TL;DR:
Regulation 40 requires registered children’s homes in England to notify Ofsted and relevant people about specified serious events without delay. A child’s death must be reported immediately. Other notifications should be made without delay and, where possible, within 24 hours. The notification should explain what happened, who else was told and what action the home took.
Images in this guide are AI-generated illustrations, not photographs of Welcare premises or evidence of a particular home’s facilities.
Introduction
Serious incident notifications help Ofsted and other responsible organisations understand risks to children between inspections. They are not a substitute for emergency action, safeguarding referrals or communication with a child’s placing authority. Those actions should happen first when a child needs protection or medical help.
This guide explains the events covered by Regulation 40 of the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015, how to decide whether an incident is serious and what a useful notification should contain. It is written for providers, registered managers and residential childcare staff in England.
What Is a Regulation 40 Notification?
A Regulation 40 notification is a written report to His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, which in practice means Ofsted, about a serious event involving a child or the home. The regulation also requires notification to each other relevant person, depending on the event and the child’s circumstances.
The registered person remains accountable for making sure the notification is sent. A home can have a clear delegated process so that an authorised manager submits it promptly, but responsibility cannot disappear into an unclear on-call arrangement.
Events That Must Be Reported
Children’s homes and secure children’s homes must notify Ofsted about the following events:
- The death of a child
- A referral of a person working in the home under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
- Known or suspected sexual exploitation involving a child
- A serious incident involving a child that required police involvement
- An allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there
- The start of a child protection enquiry involving a child
- The conclusion of that enquiry, including its outcome
- Any other incident relating to a child that the registered person considers serious
Ofsted’s reporting guidance also specifically instructs secure children’s homes to report serious accidents or injuries, absconding and contact prohibited by the child’s plan. Read those secure-setting instructions alongside Regulation 40, rather than assuming the regulation contains a separate statutory list with exactly the same wording.
The list includes a professional judgement category: any other incident considered serious. This allows homes to notify events that do not fit a label but may affect a child’s safety, welfare or the regulator’s view of the service.
When to Notify Ofsted
The legal wording is “without delay”. Ofsted’s current reporting guidance says a child’s death should be reported immediately. All other incident reports should be made without delay and, where possible, within 24 hours. Ofsted recognises that gathering essential information can sometimes take longer, but a home should not wait for every investigation to finish before making the initial notification.
If facts are uncertain, the notification can state what is known, what remains unconfirmed and what enquiries are underway. Accuracy matters, but uncertainty should not become a reason for avoidable delay.
Deciding Whether an Incident Is Serious
Not every accident, disagreement, missing episode or police contact automatically needs a Regulation 40 notification. The registered person should consider the context and impact.
Useful questions include:
- Was a child harmed or at significant risk of harm?
- Was emergency medical treatment needed?
- Does the event suggest abuse, exploitation or a safeguarding failure?
- Was police involvement serious, rather than routine or precautionary?
- Is there a pattern that changes the risk picture?
- Could the event significantly affect the operation or reputation of the home?
- Would Ofsted reasonably need the information to monitor children’s safety and the home’s compliance?
The decision and rationale should be recorded. When the position is finely balanced, managers should prioritise children’s welfare, consult the current Ofsted guidance and seek appropriate professional advice. Routine over-notification can hide important events, while under-notification prevents effective regulatory oversight.
Who Else May Need to Be Told?
Regulation 40 refers to each other relevant person, and different events can trigger additional duties. The child’s placing authority and social worker will often need prompt information. Depending on the circumstances, this may also include parents, the local authority where the home is located, the local authority designated officer, police, health services, the Disclosure and Barring Service or another safeguarding body.
For a child’s death, Regulation 40(1) expressly includes Ofsted, the placing authority, the Secretary of State if not the placing authority, the home’s local authority if different, the integrated care board for the home’s area, and each other relevant person. For a child accommodated in a secure children’s home, it also includes the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.
A notification to Ofsted does not complete every other duty. The home should follow the child’s plan, local safeguarding procedures, Working Together to Safeguard Children and any event-specific legal requirements.
What the Notification Should Contain
Regulation 40 requires details of the matter, the people or organisations notified and the actions taken by the registered person.
A clear report usually covers:
- The date, time and location of the event
- A factual chronology of what happened
- The child’s immediate safety and welfare
- Injuries, healthcare or emergency action
- Who was informed, when and by whom
- Safeguarding, police or child protection action
- The home’s immediate response and management oversight
- Known contributing factors and relevant context
- Information that is still being checked
- Planned follow-up, including support for the child and learning review
Use neutral, child-centred language. Separate observed facts from reported accounts and professional judgement. Include enough context to make the event understandable without copying unnecessary personal information or unrelated case history.
Updating a Notification
Ofsted’s children’s social care notification guidance distinguishes an update from a new report. Further information about a previously notified incident should normally be emailed to the inspector, rather than submitted as another notification form.
A child protection enquiry is the important exception: notify both its start and its conclusion using the form, and include the original notification reference when reporting the conclusion. Keep the home’s records aligned with what was sent and record any advice received.
Do not wait for proof before reporting a notifiable allegation. State that it is an allegation, explain the immediate protective action and distinguish confirmed facts from accounts still being investigated. Notification does not replace the safeguarding referral or determine whether the allegation is substantiated.
Immediate Response Comes Before the Form
In an emergency, staff should protect life, obtain medical help, call the police when necessary and follow safeguarding procedures. The notification follows those actions. A well-written report cannot compensate for a delayed protective response.
Children should receive clear, age-appropriate information about what happens next. Their views should be sought and recorded when safe and appropriate. Staff involved may also need debriefing, supervision and support, but this should not replace an objective management review.
Recording, Reviewing and Learning
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Common weaknesses include waiting for an investigation to end, sending a vague account, failing to identify who else was notified, omitting the child’s current safety, using emotive language and treating the notification as the full safeguarding response. Another mistake is submitting a new serious incident form simply to update an existing report when Ofsted’s current guidance provides a separate update route.
Final Thoughts
A good Regulation 40 process is prompt, factual and connected to real safeguarding action. The goal is not to report every difficult moment. It is to make sure serious events reach the right people quickly, children receive the support they need and leaders use each event to strengthen care.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Ofsted says a child's death should be reported immediately. Other incidents should be reported without delay and, where possible, within 24 hours, recognising that essential information may sometimes take longer to gather.
No. Regulation 40 covers an incident requiring police involvement that the registered person considers serious. The context, risk, impact and reason for police involvement should be assessed and the decision recorded.
No. The initial notification should be sent without delay using the facts available. The start and conclusion of a child protection enquiry are both reportable events under the regulation.
No. The home must still take emergency, safeguarding, medical and multi-agency action and notify other relevant people or bodies as required.
The registered person is responsible for compliance. The practical task may be delegated through a clear management procedure, including out-of-hours arrangements, but accountability remains with the registered person.