Spencer Whatmore joined us in April as the Registered Manager for Pudbrooke, a 3-bedded residential children’s home in Southampton. Previously owned by another provider, Pudbrooke joined the Beaufort family officially through an acquisition process on 1st October 2026, which meant that many of the existing team joined us through the TUPE process, along with four new starters. Here, Spencer tells us about himself, his role, his team and plans for the future of Pudbrooke.
How long have you been with Beaufort?
I’ve been with Beaufort for 6 months. During this time, I’ve been working through my induction and training for the acquisition of Pudbrooke, which became part of the Beaufort family on 01 October 2026 and I have proudly and officially started as the Registered Manager.
What was your motivation for joining us?
I used to run a young people’s service for 16+ which included supporting young people who had been in the care system. Unfortunately, due to their lack of life skills or ‘life development’ I found a lot of young people couldn’t cope – they were unable to forward plan and look forward to their future. This got me thinking about what was really going on in the world of children’s homes and I was inspired to see if my skills and passion could make a difference at this level.
How has Beaufort met your expectations so far?
Beaufort has exceeded my expectations and I feel that our values are exactly mirrored. I was worried about the state of children’s homes and the perceived lack of development for children and young people but I couldn’t be more wrong when it comes to Beaufort. We’re passionate about leading with therapeutic care, underpinned by the principles of PACE (playful, accepting, curious, empathetic) and it is really pleasing to see that my ideas of supporting children are reflected in Beaufort’s: ultimately, to see children equipped with the life skills and the emotional strength to succeed. My voice is heard and my ideas are accepted; I feel I can make a huge and positive difference.
What have you enjoyed the most?
I’ve had a long lead up to the role before becoming the Registered Manager officially. It’s given me the opportunity to embed into Beaufort, work at different homes and alongside different managers, all of whom have their own style and approaches.
A highlight has been meeting the new team at Pudbrooke and for weeks now, we have been on the journey to become one team. I am confident that together we will create a children’s home that we can all be proud of and ensure a smooth transition for our children as we grow further.
Since 1st October 2026 you are officially the Registered Manager of Pudbooke – what exciting plans do you have for the home?
Its exciting to start the journey acquiring the home and building the relationships. We have a great opportunity to build a team of highly skilled therapeutic ‘parents’ – role models for our children. Its great that we’ve started the journey together and I believe this will make us a highly bonded team as we all contribute to the overall story of Pudbrooke.
Our vision for the home is that Pudbrooke is a homely place, where love lives, people are heard, and relationships are strong. Children feel safe, cared for and supported so they can thrive and move on from us fully ready for the next step in their journey.
The near future is all about building the relationships, growing the home and making it a busy and happy place.
My business aims are simple: to manage and develop our amazing team, creating a harmonious home where we will all work together to provide the highest quality standards of childcare, and filling the home with children to create a loving, joyful and busy home.
Tell us about Pudbrooke and what makes it unique and special?
Firstly, I’d like to give a shout out to a team that are behind the scenes doing excellent work – our Estates team especially. Pudbrooke has undergone a major refurbishment over the past few months in readiness for our takeover, and the home is unrecognisable. The love, care and dedication that this team has shown is unrivalled by any I’ve known, and their nature and focus means they have great relationship with the children too, who feel they have contributed to the end result, choosing colours, furniture etc. The existing Pudbrooke team have worked with us through all the changes, seeing the transformation from start to finish and I think they are proud of the end result. The team understand that there is a genuine commitment from Beaufort with the focus being ‘child first’ and a willingness to invest in our homes.
Secondly, it’s the people and the process we’ve gone through already, bringing over established members of the team through the TUPE process, and welcoming new starters. I am looking forward to being a part of and helping these relationships flourish over the next few weeks. We have a unique set of circumstances with a dedicated training plan that spans the next 3 weeks. This is unusual and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to be part of everyone’s first days and weeks as we settle as a new team – I am confident this will set us all up for success.
The children that live with us have experienced various traumatic events in their lives. If you could wave a magic wand and money was no object, what would you like to do for the children at Pudbrooke?
How do I even answer this? With a magic wand, I’d invent a time machine and become a ‘corrector of injustice’ so that the children would never have to experience their pain. Even better, I’d wave that magic wand and say, “No more abuse or neglect” (or war or conflict etc…etc….).
What’s still to achieve personally / professionally?
I left a ‘Head of Service’ role, running 14 homes from 2 to 17 beds, to become a manager of one home and I am keen to develop and progress with Beaufort at the right pace because I am ambitious and forward thinking.
Each new child will present a new set of goals and potential achievements and I am keen to see where this takes me and the team.
As a personal goal, I’d like to continue teaching dance until I’m at least 55 as this is my passion.
We know you love a bit of dancing, what moves will we see at the Christmas party?
You may see some top rock, footwork, a coin drop and a freeze. I can do a side spin for at least 20 seconds!
You definitely won’t see ‘air flares’ due to my age!
Tell us a fun fact to finish!
I once taught a workshop in a place where the first Trainspotting film was filmed; that was cool. Oh, and I was on the Big Breakfast twice, back in the day when the presenters were Johnny Vaughan and Denise Van Outen. I was showcasing some dance moves and I accidentally kicked a member of TV’s Hollyoaks cast on the back of the leg coming out of a head spin, live on TV! Awkward!