We're a small, two bed therapeutic children's home in Whitestone Devon. No two days look the same but the same faces are always here, doing the ordinary work of caring for a child properly.
Every young person who comes to us arrives with their own story and their own pace. We lean on trauma informed and relational models like PACE and DDP, but really it comes down to something simpler. Support should feel safe and predictable, not clinical.
We work with young people aged 8 to 17 who have complex emotional and behavioural needs, sometimes alongside learning needs or physical health needs that need extra care. With only two young people living with us at a time, the team gets to know each of them properly rather than stretching thin across a house full of children.
Safety and stability. Predictable routines and boundaries that a child can rely on, even on a hard day.
Relationships. Most of what helps a young person happens in ordinary moments, not planned sessions.
Growth and independence. Each young person works toward their own goals in school, life skills and wellbeing.
Participation. The routines and activities in the house are shaped with the young people living in it, not just for them.
Inclusion. Every child is welcome here as they are, with practice that respects difference rather than working around it.
Trained mental health professionals work alongside our staff team. They don't just visit occasionally, they help shape how we train people, how we respond to a bad night, and what the house actually feels like to live in. That clinical thinking sits underneath PACE and DDP practice so it shows up in daily routines, not just in a policy document.
Therapeutic consultation. Mental health professionals meet regularly with the team, and their input directly shapes how we work.
Reflective practice. Supervision isn't a box to tick. It's where staff actually think through what worked and what didn't.
Everyone, not just some. Trauma-informed practice is expected of the whole team, not left to the people with clinical job titles.
Our home is a family sized detached house in Whitestone. From the outside it looks like any other house on the street, which is exactly the point. Each young person has their own bedroom, there's a flexible room we use for study or quiet time, a shared lounge, a kitchen diner, and gardens to escape into. Staff sleep on site every night.
Our team works 24 hour shifts, so it's the same familiar faces doing the school run, cooking tea and saying goodnight, not a different person each time.
Being part of the Whitestone community means the local school, the GP, the shops and green space are all close by, and a young person doesn't have to lose the ties they already have.
Luke is a qualified social worker with a BSc in Psychology and an MA in Social Work. His career has taken him through children's services and safeguarding, starting out in a children's residential home early on. He set up Flourish because he'd seen what a genuinely stable, therapeutic home can do for a young person, and wanted to build one properly.
Jamie has spent thirteen years working in residential childcare. He's opened and registered two children's homes from scratch and never had one rated below Good by Ofsted. He holds NVQ Levels 3, 4 and 5 in Children's Social Care.
Steve spent years in senior leadership within the utilities sector, leading large teams and steering complex organisations through big decisions. As Non Executive Director, he asks the hard questions of our leadership team and keeps an eye on governance, strategy and the numbers, all in service of doing right by the children in our care.
We're working towards Ofsted registration under the Children's Homes Regulations 2015. We run a 1:1 staffing ratio around the clock, and safeguarding isn't a separate policy sitting in a drawer, it's how the home actually runs day to day.
Safeguarding at the core. Clear policies and regular training, but more importantly, a culture where any concern gets taken seriously straight away.
Governance that means something. Luke leads monthly governance meetings, and Steve provides independent oversight as Chair, so decisions get properly scrutinised.
Never standing still. Staff training and our Statement of Purpose keep evolving, shaping everything from daily routines to long term planning.
Devon and the wider South West don't have enough places for children who need therapeutic, trauma informed residential care. Too often that means a child ends up placed a long way from home, cut off from family and the professionals who already know them. Flourish is a local alternative for young people aged 8 to 17, so they can stay near the people and places that matter to them.
If you're a local authority or placing team looking for a settled home for a young person, get in touch. We'll talk it through honestly, including where we can help and where we can't.
A bit of background on the young person, what they need, and rough timescales is all we need to start with. We'll come back to you quickly, and honestly, about whether we're the right fit.
Family still matters, even when a child can't live at home right now. Where it's right for the young person, we work hard to keep communication open and involve family in the bigger picture.
If you want to work somewhere small, where what you do actually shows up in a young person's life, get in touch through the contact form below.