Children's Home run by Mon Ami Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2798154 1 Registered provider: Mon Ami 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 managed and run by a private company. It provides care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home, who both spoke to the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2024. The manager has submitted a voluntary cancellation form, which is being processed.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded, and experiences of children are poor, and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/03/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 3

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inadequate

Since the last inspection, two children have moved in and two have moved out. Managers have planned moves into the home well. However, children who have moved out have not experienced a positive ending and their needs have not been fully considered.

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inadequate

On one occasion, managers and staff did not share safeguarding concerns with the placing authority about a planned move. Another child also moved out without any notice. This was poorly managed and had a negative impact on the child’s emotional well-being.

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inadequate

Despite the safeguarding concerns identified, children are encouraged to engage in hobbies and interests. Staff support them to attend community activities and visit local museums.

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inadequate

Children who are not in education are supported to learn at home. There is a routine and structure to the day, considering the children’s individual needs. The manager is proactive in advocating for children to attend formal education.

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inadequate

Children’s health needs are met. They are registered with universal services and attend appointments. When concerns about children’s emotional well-being arise, staff refer them to the appropriate external agencies for additional support.

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inadequate

The home is welcoming, and any damage is addressed in a timely manner. The children’s achievements are displayed, and the conservatory has been converted at the request of children into a place they can go to relax. Children are encouraged to personalise their own bedrooms.

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

Staff are not proactive in searching for children who are missing from home. This has resulted in increased periods of one child being away from the home and therefore at risk. This child has since moved out. Staff do report missing-from-home incidents to the relevant agencies. However, when children are located, managers and staff do not consider the child’s individual needs and further actions to reduce risks.

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

When children raise concerns about where they are moving to, these are not reported to the placing authority in a timely manner. Leaders and managers do not take action to ensure that staff understand what action they should take when there are concerns about adults caring for children. Not all staff have a sufficient understanding of the whistle-blowing procedures or how to manage allegations. This leaves children at risk. Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 4 When children are in crisis and experiencing upset, staff do not appreciate the significance of this or support them effectively to regulate their emotions. When physical intervention is used, staff are not always offered the opportunity to reflect on the incident. Managers do not review the incident records sufficiently in order to review the events leading up to the physical intervention . This is a missed opportunity to try to reduce the need for physical intervention practice.

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

Risk assessments are not always reviewed following incidents, which means emerging and new risks are not fully considered. In addition, managers have reviewed incident records when they have been involved in the incident. This does not provide independent oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Since the last inspection, the registered manager has resigned. There has been a period when the children and team were not supported by a consistent manager. A new manager has been recently appointed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not provide sufficient oversight for serious incidents, including when children are missing from home and physical interventions. Risks were not fully understood by the previous manager, which means shortfalls in staff practice continued. As a result, staff lack an understanding about the risks that children face or what action they need to take to safeguard them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The inconsistency in leadership has resulted in staff being unsupported. Staff morale has been low. One staff member said that some staff plan to leave. However, since the new manager has started, staff report that the atmosphere and their involvement have improved, and they can raise any concerns they have.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Supervision sessions have not been provided regularly for all staff and do not provide opportunities for staff to reflect on their practice, or the quality of care provided to children. When they do happen, positively, staff are able to consider their developmental and training needs. Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 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 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—

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Requirement Due date

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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that staff understand what action they need to take when children go missing from home.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that the manager’s oversight of missing-from-home incidents and restrictive practice, including physical intervention, is reflective and identifies shortfalls in staff practice. They must also ensure that they challenge staff effectively when there are shortfalls in practice.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that the person reviewing 1 July 2025 Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 6 any incident records and reflecting with children and staff is independent of the incident.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that managers and staff are aware that they need to report all allegations and disclosures as a priority so that steps can be put in place immediately to ensure that children are safe.

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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

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that staff understand how to support children to move out of the home in a planned way that is sensitive to the child’s needs.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must review recent placement endings to identify learning that can be used to improve practice and to ensure that children have a positive experience when moving into and from the home. 1 July 2025

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all staff receive regular supervision of their practice which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 61, paragraph 13.2) Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 7

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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 the children’s home: 2798154 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Flat B, 149 Albion Road, London N16 9JU

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Suzanne Grocott-Waters

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Inspectors

Sarah Probert, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for the children’s home: 2798154 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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