A company and its two directors have been convicted and sentenced for running unregistered children’s homes in Kent, in the first successful criminal prosecution of its kind brought by Ofsted.
Catalyst Care Limited and directors Davidson Lynch-Shyllon and Miriam Ekathor pleaded guilty to all charges at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on 9th March 2026, admitting to carrying on and/or managing three illegal children’s homes between October 2022 and April 2025. The homes provided accommodation for nine children.
On 4th August 2026, the company and its directors were fined a total of £92,400, alongside victim surcharges of £2,960 and costs of £17,250. Lynch-Shyllon and Ekathor were also disqualified from carrying on, managing, or holding a financial interest in any children’s home.
Ofsted said the directors had received repeated warnings that they were operating unlawfully, yet continued regardless. During that period, the homes received more than £1.7 million in payments from local authorities placing children there.
All children’s homes in England must register with Ofsted, and operating one without registration is a criminal offence. Unregistered homes sit outside independent regulatory oversight, meaning there is no guarantee of safe care, no assurance over staff vetting or living conditions, and no accountability when things go wrong — with children who have the most complex needs often among those affected.
Ofsted said prosecutions of this kind are difficult to bring given the high legal threshold involved, but this case follows hundreds of warnings issued over the use of unregistered provision, driven partly by a shortage of registered homes with the right location and staff expertise. Illegal providers, Ofsted noted, frequently charge local authorities excessive fees, exploiting a system already under pressure.
New powers under the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act will allow Ofsted to issue financial penalties directly to illegal providers. Backed by additional funding, Ofsted is also significantly expanding its Unregistered Social Care team to identify, investigate and take enforcement action against illegal children’s homes.
His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver said: ‘It is heartbreaking that so many vulnerable children are placed in unregistered children’s homes where we have no assurance that they are safe or receiving the care they need and deserve.
‘This outcome marks an important milestone in our efforts to tackle illegal children’s homes and sends a clear message that operating outside the law will have consequences. We are determined to make increased use of prosecutions to tackle the offenders running these settings. We are currently consulting on proposals to downgrade local authorities who commission these illegal homes.’
Children and Families Minister, Josh MacAlister, said: ‘This prosecution is a welcome start to our wider crackdown on illegal children’s homes, and we have given Ofsted new powers to issue fines under the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act.
‘Vulnerable children deserve to be safe and properly cared for, and I want to see more action of this kind. This case should send a clear signal to anyone running an illegal children’s home: the law will catch up with you and you will face consequences.’
Photo: MChe Lee
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