Psychology input to residential care settings

At Gateway Psychology, we work closely with residential care homes to provide highly skilled psychology input and therapeutic intervention for children and young people who live in these settings. We aim to provide the information, knowledge and skills needed for carers to support the young people they care for in a trauma informed way.

Our approach helps to develop carers’ skills in supporting young people to re build the foundations they need to re establish a sense of felt safety, within a network of safe and secure relationships

Our residential care model

At Gateway Psychology, we believe that a child will flourish best in a therapeutic environment, where trauma-informed care is available to them twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

As such, any therapeutic support for a child must first be directed at those in the child’s network of care, with particular focus on the child’s carers.

Structured psychological support in children’s residential care homes

from £40,000-£50,000 per annum

  • For services new to or expanding therapeutic practice
  • Intensive psychologist input to embed trauma-informed care
  • Support toward Therapeutic Residential status
  • Therapeutic oversight across culture, care, and practice
  • Aims to support Ofsted ‘Outstanding’ and Regulation 44
  • Maintains compliance for Therapeutic Residential providers

from £35,000-£40,000 per annum

  • Cost-effective option for services with a solid therapeutic base
  • Regular psychologist input to refine and enhance existing practice
  • Supports improved Ofsted and Regulation 44 outcomes
  • Complements, rather than replaces, your current therapeutic model
  • Focused support within a defined scope and budget

from £27,500-£35,000 per annum

  • Budget-friendly support for experienced therapeutic teams
  • Regular psychologist input to sustain and strengthen existing practice
  • Designed for services confident in trauma-informed care
  • Not intended to support Therapeutic Residential status
  • Can positively influence Ofsted and Regulation 44 outcomes with consistent implementation

Our approach

Research tells us that children who have experienced trauma often need a different type of care to help them with their experiences. This care can be very different to more ‘traditional’ ways of looking after children and young people.

Relationships are the foundation of this type of care, which we call ‘therapeutic caregiving.’ We know that a child or young person’s carers are fundamental to the therapeutic process. Our approach acknowledges how important those relationships are for the children and young people in their care.

In building these relationships and therapeutic caregiving skills, carers can help children and young people build their self-esteem, self-efficacy and self-regulation. With therapeutic caregiving skills, we aim to help carers become an essential part of the therapeutic team around the child.

What about direct therapy for the child or young person?

Direct therapy with the child or young person may be what is needed in due course. However, this cannot be effective without the key components of therapeutic caregiving firmly place.

While every situation is different, we would usually recommend that carers and staff access our residential care package before, or at the very least in addition to, direct therapy work with the child or young person. This can be discussed further as required.

Costings and quotations

  • Please contact us to make an enquiry about residential care packages
  • A quotation will be provided to you with a breakdown of costs
  • Please identify how many homes you would like support for, in addition to the number of children/young people placed in each

Who is Gateway Psychology?

We are an independent private psychology company based in Stoke-on-Trent.

We are contracted by Local Authorities, private individuals, insurance companies and other organisations to provide psychological services, including consultation and training. We have a team of highly specialist clinical psychologists and psychological therapists, who have many years’ experience of working with looked-after children/young people.