Children's home run by Worcestershire County Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 1 Registered provider: Worcestershire County Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home was previously operated by a holding company. It was re-registered in September 2024 and is now operated by the local authority.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to care for up to four children with learning disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder. At the time of the inspection, three children were living at the home. All were seen during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager re-registered with Ofsted in September 2024. He holds a level 5 in leadership and management.

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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 outstanding

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home was re-registered in September 2024, no children have left or moved to the home. Children receive excellent care from a committed and dedicated team of staff who are nurturing and caring towards the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A strength of this home is the multi-agency working. Staff have positive relationships with placing authorities, education, speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. All work together to make sure children have all the support they need, and that the approaches to caring for children, such as physiotherapy, communication tools and behaviour management, are consistent in school and at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s attendance at school is excellent. Children enjoy going to school and they are all making progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to learn through play. Activities are linked to the targets set in children’s education, health and care plans. This supports the overall progress of children. By following a consistent approach, one child’s mobility has improved to such an extent that they no longer need to use their walker all the time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staffs approach, nurture and care mean all children make progress in becoming more independent and confident. Staff help children to learn how to prepare simple meals, do their laundry and help with gardening.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff really listen to children. They use a variety of communication methods to gain views from children about all aspects of their care. This can relate to day-to-day choices or gathering views about what children want for their futures. Staff try to meet children’s requests, but if this is not possible they are creative to try and replicate an experience. For example, one child wanted to go to a particular theme park. However, when this was closed, an alternative trip was arranged to a wildlife park, which the child enjoyed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are proactive in supporting children to see those who are important to them. For one child who had not seen their father in some time, staff connected with the father and this has helped the child to rebuild the relationship. The child now sees their father regularly and has attended family events.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

External professionals and children’s families feel children are well cared for. One family member said they would not want their child living anywhere else. Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 3

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

Staff have developed robust plans that tell others about the risks to children along with the actions staff need to take to keep children safe. Staff review these plans regularly, and alert those needed to any changes.

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

Some children have complex health needs. Staff understand these well and have plans in place that tell them what action they need to take if a child has a medical emergency. When medical emergencies have occurred, staff have followed the health protocols well. They have sought medical advice and, where needed, supported children’s ongoing care in hospital.

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

There are few behavioural incidents at the home. Staff’s knowledge of children means that staff are good at defusing situations before they become incidents. Children have not gone missing. However, if children were to go missing from the home, staff understand what action they need to take and have clear missing protocols in place. Staff have not needed to use physical intervention to keep children safe.

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

Fire safety checks have been completed, but some work is needed in relation to fire safety. The loft area and some fire doors need attention. The manager has escalated this, asking that the work be completed as a matter of urgency. However, at the time of this visit, the work had not been done. This work needs to be completed promptly so that risks to children are minimised.

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

On occasion, staff have seen marks and bruises on children. Mostly, they are due to usual childhood activities and play. On two occasions, it was not clear how the child got the marks or bruises, and staff did not use their professional curiosity to find out where the mark or bruises had come from. This omission could mean an environmental risk such as a trip hazard is not made safe, or that a child who has been intentionally harmed is not kept safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

This home is managed by an experienced practitioner who sets high expectations for himself and his staff team. He expects only the best for the children living at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has made sure that staff fully understand children’s health and care needs. When children have been diagnosed with rare syndromes, the manager has researched, sought training from professionals and linked with a support group abroad to gain further knowledge and advice. This has meant staff have extensive knowledge about children’s needs and have adapted their approaches to support the progress of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a stable staff team and recruitment is ongoing. The manager does not rush into recruiting staff and makes sure that staff who want to work at the home will be a positive addition to the staff team. At times, agency staff have been used to support the care of children. The manager carefully monitors those staff. When he felt they were not Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 4 to the standard he expected, the manager changed to another agency. This agency was able to provide staff who had the skills and knowledge needed to provide the high standard of care the manager expects from all staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff, including agency staff, are well supported by the manager. All have regular supervision, which is reflective. Staff are given responsibilities and opportunities to be creative and progress their careers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff say they feel listened to. When they have suggested improvements, these have been taken on board and acted on. For example, staff asked for more face-to-face training as they felt it was more beneficial to their learning, and this has been put in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

All staff working at the home receive a wide range of training. The manager has made sure that agency and catering staff are included in that training. Staff training is comprehensive and varied. The manager arranges for specialists to attend team meetings so that, following this training, staff have time to discuss and reflect on their learning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has extensive monitoring systems, which enable him to monitor all aspects of children’s care. These systems allow him to track children’s progress, look at trends and patterns and identify areas of improvement. When areas for improvement are identified, the manager creates robust action plans to make sure these are made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is great multi-agency working in this home. Professionals are complimentary about the manager and the staff. They spoke of the joined-up working, positive and regular communication, and that staff often went above and beyond to meet children’s needs. Highly effective partnership working helps ensure that children consistently receive good levels of care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 5

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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

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home. (Regulation 25 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

The provider must ensure that they address outstanding recommendations within fire risk assessments promptly. 16 May 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills to recognise and be alert for any signs that might indicate a child is in any way at risk of harm. This specifically relates to staff recording marks and bruises on body maps and using professional curiosity to find out how the child has received the mark or bruise. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.12)

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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: 2812371 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Worcestershire County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Worcestershire County Council, County Hall, Spetchley Road, Worchester, WR5 2NP

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Inspector

Debbie Bond, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2812371 7 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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