Children's Home run by Blue Kite Children Care Limited in Manchester

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 1 Blue Kite Children Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private organisation and is registered to care for up to five children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the visit, four children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager post is currently vacant.

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This monitoring visit

The visit was carried out following an anonymous complaint raising concerns about the safety and welfare of children in the home. Specific concerns relate to children’s identified needs not being well managed by staff, children not having access to food, and furniture in the home not being fit for purpose.

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This monitoring visit

At the time of the visit, four children were living at the home. One child was at school, and the other was spending time with family. Two children were in the home at different stages of the visit. The inspector spoke to one child and observed both children with the staff. These interactions were positive.

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This monitoring visit

The home continues to be managed by the home’s manager, who is supported by two deputy managers. Newly appointed staff with varied experience have started to work in the home, alongside agency and existing staff members.

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This monitoring visit

The home is generally well presented, and furniture in the communal areas is of a good and acceptable standard. On inspection, there was enough food in home.

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This monitoring visit

One child’s bedroom was extremely messy. There were clothes over the floor and empty food packets as well as food in the bedroom. Bedroom furniture in the main was in a good state of repair. However, a wardrobe in one child’s bedroom was Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 2 broken. There was also damage to the wall, which leaders and managers attributed to the wardrobe being moved.

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This monitoring visit

There is evidence of good partnership working with professionals. Leaders and managers regularly liaise with mental health professionals and the social work team, to ensure that there is a cohesive approach to caring for children.

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This monitoring visit

There is not a consistent approach to safeguarding in the home. For example, records sampled demonstrate that the response to children going missing from home is effective. Staff search for children and work with the police to support their swift return to the home. However, records do not demonstrate that independent return home interviews are always taking place. Furthermore, when significant information about the welfare of children is shared with leaders and managers, this is not documented or shared among the staff team to ensure that safety planning around new and emerging risks can be carried out. Despite this incident occurring several days prior to the monitoring visit, the manager was unable to confirm which staff member received this information, and what action she planned to take to ensure that similar mistakes do not happen in the future.

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This monitoring visit

Ineffective management of the day-to-day running of the home has resulted in shortfalls in staff practice. There is a variable understanding of children’s needs. This has resulted in children’s risks not always being effectively managed. For example, despite there being a current risk around a child’s misuse of aerosols, a new staff member did not prevent a child from making this purchase, which the child then used to self-harm. A requirement has been raised in relation to this.

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This monitoring visit

The visit was also carried out to monitor the restriction of accommodation notice. No children have moved into the home since the previous visit on 31 January 2025. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 3

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 05/06/2024 Full Good 20/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 05/07/2023 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 4

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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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vii)(ix)). 24 December 2024

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— 29 April 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 5 that staff—

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(d)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that they use monitoring systems to regularly review the quality of care afforded to children.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that the day- to-day practice of new staff members is closely monitored to ensure that the quality of care provided to children is not compromised. 29 April 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 6 Furthermore, leaders and managers must ensure that staff liaise with partners to ensure that there is a multi-agency approach to meeting children’s needs.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s parents, relatives and friends, is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)(d)).

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must consider more effectively how to meet the needs of children admitted into the home and how new admissions may impact on children already living in the home.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that children are supported to arrive at and leave the home in a planned and positive way. 24 December 2024 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when children go missing from home they are always offered an independent return home interview upon their return. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30).  The registered person should ensure that children are supported and encouraged to display positive behaviour, particularly around sharing food with other children living in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.11).  The registered person should ensure that following a physical restraint, children have the opportunity to take part in a debrief about the incident with someone who was not involved in the restraint. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.50).

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blue Kite Children Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: West Midlands House Ltd, Gipsy Lane, Willenhall WV13 2HA

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Inspector

Chibuzo Otache, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2718067 9 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspector

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