This framework sets out Ofsteds process for inspecting residential family centres.
Our approach is underpinned by the following 3 principles that apply to all social care inspections:
Minor edits for clarity in the 'Monitoring visit' section and revised text referencing the updated 'Ofsted code of conduct' policy.
Added guidance for April 2022: made minor changes to the evaluation criteria on the impact of quality monitoring activities and the outcomes of assessments and additional guidance for when inspectors discover possible unregistered provision.
Updated guidance on the scheduling of inspections of centres previously judged inadequate or requires improvement to be good, to make consistent with our guidance for other provider types.
Removed guidance on assurance visits, as we are no longer carrying these out.
Added guidance on inspecting residential family centres during COVID-19 restrictions. Updated guidance to reflect changes to Ofsteds post-inspection processes and complaints handling, including timeline, that we introduced in September 2020. Minor edits for readability.
First published.