Records & plans
What is a statement of purpose?
A statement of purpose sets out what a children's home is for — the children it cares for, the care it provides, its ethos and its facilities. It is a registration document and must be kept under review.
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<img src="https://careoptix.co.uk/glossary/statement-of-purpose/diagram.svg" alt="statement of purpose — diagram from CareOptix" width="880" height="620" loading="lazy">
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<a href="https://careoptix.co.uk/glossary/statement-of-purpose">What is a statement of purpose?</a> — diagram by
<a href="https://careoptix.co.uk">CareOptix</a>
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</figure>It is the home's own definition of what it can do well, and its most important function is the one people least expect: it tells a placing authority when not to place a child here.
It governs admissions in practice. A home accepting a child whose needs fall outside its statement is operating outside what it is registered to provide, however willing the staff and however urgent the placement.
It has to be reviewed and kept accurate. Homes change — the building, the staffing, the model of care — and a statement describing the home as it was three years ago is misleading the people relying on it.
What goes wrong in practice
- Written broadly so as not to limit referrals, which defeats the purpose of having one.
- Children admitted outside the stated needs because of placement pressure.
- Not updated after changes to the premises, staffing or model of care.
- Held as a registration document and never used in admissions decisions.