Children's Home run by Juventas Services in Cambridgeshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 1 Registered provider: Juventas Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered in December 2021 and provides care for up to four children who have experienced significant trauma. It is one of a small group of privately owned homes run by an independent provider.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since October 2024 and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/03/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/11/2023 Full Good 05/10/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. All three children were seen during the inspection, and two children were spoken with. Since the last inspection, two children have moved into the home and one has moved out, doing so in a planned way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves are well supported by staff. Leaders and managers carefully consider children’s needs alongside those of the children already living at the home. Before children move in, staff take the time to get to know them and to build relationships with them. This has helped children to settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff treat children with dignity and respect. Staff recognise children’s preferred identity and support them to feel accepted. One child recognised that their confidence has increased because of support from staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children appear comfortable in the presence of staff. Children were seen laughing and joking with them. Staff have a good awareness of children’s communication needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff use a therapeutic model to guide their practice. Staff have a clear understanding of the model and adapt it to meet the needs of the children. This has helped children to form stable and trusting relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ably support children’s relationships with their families and friends. One family member said, ‘Staff encourage family time with [name of child], staff understand how important it is to us as a family.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to experience an array of activities. Staff offer children opportunities to explore their individual interests and to try new experiences. One child has enjoyed city visits and celebratory meals out. Another child has their own pets that they enjoy looking after.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children’s participation in education. One child’s engagement is excellent. When children do not yet have education in place, staff understand the obstacles contributing to this. Staff continue to be advocates for children, seeking support from professionals, including local and virtual schools, to help remove barriers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is spacious and welcoming. A thoughtful approach to the interior helps creates a calm environment. Children are supported to personalise their bedrooms.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff celebrate children’s achievements. However, staff do not routinely keep memorabilia for children. This does not help children to reflect on important events and accomplishments over time. Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 4

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

The children have complex needs and vulnerabilities. These include risks of exploitation and going missing from home. Staff have a good understanding of children’s backgrounds and past experiences. This knowledge helps staff to respond to children with compassion while putting their safety and well-being first.

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

Staff help children manage their behaviour without resorting to physical intervention or negative consequences. When incidents have the potential to escalate, staff are creative and use the relationships they have with the children to help them. Staff are curious and seek to understand the challenges children face to manage their behaviour.

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

Staff work with external health agencies to ensure children’s health needs are met. When children struggle with their health, staff take effective action to have reflective conversations with them, offering encouragement to develop healthier routines.

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

Leaders and managers take effective action to address safeguarding concerns and staff practice that has fallen short of expectations. Staff have completed safeguarding training and understand their safeguarding responsibilities.

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

Staff respond with care and concern to incidents of children going missing from the home. Responses include staff staying in the locality during unsocial hours to help find and return children as soon as possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is working towards an appropriate management qualification. An experienced deputy manager supports them. They share a comprehensive understanding of the children’s needs and risks. They have addressed all of the requirements raised at the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are enthusiastic about their roles. Staff feedback describes a positive morale among the team, with a good level of support given by leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the strengths and areas for development in the quality of care provided to children. Managers now use generally effective systems for auditing and monitoring records. This helps them identify and address areas requiring further exploration.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Safer recruitment processes are followed. New staff benefit from helpful inductions that include comprehensive training. Staff said that this helps them to fully understand their role. Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 5 Staff benefit from regular supervision sessions; however, some staff have not had yearly appraisals. This has meant that opportunities for continuous professional development may have been missed. Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 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 all employees—

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(c)) 31 August 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from home or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority provides an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of the information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)  The registered person should ensure that staff keep, and encourage children to keep, appropriate memorabilia of their time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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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: 2668575 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Haines Watts Chartered Accountants Ltd, Yare House, 62-64 Thorpe Road, Norwich NR1 1RY

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Inspector

Lexi Mitchell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2668575 8 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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