Frequently Asked Questions

We provide residential accommodation and everyday support for young people. Age suitability is considered case by case at referral, alongside the needs of the young person and the mix of people already living in the home. We will tell you plainly and early if a young person’s age or needs sit outside what we can provide well.

Send whatever you have to info@ambitionsfirstcare.uk, or call +44 7533 557333. We will confirm receipt, give you a named contact and set out what we need next. There is no charge and no obligation in having that conversation.

Placements are commissioned for the period agreed with the placing authority and reviewed on a fixed cycle. Some placements are short and planned from the start as a step towards another setting; others run for a longer period. Length is agreed in writing at referral rather than assumed, and any change is discussed openly.

Safeguarding is the standard against which everything else is tested. Our arrangements include a written safeguarding policy, a named safeguarding lead with a deputy arrangement, out-of-hours escalation that is genuinely reachable, safer recruitment practice for every member of staff, safeguarding induction before anyone works unsupervised, and recording and reporting duties with prompt notification to placing authorities. Full detail is on our Safeguarding page.

At planning stage we agree a reporting arrangement: a named contact in the home, a named contact on the placing side, the cycle for written summaries, and the immediate notification route for incidents, absences and safeguarding concerns. Referrers are not left to request updates — they receive them on the agreed cycle.

Staffing and overnight arrangements are set out in the placement plan for each home and are based on the needs of the young people living there. The agreed pattern is stated in writing at planning stage and any change is notified to the placing team.

Recruitment follows safer-recruitment practice: roles are advertised with safeguarding responsibilities stated, candidates are interviewed against the requirements of the role, employment history is checked for consistency, and references are taken and verified. Every member of staff completes safeguarding induction before working unsupervised, and ongoing training and supervision is scheduled rather than optional. We are happy to describe our recruitment and training arrangements in detail at referral stage.

Education is part of the placement plan. Attendance and punctuality are monitored daily, unexplained absence is followed up the same day, we keep in contact with the school, college or provider, and progress is reported at reviews. Where mainstream provision is not working, we will say so and work with partners on alternatives. See Education Support.

Contact arrangements are set by the placing authority and followed by us. Our role is to make them work in practice, to support contact where it is agreed to be supported or supervised, and to record accurately what happens, including when contact is difficult.

Young people are told at the start of a placement how to raise something and what will happen next. There is a regular house meeting route for everyday matters and a formal complaints route for anything else. Complaints are logged, acknowledged, investigated and tracked to a conclusion, and the young person is told the outcome and the reasons. Independent advocacy is signposted to every young person.

No. We provide residential accommodation and everyday support. Where a young person needs clinical assessment, therapy or specialist health input, that is provided by health services, and we work alongside them: supporting appointments, following agreed plans, and recording what we observe.

Day services, support sessions and assessment visits are published at a fixed rate on our Fees & Funding page. A residential placement is agreed in writing before it begins and is a matter for the commissioning conversation, because the staffing ratio and hours behind it depend on the assessment. Invoicing and settlement terms, notice periods and arrangements for any additional support are set out in the placement agreement and in our Terms & Conditions.