GUIDE
How to register a children’s home: the SC1 and SC2 forms
Registering a children’s home with Ofsted runs on two forms, a defined set of documents, and an assessment of the people and the premises. Here is how the process works.
Last reviewed: 05 June 2026
What registration is, and why it is not optional
A children’s home in England must be registered with Ofsted before it operates. Registration is granted under the Care Standards Act 2000 and governed by the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015, and operating without it is not an option, it is unlawful. The registration certificate is specific: it names the registered provider, the registered manager, the maximum number of children, and any conditions. You cannot take a placement that falls outside its terms, so the application has to describe the home you will actually run.
The SC1 and SC2 forms
Registration runs on two forms. The SC1 is the application to register the service itself, completed by the provider and submitted online; it covers details of the home, how it will run, financial viability, and your policies. The SC2 is a personal form, titled an application to be associated with a children’s social care service, and it has to be completed by everyone in a governance or management role, the proposed registered manager, the responsible individual, and any company directors or partners. Each SC2 carries that person’s DBS check, work history, and professional references. Crucially, Ofsted will not treat your application as submitted until the SC1 and every required SC2 are in.
Registers the home itself; submitted online.
One per person in a governance role.
Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015.
The documents you need
Alongside the forms, Ofsted requires a defined set of documents, and assembling them is the single largest piece of work in the process. At the centre is your Statement of Purpose, which must be unique to your home and meet the requirements of the 2015 Regulations, Ofsted weighs its quality when judging your fitness. With it come your Children’s Guide (a child-friendly version of the Statement of Purpose), your safeguarding policy, your behaviour management policy covering de-escalation and the lawful use of restraint, and the rest of a policy suite that has to be specific to your home. Generic, downloaded documents are spotted immediately and are a fast route to rejection.
What happens after you apply
Once your SC1, your SC2 forms, and your documents are submitted, Ofsted reviews the application, this initial review takes a few weeks, and either accepts it or comes back with actions. After acceptance, Ofsted carries out checks on the people connected to the home and arranges a pre-registration visit to the premises, alongside a fitness interview with the registered manager and the responsible individual. They have to demonstrate a genuine understanding of the Children’s Homes Regulations, the Quality Standards, safeguarding, and how they will run the home. If Ofsted is satisfied with the people, the premises, and the documents, registration is granted.
How long it takes
Ofsted’s stated aim is to decide within a set number of days of a complete application, but in practice, with the assessment, the interview, and the current volume of children’s social care applications, registering a children’s home realistically takes several months, often six to twelve. A complete, high-quality application is what keeps yours moving. See how long it takes for the full timeline.
We build the whole application
We prepare your SC1, guide your team through their SC2 forms, write your home-specific documentation, and prepare your registered manager and responsible individual for the fitness interview, as part of building your whole children’s home business.
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