Supported accommodation notifications are one of the first things Ofsted checks. Regulation 27 of the Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 lists the serious events you must report "without delay", and other regulations add notifications about admissions, convictions and manager absence. Missed or late notifications quickly undermine inspectors' confidence in leaders, so they are worth getting right.
You can read the full text in Regulation 27. This guide explains what it means in practice.
Regulation 27: serious events you must notify
| Event | Who you must notify |
|---|---|
| A young person accommodated dies | Ofsted, the accommodating authority, the Secretary of State, the local authority where the premises are (if different), the integrated care board for the area, and any other relevant person |
| Someone working for the service is referred to the DBS under section 35 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 | Ofsted, the accommodating authority and any other relevant person |
| A young person is involved in, subject to, or suspected of being involved in child sexual or criminal exploitation | Ofsted and any relevant person |
| An incident involving a young person requires police involvement and you consider it serious | Ofsted and any relevant person |
| An allegation of abuse is made against the service or anyone working for it | Ofsted and any relevant person |
| A child protection enquiry is started, and when it concludes (with the outcome) | Ofsted and any relevant person |
| A young person is restrained | Ofsted and any relevant person |
| Any other incident relating to a young person that you consider serious | Ofsted and any relevant person |
Each notification must give details of the event, who else you have notified, and the action you have taken. It must be made, or confirmed, in writing.
The Regulations do not define "without delay". In practice, aim to notify on the same day, and never wait for an investigation to finish before you report.
Other notifications under the 2023 Regulations
- Admissions and discharges (Regulation 28): tell the local authority where the accommodation is, in writing and without delay, whenever a young person moves in or leaves. You do not need to if that authority is also the young person's accommodating authority. The notice includes the young person's name, date of birth, legal status, contacts for their accommodating authority and their independent reviewing officer or personal adviser, and whether they have an EHC plan.
- Convictions (Regulation 29): the registered provider, registered service manager, nominated individual, and any director or partner must tell Ofsted in writing, without delay, if they are convicted of a criminal offence. The notice gives the date and place of the conviction, the offence and the penalty.
- Manager absence (Regulation 33): if the registered service manager will be absent for 28 days or more, tell Ofsted at least one month in advance, or within one week if the absence is unplanned. Tell Ofsted again within 7 days of their return.
How to build a notifications system that never misses one
- Keep a single notifications log: the event, the date, who was notified, when, and how.
- Put the Regulation 27 trigger list on every incident form, so staff flag events straight away.
- Make the registered service manager (or a named deputy) responsible for same-day sign-off.
- Include notifications in your out-of-hours on-call duties.
- Each month, check the log against incident records, restraint records and police contacts.
- Review notification practice in your six-monthly quality of support review.
Our recording templates for supported accommodation include a ready-made notifications log and incident form. Independent monthly monitoring visits for supported accommodation will also spot gaps before Ofsted does.
Common notification mistakes
- Waiting for the outcome of an investigation before notifying.
- Telling the placing authority but not Ofsted, or the other way round.
- Phoning but not confirming the notification in writing.
- Notifying when a child protection enquiry starts, but not when it concludes.
- Treating restraint as too minor to report. Every restraint must be notified, and Regulation 22 also requires a written record within 24 hours.
In short: reliable supported accommodation notifications show inspectors that leaders know what is happening in their service. Build a simple system, check it monthly, and see what Ofsted looks for in a supported accommodation inspection for how notifications are tested at inspection.