Children's Home run by Uwezo Care Services in North Northamptonshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 1 Registered provider: Uwezo Care Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. It provides care for up to two children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2024.

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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

Date of last inspection: 27 January 2025

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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: 2774335 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/01/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child living at the home contributed to this inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is cared for by staff in a warm, comfortable and well-presented home. The child has space inside and outside to play and relax and enjoy time with staff, and the child’s friends are welcomed into the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has strong and trusting relationships with several members of staff, including the manager and deputy manager. New staff spend time getting to know the child, while established staff help children build relationships with them. The child is happy at the home and feels safe and heard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the child’s relationships with people who are important to them and support them in spending time with them. The child’s parent commented on the support they and their child receive from the manager and deputy manager. The child is supported to explore culture and religion in line with their wishes and to learn another language, which is important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand and promote the child’s physical and emotional well-being. They encourage the child to go for walks, ride their bike, and attend the gym. Access to equine therapy supports the child's emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff and managers understand the importance of education and learning for the child. The staff have supported the child in attending college, which has increased from three to five days a week. The child has sat GCSEs in English and mathematics and will be continuing their education at college for a further year. The child aspires to go to university. This is excellent progress from the child’s starting point, having not attended education for some years.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child in developing their independence skills. The child enjoys going out with friends they have made locally, attending college and travelling independently. This supports the child’s self-esteem and emotional health.

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

Experienced and established staff know the child well. This helps them to identify when the child may be struggling and how to respond to prevent behavioural incidents from escalating.

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

The child has detailed, individualised support plans that are regularly updated. Staff understand the child’s vulnerabilities and know how to respond. The child is involved in their care planning and tells staff how they can help them when they are feeling upset. Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 4 Managers have ensured that medication processes are robust. Staff are trained in the administration of medication and first aid.

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

When there have been serious incidents, including staff being hurt, the manager has worked with the local authority and the child’s family to keep the child safe.

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

The manager has ensured that staff are recruited safely, and safer recruitment and vetting procedures meet regulation.

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

Case recording and scrutiny following significant incidents have improved since the last inspection. However, there is not yet consistency in the quality of recording following behavioural incidents. Some of the language used in recordings does not reflect the care shown to the child in the home, and it is not always child friendly.

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

The manager has not always promptly informed Ofsted of significant incidents involving children. Processes were not appropriately followed when one child made an allegation against a staff member.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed and passionate about the care and aspirations they have for the child. The management team has reflected on previous shortfalls and has worked hard to address these since the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is proud of the child and the progress they have made since living at the home. The manager is supportive of the staff team, and staff have commented on the quality of the support they receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have an induction and probationary period at the home. Staff are well trained to meet the child’s needs, and one-to-one supervision is regular and reflective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has recognised the challenges in staffing and understands the need to retain staff and stabilise the team to ensure consistency of care for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals and family members have commented on the commitment of the manager and deputy manager. Stakeholders particularly commented on the quality of communication, which helps the child to make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Ofsted has not received a quality of care review report, in line with regulations. No point- in-time surveys were distributed to the relevant people for Ofsted to review. This fails to support Ofsted’s regulatory oversight. Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 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 registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 6 August 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 6 a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that records of restraint include sufficient detail about the methods of physical intervention used, how, by whom, where and when.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to ensuring that the debriefs with the child consider the child’s views of the physical intervention as well as the incidents that preceded them.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to ensuring that processes are consistently followed when the manager is involved in a physical intervention to ensure sufficient scrutiny.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated from the last inspection.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

must include details of— 6 August 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 7 the matter;

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)(c)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must promptly notify Ofsted about any aspects outlined in Regulation 40.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated from the last inspection.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect; and

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Requirement Due date

sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular—

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Requirement Due date

provide for liaison and co-operation with any local authority which are, or may be, making a child protection enquiry in relation to a child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about current or ongoing abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the home is located;

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Requirement Due date

provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about past abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the alleged abuse or neglect occurred;

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Requirement Due date

provide for records to be kept of an allegation of abuse or neglect, and the action taken in response;

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Requirement Due date

describe the measures which may be necessary to protect children following an allegation of abuse or neglect; and 6 August 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 8 describe how and to whom staff are to report, without delay, any concern about abuse or neglect of a child. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that any allegations are reported to the local authority designated officer (LADO) within the necessary time frames.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to ensuring that allegations are investigated in accordance with advice from the LADO and in conjunction with the local authority.

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Requirement Due date

Furthermore, the child must be informed of the outcome of any allegations.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under Regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. This also includes ensuring that the point-in-time surveys are distributed to all relevant people so they can provide feedback. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information about individual children in a non- stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality

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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: 2774335 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Uwezo Care Services

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Inspector

Caroline Hose, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2774335 10 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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