Children's Home run by Storyy Homes Limited in Wokingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 1 Registered provider: Storyy Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider. It offers care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

The post for a registered manager has been vacant since April 2025.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 2773966 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/07/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience considerate and positive interactions with staff. This helps them build strong relationships, which supports children’s progress and enhances their daily experiences. Children make progress in developing their independence skills, such as ironing clothing. This helps to prepare children for the next stages of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy games, books, play equipment and other resources in this comfortable, well-furnished home. They have chosen how their bedrooms are decorated, and these spaces reflect their personalities, interests and individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children in engaging in creative activities to raise funds for local and national charities. For example, two children raised money by baking cakes and washing cars. They have raised a substantial sum of money so far and are also taking part in a marathon. These opportunities help children to develop new skills and think of others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s identities and cultures are valued. For instance, Eid has been widely celebrated by staff and children. Staff work to understand children’s spiritual and religious needs and ensure that they have a quiet, uninterrupted time to pray should they wish to do so.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children in the home access education and attend school. One child has made remarkable progress in their school attendance. One therapist stated, ‘[Name of child]’s attendance has significantly increased since moving into the home. It is my assessment that he is getting more sleep, is less tired, and more motivated to do things.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved on from the home in an unplanned way following an incident. However, this move was managed with sensitivity, and support was in place to ensure that it was a positive experience for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

In general, staff listen to children and consider their views. However, one child said that some decisions made by staff at the beginning of the year have drifted, and actions have not been taken quickly enough. This was during a period of instability for the home. Recently, the home has become more settled, with staff taking a more proactive approach to ensure that children receive the outcomes to their requests. This child now says, ‘There are staff that will fight for me and push things forward.’

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

All staff know what to do and who to inform if they have concerns. Safeguarding issues and any concerns regarding the care or support of children are shared with the appropriate agencies and are investigated where required. Investigation records are thorough and demonstrate that staff are curious. As a result, concerns and allegations are managed effectively. This promotes a positive safeguarding culture. Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 4 Since the last inspection, there has been one incident involving a child going missing from the home. This means that missing-from-home incidents have continued to decrease. When the incident occurred, staff responded effectively. There was a coordinated response between staff, other professionals and the child’s family. This resulted in the child’s safe return. The manager and staff ensured that the child received a return home interview from the placing authority.

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

Staff know and understand children’s individual risks and needs, and they know how to respond to them. Children know their individual vulnerabilities and how staff will respond if they need support to manage difficult situations. The risks faced by children have decreased since they moved into the home. This means the strategies that are in place to manage these risks are effective.

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

Staff have not needed to use restraint practices to manage children’s behaviour. This means that children respond well to the strategies and boundaries that are in place to support their behaviours.

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

Leaders and managers ensure that staff are safely recruited. They carry out due diligence checks in line with safer recruitment practices when new staff join the team. This ensures that staff are safe to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, there has been a period of instability in the management arrangements of the home. This coincided with staffing issues where staff skills, experience and departures negatively impacted the consistency of care that children received. During this time, staff morale was low.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager has moved on from the home, and a new manager is now in post. The new manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

During the unsettled period, children did not feel well supported. This is because some staff lacked the required skills and/or experience to meet their needs effectively, which led to inconsistent practice. Leaders took action to address this, resulting in some staff moving on from the home. The current staff team has successfully established more positive relationships with children and provided consistency during a period of stability.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff report improvements in the home in recent months. They say that the team is gaining experience and consistently making improvements. Consequently, staff feel supported and listened to by leaders and managers, and staff morale has improved as a result.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

There have been some practice issues with some agency night staff. This is because not all agency staff had the necessary qualifications to work with children, and they failed to meet the expectations of the role. Leaders and managers took appropriate action to address these practice issues, and they have increased the number of permanent staff to work nights. This ensures that children receive consistent support. Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 5 The arrangements for reviewing and monitoring the quality of care children receive are not robust. This is because the views of children, parents, relatives and other professionals are not always sought by the independent visitor. Furthermore, children’s views are not always included in the quality of care review. This limits the information that leaders and managers use to inform the development of the home. Despite this, leaders and managers are taking steps to upskill staff in trauma-informed practice and to

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

focus more on acting on children’s views.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

On some occasions, leaders and managers have failed to promptly notify Ofsted of serious incidents. This compromises the regulator’s ability to fully understand incidents that have occurred in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 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 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;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2) (a)(b)(c)(e)) 11 August 2025

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (2)(a)) 11 August 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months. 1 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 7 In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that serious incidents are notified to Ofsted in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)

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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: 2773966 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Storyy Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 10 Beech Court, Wokingham Road, Hurst, Reading RG10 0RQ

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Inspector

Karen Flanagan de Martinez, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2773966 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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