Regulation 44 & 25 Independent Visits

Regulation 44 of the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 requires an independent person to visit the home once each month. The report must provide an opinion on whether children are effectively safeguarded and whether the home’s conduct promotes their wellbeing. 

Helping Hands Care and Consultancy provides independent Regulation 44 visits that examine everyday practice, listen to children’s experiences and offer an objective assessment of the care provided.

Our visits can include:

• Speaking with children, staff and relevant professionals, where appropriate and with the necessary consent.
• Reviewing safeguarding practice, incidents and the response to concerns.
• Examining relevant records, subject to applicable consent and access requirements.
• Considering children’s experiences, relationships and progress.
• Reviewing the environment and how it meets children’s needs.
• Following up recommendations from previous visits.
• Identifying strengths and areas requiring improvement.

We provide clear, evidence-based reports with practical recommendations to help managers and Responsible Individuals prioritise action and monitor progress.

Helping Hands Care and Consultancy offers Regulation 25 visit and reporting support for residential family centres, helping providers review the conduct of their service and the experiences of children and parents.

Regulation 25 establishes monthly visiting arrangements and requires a written report on the conduct of the centre. It also specifies who may carry out the statutory visit. We work with providers to agree arrangements that reflect these requirements.

Our monitoring can include:

• Listening to parents’ experiences and considering children’s needs.
• Speaking with staff about practice, support and concerns.
• Reviewing safeguarding arrangements and responses to incidents.
• Examining complaints and how they have been addressed.
• Considering the quality of accommodation and the environment.
• Reviewing relevant records and how care and support are delivered.
• Following up previous actions and identifying improvement priorities.

Our reports provide a clear account of findings, helping providers strengthen oversight and respond to issues affecting children and families.

Effective monitoring should help you understand what is working well and where action is needed.

Our reports highlight strengths, explain concerns and set out practical recommendations. We aim to make findings easy to understand and useful for managers, Responsible Individuals and providers when planning improvements.

We take a professional, respectful approach while providing the scrutiny needed to identify concerns and challenge practice where necessary.