Changing Outcomes was established in 2017 by Andrew Roberts.
The focus of the business in its infancy was to solely provide high quality Regulation 44 / Independent visits.
Back then, the goal was to provide high-quality Regulation 44 / Independent Visits to a small number of children’s homes. Unexpectedly, this passion ended up leading to exponential growth and transformed Changing Outcomes from a one-man band into one of the most successful and longstanding children’s home consultancy companies in the country.
Vickie Healey has been an integral part of this journey and does an amazing job as Managing Director. Besides her leadership, all of our employees and contractors have and continue to shape our direction as a company.
Like much of what we do, our mission statement was very much a joint effort, born out of reflexions about who we are, what we believe in, and what we strive for.
Mission Statement
“Our mission is to empower children’s homes to create safe and nurturing environments where every child can thrive. We achieve this by providing tailored and sustainable solutions that are always in the best interests of the children.
We believe children’s homes should be therapeutically informed, where young people feel truly understood and supported. Guided by a strengths based approach and the principles of PACE, we focus on fostering connections that nurture trust, resilience, and belonging.”
An Introduction to Changing Outcomes
Andrew Roberts
Company Director
Andrew has been involved in the social care sector for over 20 years and has worked across a range of settings during this time. He has a background in Psychology and whilst initially wanting a career in this field, a series of events led him into residential childcare. Andrew is extremely grateful that it did as he feels there’s so much important work to be done with young people and their families, outside of the clinical environment.
Andrew’s final role prior to setting up Changing Outcomes in 2017 was as a registered manager of a children’s home and he has since been a Responsible Individual. Changing Outcomes is now one of the most successful and well respected names in the industry, conducting Reg 44’s, mock Ofsted inspections, bespoke training, and mentoring for leaders and managers across the country.
Andrew has been specialising in setting up new children’s homes for a number of years now and oversees the consultancy side of operations.
Vickie Healey
Company Director
I have worked with young people across a variety of settings for almost for 20 years. The diverse nature of my experiences, which have included roles in detached youth work, therapeutic communities, children’s homes, semi-independent homes, and an adolescent mental health hospital, has allowed me to continually develop my knowledge of the sector.
I have been in senior management positions since 2014 and have worked as a home manager 4 times previously. I am extremely passionate about collaborative working and joined Changing Outcomes in 2017 to help support providers with their care of vulnerable children and young people. I became the managing Director of the company in 2021 and currently oversee the smooth running of all Regulation 44 visits.
Sophie Hallam
Business Support Manager
I have worked in residential childcare for over 12 years, progressing through from a Support Worker to a Registered Manager. I have worked in a variety of services and supported children with a range of needs including emotional and behavioural difficulties, mental health and learning disabilities. The home I managed was a four bedded single sex home, for children at high risk of exploitation. During my time there, we consistently achieved a ‘Good’ rating with Ofsted with ‘Outstanding’ outcomes in both safeguarding and leadership and management, of which I am extremely proud. I was continuously looking for ways to improve the service we provided and achieve the best possible outcomes for the children we cared for.
After starting a family, I moved on to join Changing Outcomes where I initially conducted Regulation 44 inspections for a variety of services. I have a high level of attention to detail and aim to provide balanced and reliable external monitoring, supporting homes to provide quality practice, achieve high standards and improve outcomes for children. More recently, I have moved into my current position as Business Support Manager where I now support with the operational development across the organisation.
Amy Bicknell
Training Co-Ordinator and Children’s Home Consultant
With seven years experience in children’s residential care, specialising in supporting children with Autism and complex communication needs, I began my career as a support worker and progressed quickly into management, eventually becoming a Registered Manager for a large provider of autism specialist and SEN children’s homes. One of my proudest achievements was taking over a service operating under two compliance notices and a restriction on accommodation. Through focused leadership, a therapeutic child centred approach and a commitment to quality, I successfully transformed the home within just 3 months, securing a ‘Good’ Ofsted rating.
In my Regulation 44 work with Changing Outcomes, I draw heavily on my lived experience as a former Registered Manager. I understand the day to day pressures that residential teams face, from regulatory expectations to supporting children through moments of high emotion or crisis. This perspective allows me to approach visits with empathy, balance, and professionalism. I take a strengths based approach, celebrating what homes do well, while offering clear, realistic and supportive recommendations for improvement.
As a Training Co-ordinator, I take pride in shaping training programmes that are practical, engaging, and tailored to the realities of residential care, designed not only to enhance staff confidence, but to drive high quality practice and improve outcomes for children and young people.
Gavin Woods
Children’s Home Consultant
I have been involved in supporting young people across a variety of settings, including education, the church, the youth service, and residential care for the last 25 years. Within that time, I have acted as a Head of Care for a Residential Special School, and been a Registered Manager for a children’s home, including a multi-home site, achieving Good and Outstanding outcomes along the way. Since 2021, I have been working for Changing Outcomes, where I have been involved in conducting Reg 44 Visits for children’s homes, NMS3 visits for Residential Special Schools, and a range of supportive tasks for clients on request.
I have a twin passion for the roles I complete. I want to assist establishments to be the best they can, so that the experience for the young people residing within their care is as supportive, productive, and consistent as possible. I also have a desire to assist new or struggling managers of such homes to understand their roles and responsibilities, and support and encourage them to become confident and resilient in their roles, which in turn also benefits the young people living there.
Kirstie Robinson
Children’s Home Consultant
I have spent over 19 years working in children’s residential care and feel incredibly proud of the journey this sector has taken me on. Over the years I have held a variety of roles including Support Worker, Registered Manager, Residential Compliance Manager, and Area Manager, across both Learning Disability (LD) and Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (EBD) settings.
One of the highlights of my career was leading a home from Requires Improvement to Outstanding within just two full Ofsted inspections. This success gave me the opportunity to support other homes across my region, helping them to grow, develop, and achieve similar outcomes. Every home I have managed or overseen has gone on to achieve a Good or Outstanding rating, which is something I am extremely proud of.
I have also been honoured to be a finalist on two occasions in the national awards for Registered Manager of the Year and for Outstanding Contributions to the sector. These experiences have been humbling and have further strengthened my passion for driving high-quality care and celebrating the dedication of those who work in this field.
Of course, these achievements have not come without their challenges. Having experienced the day-to-day realities of the work, I truly understand the pressures that adults and providers face. That is why I am passionate about supporting teams to build on their strengths, overcome challenges and deliver the very best care for the young people they support.
At the heart of everything I do is the belief that every young person should feel safe, loved and that they belong. I always make sure their voices are heard and that their progress, no matter how small, is recognised and celebrated.
My experience and passion for this work have shaped me into a fair, relatable, and empathetic visitor who always aims to leave a positive impact wherever I go.
Annabel Wood
Children’s Home Consultant
I have worked with young people across a range of different settings for the last 10 years and have two degrees in psychology, which I completed prior to starting my career in the social care sector. My role prior to starting to work for Changing Outcomes, was working as a dual home registered manager, setting up two new children’s homes and developing two new staffing teams. Prior to this, I worked as a registered manager in a 6-bedded home, achieving Good and Outstanding outcomes, from the home being graded as “requiring improvements to be good” when I first took over the registration.
My work with Changing Outcomes involves conducting Reg 44 visits for children’s homes, supporting providers with their safer recruitment processes, and writing location risk assessments. I am passionate about supporting providers with their care of children and young people, so that positive outcomes can be achieved.
Get in touch!
If you want to work with children’s home consultants who go the extra mile to ensure a high standard of care, get in touch with us today.
