About Us

Welcome to The Children’s Homes Association.

About us

For approaching 30 years, as the membership body for children’s homes in England and Wales, our organisation has worked to drive excellence in residential child care through innovation, collaboration and sector leadership.

The Children’s Homes Association represents residential child care providers of all sizes. Some members operate just one or two children’s homes, whilst others have many homes across a wide geographic area. But what all our members have in common is a commitment to working together, striving for exemplary residential child care and the best possible outcomes for children and young people.

Our role is to give each and every children’s home provider a voice. We give our members an opportunity to share learning and ideas, to hear and act on what those with expertise through care experience tell us, to be supported through challenges, and to be represented through our important work with stakeholders across Government, local authorities and regulators.

Our story

Our organisation was originally founded as a collaboration of like-minded providers seeking to share best practice and support each other – with the aim of providing the best possible care to children and young people. We have grown to become the respected voice of the residential childcare sector, working directly with stakeholders and government to guide and inform policy and ensure that organisations providing care are being heard.

In 2019, a journey of transformation began which saw our membership grow to include hundreds of children’s homes throughout England and Wales, across the public, independent and charity sectors. As a member-led organisation, we recognised the importance of working together as one sector, bringing public, independent and charity-led providers together with one shared vision of exemplary residential child care.

Welcoming members from across the public, independent and charity sectors, we continue to fearlessly promote the interests of children and young people, and to ensure that every residential childcare provider, from every corner of the sector, has a voice and an ability to get the support they need to do the very best for every individual in their care.

Every member of The CHA has an equal voice. A provider with one children’s home has the same voting rights as a large organisation with multiple homes and all members make a commitment to our child-centred philosophy and vision for exemplary childcare.