Category: Progress Fostering

For many families, the start of a new school year carries a mix of excitement and nerves. Fresh uniforms, sharpened pencils and the promise of a new chapter can be uplifting. Yet for families of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), that transition often feels heavier. The return to structure, new classrooms, unfamiliar teachers and shifting routines can stir up anxiety that lingers well beyond the first week. 

Parents often talk about how small changes, like moving the morning alarm forward or taking a different route to school, can feel monumental for their children. The start of term magnifies this. While some children take comfort in the predictability of routines, others may feel overwhelmed by the abrupt shift from the relative calm of summer to the busy rhythm of school days. 

One way families prepare is by reintroducing routines slowly, often weeks before school begins. Bedtimes are shifted gradually; school bags are dusted off and trial runs of the journey to school are rehearsed. These rituals help soften the impact of change, turning the unfamiliar into something recognisable. For some, creating visual schedules or social stories provides a bridge between home and school. A series of pictures showing what the day will look like can help children know what to expect and reduce some of the uncertainty that fuels anxiety. 

Another helpful step is strengthening communication with school staff. Parents are often the experts on their child’s needs, and many put together a simple “about me” sheet to share with teachers and support workers. These documents, sometimes just a page long, outline what helps their child to thrive, what triggers distress and how best to offer reassurance. For teachers welcoming a new class, this can be a lifeline and a reminder that behind each diagnosis is a child with their own interests, quirks and strengths. 

It is not just practical adjustments that matter but also emotional ones. Parents often talk about the power of small tokens or transitional objects that children can hold onto during the school day. A smooth stone in a pocket, a heart drawn on the palm, or even a small photo tucked into a pencil case can provide comfort when the classroom feels overwhelming. These gestures may seem tiny, but they act as anchors, reminders of safety and connection. 

The start of term is also an opportunity to build bridges. A simple playdate with a classmate before the first day back can ease worries about social dynamics. Knowing there will be a familiar face waiting can transform the experience from daunting to manageable. Schools, too, sometimes offer phased returns or early visits to new classrooms, helping children acclimatise before the full school day resumes. 

Of course, the transition is rarely seamless. Some children sail through the first week only to struggle later once the novelty wears off. Others may need more time before routines begin to feel safe again. For parents, this requires patience, flexibility and often a good deal of self-compassion. It is worth remembering that support is not just for children. Parents also need encouragement and community, whether that is through local groups, online networks or simply sharing experiences with other families who understand. 

Back to school will always be a period of adjustment, but with careful preparation, open conversations and steady reassurance, it can also be a time of growth. Children with SEND may face unique challenges, but they also bring unique strengths. With empathy, creativity and the support of families and schools working together, these moments of transition can become opportunities to build resilience and confidence for the year ahead. 

Progress has earned top marks from Ofsted, proving once again that outstanding care changes lives.

Progress Fostering Service has officially maintained its Outstanding rating by Ofsted following its latest inspection, a recognition that reinforces the agency’s longstanding commitment to delivering exceptional care and support to children and young people. The inspection, conducted from 24 to 28 February 2025, evaluated the fostering agency under the Social Care Common Inspection Framework and praised the organisation for its unwavering focus on positive outcomes, professional excellence, and inclusive care.

In the report, Ofsted inspectors highlighted the outstanding quality of care provided to children and young people placed with Progress foster families. The agency was specifically commended for its ability to deliver highly effective services that consistently exceed expectations, ensuring children not only feel safe but also thrive emotionally, socially, and educationally. Ofsted noted that the children in Progress placements are flourishing, with many experiencing significant progress from their individual starting points. The report detailed how children benefit from tailored, flexible care packages and therapeutic support that address their unique needs.

One of the key features highlighted in the report was Progress’ enhanced care model, which includes direct access to the agency’s therapeutic team and the involvement of family support workers. These professionals play an integral role in supporting both children and carers through one-on-one sessions, youth groups, consultation forums, and holiday schemes. According to the report, this wraparound support not only enriches the children’s lives but also empowers foster carers, creating a strong foundation for stability and growth.

Inspectors were particularly moved by the personal stories shared by children, including one young person who spoke about moving from residential care into a loving foster home where they had the opportunity to choose and care for their first pet. Such moments, the report noted, are symbolic of the confidence, independence, and emotional healing that children experience under Progress’s care.

The leadership of Progress Children’s Services also received glowing praise. The report noted that the agency’s new registered manager, Michelle, appointed in September 2024, had been supported by a strategic succession plan and mentored by the responsible individual. Ofsted commended the leadership team for maintaininga clear vision and ethos, supported by robust internal monitoring and a culture of continuous improvement. Staff at all levels spoke positively about their experience, pointing to comprehensive inductions, training, regular appraisals, and strong support systems that enable them to thrive professionally and deliver the best outcomes for children.

The inspection also confirmed that the leadership team managed transitions with care and collaboration. Foster carers were invited to attend dedicated conferences and provide feedback, and the leadership team responded proactively to concerns raised, ensuring continuity of support and services.

Inspectors also noted Progress’ inclusive recruitment practices and the warm, responsive approach toward prospective foster carers. Social workers were praised for building strong relationships with applicants and their families, including offering dedicated support to birth children within fostering households. Foster carers described feeling well-prepared and supported throughout the assessment and approval process.

The overall outcome of the inspection was overwhelmingly positive.

Speaking after the publication of the report, Michelle Earp, Registered Manager at Progress Fostering Service, expressed pride in the outcome. “This inspection result is a reflection of the incredible team effort at Progress, from our dedicated foster carers and skilled staff to the children whose resilience and growth continue to inspire us every day. We are committed to listening, learning, and doing everything we can to provide exceptional care.”

Tina Bhardwaj, Head of Children’s Service at Progress, added: “We are proud to be recognised once again as an outstanding fostering agency. The feedback from Ofsted validates the deep-rooted values and standards that guide everything we do. While we celebrate this success, we remain focused on the future and on delivering even more meaningful impact for children and families.”

Progress remains one of the leading fostering agencies in the region, known for its innovative approaches, compassionate care, and inclusive ethos. The agency continues to welcome applications from individuals and families interested in making a difference in a child’s life.

On a recent weekday morning, Carla, the therapeutic development officer at the Ofsted-outstanding Progress Fostering Service, posed the question that frames every support session she runs: Who is this child beyond the label?

“Every child is completely individual, regardless of their background and needs,” she regularly tells foster carers when they gather during one of her several sessions with them, at Progress House, elsewhere or online.

That premise, that diagnoses illuminate but do not define, has guided Progress as it navigates a surge of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The number of such referrals has doubled since the pandemic, stretching Britain’s 56,000‑strong fostering network.

To meet the demand, Progress leverages the Solihull Approach, a 12‑week programme that Carla leads several times a year. When carers first hear the length, she said, “they usually think, Twelve weeks? That’s a long time.” But by the final session, the mood shifts. “It’s a celebration of how far they’ve come,” she added, noting the friendships that form around the homework tasks of quiet observation and written reflection.

The core lesson is disarmingly simple: notice your own state before responding to a child. “Breathe, just take a moment first,” Carla tells carers confronting meltdowns in soft‑play centres or frantic school‑run departures. “If you’re hyped up, the child is going to mirror that.”

Foster carers say the advice helps. “It’s like first aid for the brain,” one participant volunteered after the session, comparing the pause to the stop‑and‑assess mantra taught on emergency‑response courses.

Progress is also piloting the Berry assessment, a structured questionnaire that tracks how a child behaves at school versus at home. “It really breaks down and looks at the areas of need,” Carla said. When the answers diverge sharply, she convenes a team‑around‑the‑child meeting to recalibrate support plans.

The method has already revealed masked anxiety in two children and led to tweaks in classroom seating and playground routines. “You can’t fix everything,” Carla cautioned, “but you can reduce the curve balls.”

Teaching the art of rupture and repair

The course spends a full session on what clinicians call rupture and repair—the cycle of conflict and reconciliation common in any family, but especially acute when past trauma shadows the dinner table. Foster carers, Carla said, possess something professional training cannot supply. “They’ve got the biggest hearts, and that’s something you can’t teach.”

She tries, instead, to give them language. One exercise asks carers to juggle an unexpected demand, mimicking the sensory overload a child might feel. “That’s how your child feels,” she tells them afterward.

Progress, which marks its 25th anniversary next month, now supports numerous fostering households. It hosts children’s clubs, support groups and impromptu phone triage, “Can I just have two minutes?” is a common request, to keep placements afloat between formal appointments.

The agency’s culture, Carla said, is summed up in the phrase she repeats to nervous newcomers: “We’re a family, and you’re part of it now.” Her message for the anniversary echoes that refrain. “Keep doing what you’re doing. Everyone is amazing, especially the children,” she said.

Britain must recruit an estimated 8,000 additional foster carers to meet current demand, the Fostering Network says. Many of the hardest‑to‑place children carry complex diagnoses. Progress’ blend of clinical insight and kitchen‑table pragmatism offers one model for how agencies can prepare carers for that reality — and, in the process, remind them to breathe.