.
Practical sector guidance from Delphi, alongside current Ofsted expectations for registered children’s homes.
Shanaz Ali | 20 October 2026
Ofsted Compliance After Registration: Children’s Home Checklist
A practical 20-point review of safeguarding, records, recruitment, monitoring, Regulation 44 and 45 and ongoing improvement.
Read the compliance checklistSophie Lawrence | Ofsted guidance
Ofsted Inspection for Children’s Homes: SCCIF & Preparation Guide
Understand how Ofsted looks at children’s experiences, protection, management and evidence during inspection.
Explore the inspection guideFrequently asked questions
Your ongoing compliance questions, answered clearly.
Clear guidance for children’s home owners, Registered Managers and Responsible Individuals planning reliable monitoring and assurance.
Speak to an Ofsted specialistWhat is Ofsted ongoing compliance support?
It is a tailored programme of independent monitoring, compliance audits, governance reviews and practical guidance designed to help registered children’s homes maintain oversight and act on risks after registration. The precise services and frequency are agreed with the provider.
How often does a children’s home need a Regulation 44 visit?
At least once every month. The visit is undertaken by an appropriately independent person, and the report must be sent to Ofsted by the end of the following month. Ofsted guidance confirms the reporting requirement also applies when no children live in the home.
What is the difference between Regulation 44 and Regulation 45?
Regulation 44 is monthly independent scrutiny by an independent person. Regulation 45 is the registered person’s quality of care review, completed at least every six months. The Regulation 45 report must be sent to Ofsted within 28 days of the review being completed.
Can Delphi carry out our Regulation 45 review for us?
Delphi can provide preparation, analysis and report-writing assistance within the agreed scope. The statutory responsibility to complete the quality of care review rests with the registered person and is not transferred by appointing a consultant.
Can you support a Responsible Individual across multiple homes?
Yes. Delphi can discuss Responsible Individual support and group-level governance, including regular visits, leadership guidance, audits and oversight arrangements. The responsibilities, authority and availability must be agreed for the specific services.
Are quarterly and annual compliance audits mandatory?
Quarterly compliance audits and wider annual consultancy health checks are optional assurance activities rather than universal statutory requirements. Separate legal duties include monthly Regulation 44 visits, six-monthly Regulation 45 reviews and annual consideration of location suitability under Regulation 46.
Does an independent compliance audit replace an Ofsted inspection?
No. An independent audit helps providers review practice, records, safeguarding and governance, but only Ofsted determines official inspection judgements and regulatory outcomes.
What should we include in an initial enquiry?
Share your home type, location, current monitoring arrangements, leadership needs and timescales. Please do not submit identifiable information about children, safeguarding case files or confidential records through the general enquiry form.
A stronger compliance framework starts here
Keep standards visible. Give your leaders clearer oversight.
Whether you have one newly registered home or a growing provider group, tell us what monitoring, governance or leadership support you need. We’ll discuss a practical next step.
What Ofsted compliance support would help?
Share your service type, number of homes, current priorities and relevant dates. Please don’t include identifiable details about children or live safeguarding matters.
Discuss ongoing Ofsted support 0330 133 3002Prefer email? enquiries@delphi.care
