By Danielle Gaye 1st April 2022

Abstract

This best practice guide has been written following 15 months managing a residential children’s home in the South West of England. The home is registered to support four children and specialises in looking after children who have been exploited, either sexually or criminally. When I took over the home in August 2018 the home was rated as ‘requires improvement’ by Ofsted. Over the course of the last 15 months, the home has grown and developed and is now rated as ‘Outstanding’ in all areas. In the last 12 months I have completed the ACSEP1 course with Parents Against Child sexual Exploitation (PACE) and found that this formed the basis of the homes work and ethos. PACE have developed the relational safeguarding model and this is at the core of their work with exploited children and their families. This holistic approach has enabled me to develop my home, and other specialist Cambian homes in the South West region. As a registered manager, I have always felt that residential children’s homes are still misunderstood by professionals, especially when working with exploited children. This guide aims to provide an overview of how residential children’s homes work, achieve best outcomes and are successful in supporting the most vulnerable children.

Read the reflective article in full at…

The Therapeutic Care Journal Source: Working with exploited children; Best practice in residential children’s homes. By Danielle Gaye – The Therapeutic Care Journal