Children's Home run by Beacon Residential Homes Ltd in Slough

Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 1 Registered provider: Beacon Residential Homes Ltd

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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 privately run home provides care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties. There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager post has been vacant since July 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/08/2024 Full Good 13/02/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The four children living in the home at the time of the last inspection continue to live in the home. Children enjoy warm and nurturing relationships with staff, who demonstrate a commitment to their well-being. The relationships that children have with staff have helped them to achieve stability, develop a sense of belonging and make progress that is meaningful to them, such as feeling able to go out more or being more able to manage complex family relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff value education and learning. They work with children in age-appropriate ways to motivate them to engage with learning. Where obstacles arise, staff liaise closely with education professionals to try to resolve these and help children to achieve. This support helped two children to sit GCSE exams when they would not have otherwise been able to do so.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff offer regular one-to-one time to children to support them with the issues they need help with, such as family relationships and managing feelings. Support around independence skills is provided in line with children’s ages, needs and wishes. This is helping children to work towards their goals and make plans for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s physical and emotional health needs are understood well by staff. Children have access to an in-house therapist if they wish. Children are supported to develop their self-care skills in relation to health needs, and the input of specialist services is sought where required. Two children have complex health needs, which are managed as well as possible, and the impact of them on each of their daily lives has significantly reduced.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of children’s family relationships. They provide flexible support with arrangements, and work in partnership with placing authorities to ensure, as far as possible, that children see and stay in touch with their family members in line with their plans. This helps to meet children’s identity needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are valued by staff, and practice in this area is generally strong. Staff encourage children to take part in meetings about them and in reviews of their care and support plans. Children are helped to participate in making decisions, for example, about activities, holidays and meals. The manager completes periodic consultations with children and their views are routinely sought as part of probation reviews and appraisals for staff. This all helps to give children a voice and a sense of agency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Each child who has a mobile phone has a phone agreement, detailing the boundaries and arrangements for monitoring its use. These contracts are used with good intent and established with the agreement of placing authorities as well as children. However, for one child, there has not been a meaningful review of this agreement despite it being of importance to the child. This means that the reasons for the agreement continuing, and the child’s views about it, have not been fully considered or captured. Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 4 The home is comfortably furnished and generally in good repair. Staff help children to personalise their bedrooms in line with their wishes. However, some areas of the home, such as the garden, need attention to ensure that they are welcoming and homely. There are also missed opportunities to display photographs of children and records of their achievements in the communal areas of the home.

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

Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities well. They are guided by plans for children that are individual to them and give clear, relevant guidance. As a result, children receive helpful responses from staff if there are concerns about their safety, such as if there are significant worries about their health or concerns that they may be using drugs. There is timely and thorough management oversight of safeguarding incidents. This helps to review staff practice and consider learning or support needs.

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

If children are missing from the home, staff work proactively and in partnership with family members and external professionals to try to find them and ensure their safety. Children’s plans are reviewed promptly, and staff complete follow up educative work with children. Return home interviews are consistently requested and completed. This helps to ensure that such incidents are managed as safely as possible and that children are encouraged to make safer choices. For one child, this has helped to reduce incidents of them going missing from the home.

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

When allegations are made against staff or there are concerns about staff practice, managers take appropriate action to investigate and manage any potential risks. Managers consult with other relevant professionals in a timely manner when required. This helps to ensure that children receive safe care.

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

Staff take a child-centred approach to children’s behaviour, seeking to understand, support and guide children if they are upset or unsettled. Strategies to encourage and reward positive behaviour are embedded. This helps to create a culture of considered, empathetic care and minimises the need to employ physical intervention, which has consequently not been used since the last inspection.

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

Before new staff start at the home, managers carry out a range of checks designed to protect children from unsafe people. However, a thorough record is not always kept of original copies of Disclosure and Baring Service (DBS) certificates, identity documents and staff qualifications being seen, and the reasons for leaving previous jobs with children or vulnerable adults are not always verified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There has not been a registered manager in post since July 2024. Following the last inspection, there were changes to management arrangements, but these are now stable. The current manager has been in post since October 2024 and has applied to register with Ofsted. The manager has a deep knowledge of children and is enthusiastic about their progress. This supports an aspirational culture for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 5 Leaders and managers have good oversight of the home. Senior managers are visible and supportive, and they have effective systems in place to monitor the quality of care. This helps to ensure that there is a shared ethos and that children are cared for consistently in line with the home’s statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is adequately staffed, and the staff team is stable. Shortfalls in staffing, such as due to sickness or leave, are mainly met by using staff from other homes within the same organisation and who are known to the children. As a result, children receive consistency of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers provide good-quality support to staff. Staff receive reliable individual supervision and appraisals or probation reviews in line with company policy. Regular team meetings and reflective group supervision sessions are held and used constructively to consider the model of care, with input from the in-house therapy team. This helps to ensure that children receive care from well-resourced staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff complete an appropriate range of mandatory training to help guide them in their roles. They have also completed training linked to the needs of individual children, such as in managing health conditions. Managers have effective systems in place to ensure that staff are progressing with training and required qualifications.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and staff understand the importance of relationships with others involved in children’s lives. They seek the input of other professionals and parents to inform approaches to children’s care and plans, and to resolve difficulties. However, routine communication with other professionals, such as to provide updates, is inconsistent. This means that professionals from the wider network are sometimes not aware of events or actions taken by staff. Although this has not impacted on children, it could adversely affect the coordination of their care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 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 children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who— take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff— 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; 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; regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care. (Regulation 7 (1)(c) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that there are regular reviews, involving children, of all mobile phone agreements. 25 August 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home is a nurturing, homely and supportive environment for children. This includes attending promptly to redecoration or repair, and showcasing children and their achievements in the communal areas of the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 7  The registered person should ensure that there is consistent and thorough communication with other professionals involved in children’s care, to support effective working relationships. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 52, paragraph 10.3)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that thorough safer recruitment checks are conducted in line with regulations. This includes ensuring that original copies of DBS certificates, identity documents and qualifications are seen and a clear record is kept of this, and that the reasons for leaving any previous roles with children or vulnerable adults are verified as far as reasonably practical to do so. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2734210 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Beacon Residential Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: GMR Accountants Ltd, 1st Floor 8-12 London Street, Southport PR9 0UE

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Inspector

Jacob Robson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2734210 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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