Supported Accommodation

Welcome to Oaktree Supported Accommodation Services (OSAS). We provide high-quality, staffed supported accommodation for young people aged 16–25. Our service is designed to bridge the gap between care and independent living, focusing on empowering young people to develop essential life skills, emotional resilience, and pathways into education, training, or employment.

Our Admissions Criteria
We look at each young person’s overall profile rather than isolated past events. We champion a needs-led, supportive approach to risk management.

Suitable Placements
We routinely welcome and support young people presenting with:

• Social, emotional, or behavioural challenges.
• Trauma or attachment-related needs.
• Low-to-moderate histories of missing episodes or substance misuse.
• A general readiness to engage with a staffed independence model (rather than continuous care supervision).

Placements Not Typically Suitable
Because we operate a support and independence framework rather than a secure care provision, we are generally unable to accommodate individuals who require:

• Continuous 1:1 supervision or waking-night staff exclusively assigned to manage high risk.
• Routine physical intervention strategies or environmental restrictions.
• Specialist, intensive psychiatric or medical care that cannot be managed in a community setting.

The 8-Stage Referral Journey
To ensure every placement is safe, stable, and transparent, we follow a structured 8-stage evaluation pathway:
1 Referral Received ➔ 2 Initial Screening ➔ 3 Information Review ➔ 4 Compatibility Check
➔ 5 Pre-Admission Assessment ➔ 6 Visit & Introduction ➔ 7 Final Approval ➔ 8 Admission Coordinated

1. Receipt of Referral: Local authorities submit standard placement requests, history, and current support plans.
2. Initial Screening: We verify whether the young person’s needs align broadly with a supported accommodation model.
3. Information Review & Clarification: We collaborate with social care teams to ensure all risk assessments and histories are comprehensive and transparent.
4. Compatibility & Impact Assessment: Crucially, we evaluate how a new arrival will affect the safety, dynamics, and well-being of the young people currently residing in the home.
5. Pre-Admission Assessment: A detailed support structure and risk-mitigation plan are mapped out.
6. Visit and Introduction: Whenever circumstances allow, planned admissions include a property visit to meet staff, view the accommodation, and ease anxieties.
7. Decision & Approval: The formal placement decision is finalised by our service leadership.
8. Admission Planning: Move-in dates are coordinated, roles are clarified, and a settling-in review period begins.

Emergency Placements & Step-Down Pathways

Emergency Admissions
We understand that crises happen. OSAS can accommodate emergency placements on a case-by-case basis, provided we can obtain sufficient immediate information to guarantee the safety of the incoming resident and our current household. All emergency placements are subject to a mandatory 72-hour and 14-day review to ensure the setting remains safe and supportive for the long term.

Step-Down & Solo Provision
For young people already within our service who are demonstrating excellent progress in their independence skills, or who require a lower-stimulation, solo environment to thrive, we offer internal step-down pathways. These transitions are designed to prepare young people for successful, permanent moves into fully independent tenancies.

Contact Our Placements Team
If you are a local authority representative or social care professional looking to discuss a referral, please contact our placement desk directly at referrals@oaktreeeducation.co.uk. for immediate space availability and property profiles.