Children's home run by Dimensions Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 1 Registered provider: Dimensions Care Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. It provides care for up to four children who may have experienced trauma.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, four children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since January 2025 and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered provider has recently appointed a new responsible individual, and we are currently checking this person has the relevant capacity, experience and skills to carry out the role.

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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 and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor, and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 3 December 2024

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/12/2024 Full Good 18/07/2023 Full Good 15/12/2022 Full Good 17/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

All four children were present during the inspection and spoke with the inspectors.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s experiences and progress have been significantly affected by shortfalls in how they are cared for by staff and managers. This includes how they are helped and protected. The leadership and management of the home fail to keep children safe. There are immediate risks to the safety and well-being of the children living at the home. Consequently, Ofsted suspended the home’s registration immediately during the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The environment is extremely poor. Managers have not taken action to provide children with a clean and nurturing home, and this includes the staff's failure to ensure that the children's bedrooms are kept clean and tidy. There are areas of significant damage around the home, as well as areas in need of repair and decoration. Broken door frames, torn flooring, stains on the walls, overgrown nettles and brambles in the garden, and graffiti on the door are some examples. Despite staff reporting concerns to the manager, there has been a lack of action to address these in a timely way. This does not provide children with a hygienic, safe and comfortable place to live.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s moves into the home have not been well assessed. Staff do not have the information or guidance they require to care for children appropriately. This is because managers have failed to understand and evaluate children’s needs and vulnerabilities when they have moved into the home. They have also failed to consider how children who already live at the home can live safely with new children who move in. Managers did not ensure that they had all the information about children and their vulnerabilities and potential risks before they moved into the home. As a result, some children have faced unplanned transitions and significant police involvement. Serious incidents have resulted in harm to some children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children have mixed views about the home. Some children report that they enjoy certain relationships with the staff. Children also say that the home is poorly run and chaotic, which can and does affect them when issues arise, which is unsettling. One child told the inspectors, ‘We have no rules and boundaries. We run rings around them and do what we want. Even when I went missing last night, returned intoxicated and fell asleep on the stairs, no one has addressed this with me, and they never will.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s complaints are not taken seriously. The manager does not use thorough and consistent approaches to managing complaints from children. Complaints are not recorded properly or followed up in accordance with regulatory requirements. As a result, children do not feel heard or valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children do not have access to all areas of the home. For example, the front door is bolted, the garden gate has three locked padlocks, and the kitchen door is locked every night to prevent children from preparing food and drinks. Staff routinely lock doors in the home, restricting children’s freedom and movement as a behaviour management Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 4 strategy. On one occasion, two children attempted to make food in the early hours of the morning and climbed the fence to gain access to the kitchen. This incident resulted in the police being called. Furthermore, this situation poses an additional fire risk, which places children at further risk of harm.

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

Significant safeguarding incidents have occurred during which children were at risk and experienced harm. The manager and staff do not demonstrate that they have the skills and experience to keep children safe. Staff and managers have not always reported, recorded, or responded to incidents appropriately. For example, on one occasion, two children left the home late at night and travelled to Birmingham and then on to Coventry to access nightclubs. On their return to the home the following morning, one child disclosed that they had been taken to a hotel by adult males and were subject to a sexual assault and possible ingestion of drugs unknowingly. The support for these two children following this disclosure was poor. Staff did not act to reduce the risk for these children, and their lack of professional curiosity, poor recording, and lack of reflection failed to safeguard them going forward.

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

The management oversight of serious and significant incidents involving children is inadequate. Staff do not assess situations or children’s vulnerabilities safely; they fail to recognise circumstances when children are or may be at risk of harm, and they do not take appropriate action to safeguard them at these times. As a result, children have experienced harm while living at the home.

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

There are significant shortfalls in the assessment and management of risks for children living at the home. Risks are not well known, documented or understood. Strategies for staff to follow to keep children safe are not identified. Significant risks, such as gangs, knives and exploitation, are not fully explored or assessed. Two children in the home have significant and regular missing-from-home episodes where they have been subject to sexual exploitation. The risk assessments and strategies designed to support these children are inadequate and have not undergone updates in several months. This means staff do not have up-to-date guidance on known risks and how to manage these. Managers are not readily available or accessible to support staff in these situations.

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

There have been several incidents of children harming themselves. Despite this, staff do not do all they can to reduce these risks to children. Staff are not alert to risk, and they do not respond appropriately to try and remove items children have that they use to harm themselves. The manager and staff fail to identify and act on signs that a child is at risk of harm at an early stage, which places children at significant risk. Furthermore, the manager lacks professional curiosity when reviewing incidents and fails to identify what staff could have done differently. This lack of effective oversight results in missed opportunities to learn from incidents.

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

The manager and staff have not responded to or addressed conflict between children. There have been significant incidents in which staff failed to safely manage children's behaviours, resulting in police intervention and putting children at risk of harm. Staff Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 5 have failed to keep children safe in these circumstances and have had no parental control in the home. Following one incident, one child took their blanket and pillow, stating they would rather sleep in a field. This child later returned to the home but would only sleep in the lounge. Because of this, children feel that staff, including the manager, do not take their concerns seriously, and they do not always feel safe living at the home.

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

Managers have failed to ensure that the environment is safe for children. They have failed to adequately assess the risk of self-harm in children's bedrooms. For instance, the window restrictor in one child's bedroom has broken, and the door is unable to lock due to damage. Furthermore, there is damage to the fire alarm panel and some fire doors. This lack of action by managers to ensure the safety of the premises leaves children and staff at unnecessary risk of harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Due to serious weaknesses in the leadership and management of this home, children’s needs are not being met, and they are being placed at significant risk of harm. A failure to take effective action to improve the quality of care in the home has compromised children’s safety, experiences and progress. As a result of these findings, two compliance notices have been issued under Regulations 12 and 13.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Since the last inspection, a new manager has been appointed. The previous manager has taken on the role of the responsible individual, and the previous responsible individual has moved to a director position in the company. This has led to a poor culture characterised by a lack of transparency and open communication and a hierarchical structure that has discouraged the involvement of the wider staff team. There has been a lack of oversight and accountability. Senior leaders have failed to offer appropriate support and challenge to the new manager. One senior leader admitted that they have not seen children’s plans, nor were they involved in the recent moves for two children into the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are significant gaps in the manager’s knowledge of the home’s strengths and areas for development. Leaders do not have effective systems to review the quality of care and fully understand children’s experiences. They do not review and evaluate significant incidents effectively, including missing-from-home incidents and self-injury, exploitation, and peer-on-peer conflict. Therefore, they do not understand the potential risks to children and take steps to challenge poor practice and keep them safe. Furthermore, they do not understand how shortfalls in the quality of care can affect children’s experiences and progress, and they do not set out clear plans to bring about improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager does not always notify the placing authority and Ofsted when there are serious incidents. The lack of information-sharing reduces the regulator’s and professionals’ understanding of safety and quality of care in the home. This weakens the overall safety oversight for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 6 The staff team is relatively new and inexperienced. Only two out of 12 staff hold the relevant qualification for residential childcare. Most staff told inspectors they feel unsupported by managers and are concerned about the children's safety. Some staff informed the inspectors that they had not received adequate induction, supervision, or essential training at the home. As a result, staff do not have the necessary skills to care for vulnerable children. These shortfalls affect children’s safety and experiences, as well as their well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Partner agencies have mixed views about the service. Some professionals are pleased with the care provided to children. However, during a multi-agency meeting that was held while the inspection took place, all children’s social workers were unaware of the numerous significant incidents occurring in the home. Professionals recognise that managers and staff have failed to safeguard children effectively, and systemic failures have allowed serious incidents to occur. Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 7

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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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the home is in good repair. 30 July 2025

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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

that staff— 30 July 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 8 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that effective action is taken following any safeguarding concerns, that children's plans are kept up to date and that clear direction is given to staff to support children. Additionally, the registered person must ensure the home environment is a safe place for children to live.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose; 30 July 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 9 ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they have effective oversight of all incidents and take action to address any concerns. Additionally, they must ensure the staff have the relevant skills and abilities to meet the needs of the children living at the home.

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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

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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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)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children have a positive experience arriving and moving on from the home. They must also ensure that there is an effective process in place to ensure that children are suitably assessed to live in the home. 30 July 2025

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected; 30 July 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 10 children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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The registered person must ensure that children have access to all areas of the home.

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A notification made under this regulation—

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

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

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

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all serious incidents are reported to HMCI without delay. 30 July 2025

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 11 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: 2648446 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Harold Sharp Ltd, Unit 5, Brooklands Place, Brooklands Road, Sale M33 3SD

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Inspectors

Marianne Grandfield, Social Care Inspector Hayley Booth, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 13 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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

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