That was something I had to remind myself whenever she raised a concern.

She had been working with children for twenty-two years.

She had seen homes that looked charming in photographs fall apart when life became difficult.

‘You run a small carpentry business,’ she said during her first inspection.

‘Who supervises the children when you’re on a job?’

‘I can shift the shop hours.

My foreman, Ben, can manage client deliveries for a while.’

‘For a while isn’t a permanent childcare plan.’