Children's home run by Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 1 Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a large national provider of children’s homes. It provides care for up to three children with learning disabilities and autism.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since December 2024 and holds a leadership and management qualification at level 5.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/07/2023 Full Good 07/06/2022 Full Good 22/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/08/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has left the home and moved into supported accommodation. Two children who remain in the home are settled and making progress in areas that are specific to their different needs. This is largely due to the positive relationships that are enjoyed by staff and children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good, individualised care from staff who understand their needs well. Children benefit from positive experiences in the home and make good developmental progress. Notable achievements include improved personal care skills, mobility and communication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s healthcare needs are clearly identified within individual healthcare plans. Staff receive comprehensive training to enable them to meet children’s complex needs. This includes training in the safe administration and recording of medication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child is attending school on a full-time basis. Another child has a tutor who completes work with him. In addition to this work, staff offer incentives to support him with educational activities in and outside of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand how children communicate their needs. Staff are creative and use a range of resources to ascertain children’s wishes and feelings. Children learn to use tools such as social stories, symbols and objects of reference. They use them to choose the activities they want to do and for menu planning. Children learn that their views are important and that they can influence how they are cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote family time for children. They organise and support visits to children’s home areas and welcome families to the home. Because of this, children can maintain and develop those relationships that are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop life skills in readiness for adulthood. They are provided with opportunities to develop new skills, such as cooking and personal care, with good support and encouragement from staff. This helps children to learn the necessary skills that will enable them to move successfully into adulthood.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Risks for children are clearly identified and well assessed. This is reflected in children’s behaviour support plans and risk assessments. Records are clear and include known trigger points that may heighten children’s behaviour and the strategies that staff should use to manage these.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff understand the unique needs of the children in their care. They treat them with Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 4 dignity and respect, and relationships are built on trust. Because of this, staff know how best to respond to each child to deescalate any incidents. Staff consistently encourage and reinforce positive behaviours and support children to manage their anxieties and behaviours, which positively influence their relationships in the home.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children are encouraged to take age-appropriate, managed risks. Well-managed exposure to a range of experiences helps children to develop their independence skills so that they can lead fulfilling lives.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children living at the home have complex needs and require constant care and greater levels of supervision. There are no incidents of children going missing from the home. Staff receive regular training in safeguarding and discuss their learning and understanding of safeguarding practices in their supervision meetings. This ensures that safeguarding practice remains a priority of the home.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The manager ensures that vetting checks are completed before staff begin employment. This helps to keep children safe from unsuitable people having access to them.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff complete regular health and safety checks and follow a range of safety procedures to protect children from potential hazards. These include fire drills to ensure that children know what to do in case of fire.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff team are committed to ensuring that children enjoy a good standard of care and have a memorable experience of living at this home. They are proud to work at this home and know that they make a difference to children’s lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are happy with the support that they receive from the manager. This includes regular supervision sessions, which allow them to discuss their work, reflect on their practice and continue to learn and develop. Staff have an induction into the home when they first start in their role. There is a positive culture for staff, led by the supportive manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive a range of mandatory and specialist training to meet the complex needs of the children in their care. This ensures that staff continue to improve their knowledge and skills for their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular team meetings and daily handovers keep staff informed about children’s daily activities and progress. This supports staff’s care practice in delivering a service for children who present with diverse needs and challenges.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An independent visitor carries out external monitoring of the home every month. While these are completed within timeframes, the reports do not regularly contain the views of staff. This does not ensure that Ofsted has a good overview of the home between inspections. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 5 The manager submitted their six-month review of the quality of care at the home to Ofsted. However, the report fails to capture staff or children’s views. This means that children’s and staff’s views do not help to influence the decisions on the running of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a strong advocate for children. The manager and staff have established good working relationships with other professionals, such as teachers and social workers. Effective communication ensures that information is shared quickly, which helps to keep children safe. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit ("the independent person’s report") which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the views of staff are included in the report. 29 January 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every 6 months. 29 January 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 7 In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review ("the quality of care review report").

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4) (5))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that the review of care report includes the views of children and staff.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 4AH

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Inspector

Dave Carrigan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1249031 9 achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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