Sector Awareness and Provider Preparedness Programme

From April 2023 to September 2024, NCB was the appointed provider of the Department for Education funded Sector Awareness & Provider Preparedness programme. This was in relation to the quality standards, registration and regulation regime for supported accommodation for young people aged 16 and 17 who are in or leaving care.

Supported accommodation is a form of accommodation outside of regulated children’s homes, kinship care and foster care, which provides supported, semi-independent living for 16- & 17-year-olds who are ready to start living with more independence.  

Since 28 October 2023, all providers of supported accommodation have been required to adhere to mandatory national Quality Standards, overseen by Ofsted-led registration and inspection. The sector has been on a long-overdue improvement journey and NCB has supported and worked with more than 1,000 providers as they’ve progressed to become registered as a supported accommodation provider with Ofsted. 

  • About the programme

    From April 2023 to September 2024, NCB was the appointed provider of DfE's Sector Awareness & Provider Preparedness programme, in relation to the quality standards, registration and regulation regime for supported accommodation for young people aged 16 and 17 who are in or leaving care.

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  • eLearning courses 

    Check out our two eLearning courses in relation to the new Ofsted regulation regime for providers of supported accommodation for 16- and 17-year-olds in and leaving care.

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  • Involving Young People

    The lived experience of young people who are currently living, or have previously lived, in supported accommodation was central to the development of the Sector Awareness and Provider Preparedness programme.

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  • Join our Online Community of Practice Forums

    Please note that while our existing Community of Practice forums closed at the end of September 2024, we have created new, updated Community of Practice forums which providers and those working in local authority commissioning and placement teams can continue to use beyond the programme for peer support and sharing good practice.

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  • Resources

    Resources developed as part of the Sector Awareness and Provider Preparedness Programme.

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