Regulation 44 visit
A Regulation 44 visit is a monthly independent visit to a children’s home, required by the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015, in which an independent person assesses whether children are effectively safeguarded and the home is well run.
Regulation 44 visit in practice
The visitor is independent of the home’s management, speaks to children, staff and where appropriate their families and social workers, reviews records, and produces a written report.
The report goes to the registered person, the responsible individual and Ofsted, and it is one of the first things an inspector reads. A pattern of reports raising the same issue month after month, with nothing changing, is damaging in a way the original issue often was not.
Treated properly it is an early warning system rather than a compliance chore: it is the cheapest opportunity a home gets to find a problem before Ofsted does.
Related terms
Related definitions
SC1 and SC2 applications
SC1 and SC2 are the Ofsted application forms for registering a children’s home or supported accommodation service: SC1 registers the provider and the service, and SC2 is completed by each person connected to it, including the manager, the responsible individual (nominated individual in supported accommodation) and directors involved in running it.
Read definitionResponsible Individual (Ofsted)
A Responsible Individual is the person an organisation nominates to Ofsted as accountable for supervising the management of a children’s home, and they are assessed by Ofsted for their suitability for that role.
Read definitionChildren’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015
The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 are the regulations governing how children’s homes in England must be run, and they contain the quality standards Ofsted inspects against.
Read definitionRegistering with CQC or Ofsted?
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