Children's Home run by RCS Operations Ltd trading as Cumulus Care Services in Birmingham

Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 1 Registered provider: RCS operations LTD trading as Cumulus Care Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. It provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties. The home is a new provision and was registered with Ofsted in March 2024. This was the home’s first inspection, and at the time of inspection, one child was living in the home. The child met with the inspector and spoke to them about their experiences.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

There is a suitably qualified and experienced manager in post.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since opening, one child has been welcomed into the home. Due to the urgency of the move, the child was unable to visit the home first. However, the manager ensured that the child met with staff and learned about the home before moving. This is likely to have reduced any worry the child might have felt about a significant change in their life.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child enjoys positive relationships with staff. These relationships contribute significantly to the child’s enjoyment of the home. When asked about living in the home, the child said that it is ‘lovely, good and brilliant’.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child feels well supported by staff. Staff regularly have conversations with the child about important topics. These include identity, safety, education, and health. These conversations build relationships and support the child’s progress. At times, staff have been creative in using letters to help the child reflect on incidents and share their feelings. As a result, the child is becoming increasingly able to share their thoughts and feelings.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s education is a priority. The manager has advocated for them to receive more hours with a tutor. Staff are creative in overcoming barriers to education. At times, lessons with the child’s tutor have occurred during games of football or walks in the park. Because of this, the child’s engagement in education has improved, and they are on track to achieve GCSEs in English and Maths.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While the home is large, spacious, clean, and beautifully decorated and furnished, there is limited evidence that a child lives in the home. The home’s maintenance log records a substantial list of jobs to be addressed. This includes repairs to the dishwasher and tumble drier, hanging curtains and putting towel rails in bathrooms. Many of these issues detract from the overall homely feel and reduce the child’s enjoyment of the home.

p.2

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

The child feels safe living in the home. Staff and managers are working closely with family members and relevant external professionals to promote the child’s safety. After incidents have occurred, the manager identifies learning. This is shared with staff through team meetings and supervision. As a result, staff’s understanding of how to keep the child safe is improving.

p.2

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

Feedback from external professionals has been very positive. One said, ‘The connection between [name of child] and the carers is amazing. It feels like a very safe, nurturing environment for [name of child]. [Name of child] is given the space to make mistakes and learn from them.’ Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 3 Similarly, the child’s parents provided positive feedback, saying, ‘Where there have been challenges thrown up, what we see is the home working hard to understand those challenges and adapt to them.’ And, ‘The staff they have working with [name of child] are fantastic; they work really hard to understand her, to support her, to manage her, to help her make good decisions.’

p.2

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

When a child or others make allegations, staff take these seriously. The manager notifies the relevant safeguarding agencies and follows their guidance. While investigations are being completed, the manager takes action to ensure the safety of the child and staff. The child is informed of the outcome of investigations. This supports the child to feel heard and safe.

p.3

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

When the child goes missing from the home, staff follow the child’s plan. They work closely with the relevant safeguarding agencies to ensure that the child returns safely.

p.3

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

Staff only use physical intervention as a last resort. Staff are trained in appropriate methods to safely restrain children, but they avoid using these if possible. The manager has identified a lack of confidence in staff during some incidents in which physically intervening may have kept the child safer. They have provided further training and support to staff to develop their confidence. The manager’s oversight of physical intervention is usually timely, detailed and identifies learning. However, in one record, it was unclear that the use of a restraint was necessary or proportionate.

p.3

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

The child’s behaviours and risks are not always clearly recorded in relevant plans. This does not provide staff with clear guidance, and it reduces the ability of managers to ensure that there is a consistent approach to risk in the home. Despite this, staff demonstrate a good understanding of the risks to the child and how to keep them safe.

p.3

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

The manager informs the regulator of most reportable incidents. On one occasion, they failed to notify the regulator of a serious incident. Appropriate action was taken to ensure the child’s safety and to address the issues leading to this incident. However, the lack of notification reduces the regulator’s ability to have effective oversight.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is driven and child focused. He has high aspirations for the child in his care and the staff team he is responsible for. He uses a range of tools to ensure that he has effective oversight on all aspects of children’s care. He is reflective and focuses on learning and improvement.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are skilled at building positive working relationships with partner agencies and the child’s family. This promotes partnership working designed to ensure that the child gets the correct support. Both professionals and family members speak positively about the home. They identify communication as a key strength. Feedback from professionals and family members has been very positive. Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 4 One professional said, ‘What shines out for me is [name of manager]’s passion for supporting [name of child].’ While one of the child’s family members said, ‘There is open communication with us. They discuss anything with us; they are keen to know our perspective. They are keen to ask us for information or to ask for updates. We have phone conversations; it is very open, and that has been fantastic.’

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is made up of a new and inexperienced staff team, and at times, staff have felt anxious and overwhelmed. However, most of the staff said they feel well supported by the managers. Overall, there is positive staff morale. The manager has a strong focus on development, promoting this through open communication and ensuring that staff have access to good-quality training.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers ensure that staff are supported through regular team meetings and supervision meetings. These are of good quality, offer reflective spaces and are used to identify and disseminate learning. This is supporting staff’s knowledge, skills, and confidence, contributing to the quality of care the child receives.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

While children’s files are stored electronically, when copies are printed, the home does not have suitable systems to store or dispose of these. The manager has sought a shredder and secure cabinet, but there has been a delay in these being provided. Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 5

p.4

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.

p.5

Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

p.5

Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child);

p.5

Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child); or

p.5

Requirement Due date

a child who is accommodated in a secure children’s home from absconding from the home.

p.5

Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2))

p.5

Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the manager ensuring that all use of restraint is permitted, necessary and proportionate. 29 August 2025

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

p.5

Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

p.5

Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

p.5

Requirement Due date

if the child dies before attaining the age of 18, for 15 years from the date of the child’s death;

p.5

Requirement Due date

in cases not falling within sub-paragraph (a), for 75 years from the child’s date of birth; Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 6 securely in the children’s home during the period when the child to whom the case records relate is accommodated there; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

in a secure place after the child has ceased to be accommodated in the home. (Regulation 36 (1) (a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(b)(c)(d))

p.6

Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the manager ensuring children’s documents are stored securely and disposed of correctly.

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment. In particular that it is homely, and that any repairs occur in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should notify Ofsted and other relevant persons about serious events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.4)  The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. Where there are safeguarding concerns for a child, their placement plan, agreed between the home and their placing authority, must include details of the steps the home will take to manage any assessed risks on a day-to-day basis. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

p.6

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’.

p.6

Information about this inspection

The inspection started on 3 June 2025. The inspector returned on 18 June 2025 to gather additional evidence in line with Ofsted inspections and visits: deferring, pausing and gathering additional evidence policy. Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: RCS operations LTD trading as Cumulus Care Services

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Cheylesmore Ltd, Unit 7, Edison Buildings, Electric Wharf, Coventry CV1 4JA

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Victoria Wallace

p.7

Inspector

John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2814078 8 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8