Children's Home run by Within Reach Services Limited in Gloucestershire

Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 1 Registered provider: Within Reach Services 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

This home is run by a private provider and is registered to provide care for two children. At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Information about this children's home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in November 2024, when the home was registered. At the time of the inspection, the manager was not present, and the home was being overseen by the organisation’s area manager, who is currently also the registered manager for another home within the organisation.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 2

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improvement to be good

The experiences of children living at this home have been negatively impacted by multiple changes to the staff team. Children have not always received consistent care from adults who they know or have had the opportunity to develop a trusting relationship with. This has also meant that staff have not all been able to form a deeper understanding of children’s individual needs, likes and dislikes.

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improvement to be good

Children’s views about their home and the care they receive are sought regularly by staff and managers. However, children have reported feeling as though they do not always understand why decisions have been made about their care. One child also said that when they raise concerns, they are unsure about what action has been taken to address these.

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improvement to be good

Children living at this home are not yet attending full-time education. Staff and managers have not previously shown sufficient aspiration for children regarding their education. Children have not consistently been encouraged to take part in educational activities or maintain appropriate routines when they are not in school. Managers have not taken swift enough action to challenge and escalate when suitable educational arrangements are not in place for children.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health needs are generally well met. For one child, staff and managers worked well to support and prepare them to attend a review for their medication, which is something they had previously found difficult to do. As a result, this child’s sleep and general well-being have improved.

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improvement to be good

Staff encourage children to take part in activities they enjoy and to pursue their individual interests. For example, staff support one child to take part in drama and music groups and events locally, which have been positive experiences for them.

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improvement to be good

The home environment is clean and generally maintained to a good standard. Children’s bedrooms are highly personalised to their individual tastes and interests. Due to the needs of the children who live here, several restrictive practices are in place across the home. For example, plastic cutlery and crockery are in use and children do not have free access to their clothing and toiletries. Not all restrictions in place have clear mechanisms or timescales for review recorded.

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improvement to be good

This home specialises in providing care to children with additional, significant emotional and behavioural needs. Deprivation of liberty safeguards are in place for both children who live here. When incidents take place, these are often significant. Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 3 There have been 179 incidents of restraint since the home has opened. Restraint has been used in appropriate circumstances to prevent serious harm to the children or to others. When incidents take place, staff take appropriate and effective action to safeguard children. When children go missing, staff follow them, search for them and report them missing in a timely way. When children self-harm, staff provide appropriate and empathetic responses. However, records of incidents are not of sufficient quality. For example, records of restraint do not always contain all the required information, including what action has been taken to help children to calm and to possibly prevent a

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improvement to be good

Staff have not consistently been given the opportunity to consider and reflect on their practice after incidents. Management oversight on incident reports has also not been consistent or robust enough. As a result, opportunities to identify and address practice issues and identify learning have been missed.

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improvement to be good

Children’s support and care plans are generally of good quality and provide staff with clear guidance on how to support children and keep them safe. Staff have a good understanding of these strategies and the individual risks for each child. However, the number of changes to the staff team means that children have not yet received the consistent support they need to learn how to keep themselves safe both now and as they become older.

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improvement to be good

Prior to children moving to the home, their needs and risks are considered in detail. However, for one child, this assessment did not provide a clear rationale as to how their specific needs and risks would be balanced against those of the other child living in the home. Since this point, there have been some concerns about the impact of children’s behaviour on each other. Children are subject to high levels of supervision, which has prevented significant incidents taking place. However, managers have not provided staff with clear enough guidance about how to safely support and supervise the relationship between the children in the home.

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improvement to be good

Managers work effectively with other professionals to review support plans and strategies to safeguard children. However, some professionals have raised concerns that staff have not always done enough to encourage children to accept medical help and assessment when the most serious incidents take place. Professionals noted that this has improved significantly in recent weeks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Oversight of practice at this home has been negatively impacted by the absence of the registered manager and changes to the staff team. This has impacted on the consistency of care given to children and has prevented the development of a clear culture and ethos.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

In the past six weeks, the home has been overseen by the organisation’s area manager, who is also the registered manager for another home. The acting manager is an Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 4 experienced and suitably qualified manager. She has a good understanding of the shortfalls in practice and oversight at the home and of the staff team’s areas for development. In the time she has had oversight of the home, she has taken action to begin to address the shortfalls identified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers have taken action to stabilise the staff team. More appropriately experienced staff are now working at the home and clear expectations and routines are now in place for children and staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff receive supervision regularly. When incidents take place, follow up discussions with children and staff are now taking place more consistently. Additional support has recently been introduced by way of a psychologist providing staff with support and a chance to reflect on their practice as required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Most staff were positive about the changes made by the acting manager. Staff stated that they feel well supported by approachable and visible managers at the home. However, some staff continue to feel that they have not received the support they need to perform their role to the best of their ability. The acting manager and responsible individual both acknowledge that the measures put in place to address staffing concerns are likely to take some time to embed fully.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Since the inspection, the registered manager has submitted their voluntary cancellation notice to Ofsted. Senior leaders are reviewing the management arrangements for the home to ensure that the quality of care provided to children continues to improve in the longer term. Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 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

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

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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

ensure that the home's workforce provides continuity of care to each child 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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received;

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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)(e)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h)) 10 July 2025

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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— that staff— 10 July 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 6 assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; and

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Requirement Due date

that the effectiveness of the home's child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that clear guidance is in place for staff to ensure that relationships between children in the home are supported safely, strategies to reduce risks are being applied consistently and their effectiveness monitored regularly.

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Requirement Due date

The children's views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children's care and welfare and their lives.

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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

ascertain and consider each child's views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child's best interests when making decisions about the child's care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child's views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child. (Regulation 7 (1)(c) (2)(a)(i)(iii)) 10 July 2025

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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

that staff— 10 July 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 7 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

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)(iii)(viii)(ix))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the reasons for any restriction in the home environment are recorded clearly, and that timescales and mechanisms for review are specified. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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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: 2808008 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Within Reach Services Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: C/O Hazlewoods LLP, Windsor House, Bayshill Road, Cheltenham GL50 3AT

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Children's home details

Responsible individual: Trevor Ridgewell

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Inspector

Janet Jauregui, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2808008 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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Inspector

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