Children's Home run by Park Blue Homes Limited in Durham

Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 1 SC453372 Registered provider: Park Blue 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 and run by a private organisation. It provides care for up to five children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

Five children were living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/06/2024 Full Good 22/08/2023 Full Good 24/05/2022 Full Good 02/02/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home provides a welcoming and nurturing environment. Staff speak of children with warmth and positive regard. Furthermore, children are relaxed and confident in the company of staff. Children say they have trusting relationships with staff and feel happy and safe at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff welcome children sensitively to the home and take time to get to know them. Children have the opportunity to visit the home before moving in. Staff encourage the children already living at the home to welcome new children and take part in activities to get to know one another. This helps children to experience positive beginnings at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are given opportunities to have new experiences and develop interests. A dedicated staff member encourages all the children to engage in positive activities. This helps children to gain confidence and self-esteem. Each month, an adventurous activities report is completed, which highlights the children’s engagement and important achievements. This thoughtfully written report links to the children’s care plans and provides staff with an overview of their progress in this area of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children talk to staff about their experiences and worries. Clearly written plans and regular children’s meeting minutes capture the children’s views and demonstrate that staff consider and act on what children tell them. This helps children feel listened to and know their views are valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Improvements have been made to the way staff complete children’s written records. These are written with sensitivity and are addressed directly to the children. Leaders and managers are enthusiastic about developing this practice to further improve how information about children is recorded. This will better assist children to look back on their time living at the home.

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

Staff respond to safeguarding concerns effectively. Risk assessments and behaviour support plans are clearly written and offer staff the guidance they need to understand children's individual risks and vulnerabilities and keep children safe.

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

Strategies to de-escalate children’s behaviour are effective. However, when physical intervention is necessary, this is used as a last resort. Staff speak with children about their experiences and work to repair and rebuild relationships. Management oversight identifies triggers to unwanted behaviour and helps staff to reflect and evaluate their practice. Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 4 Bullying incidents do not occur at this home. Important discussions with children help them identify potential bullying behaviours. This helps children to understand the impact of their behaviour on one another.

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

Allegations are rare at the home. When they occur, they are managed thoroughly, in a timely manner and with a focus on providing safe care for children. Managers follow the organisation’s procedures and refer to relevant professionals when this is necessary. Training is then given to staff to develop practice when appropriate. This helps staff to understand their safeguarding responsibilities.

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

Bedroom searches are conducted appropriately to safeguard children. Children are notified when they have been done and debriefed following these events to help them understand the reason they are sometimes necessary. This helps children to maintain their trust in staff.

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

Consequences for unwanted behaviour are not routinely given to children. However, staff discuss behaviour management strategies with children after behavioural incidents. This gives children the perception that they are being given consequences because the rationale for this practice is not clearly defined to children. This prevents children from fully understanding how staff help them.

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

When children go missing from home, staff follow agreed protocols to locate and help children to return safely to the home. However, records are not completed in a consistently detailed way. This prevents the manager from having full oversight of events and evaluating the effectiveness of staff responses when children are missing.

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

Professionals said they are generally satisfied with the care of children and the progress they make. However, they said that they have difficulty contacting staff at the home. Furthermore, professionals do not receive weekly updates on children, when they have been told they will get them. This prevents professionals from having up-to-date information about the children’s experiences.

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

There are no staff members who currently hold the required qualification. This prevents the manager from being assured that staff have acquired all the necessary skills and knowledge to care for children.

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

Improvements have been made to the manager’s monitoring of the home. A new system helps the manager to evaluate the performance of staff. While the impact of these improvements is evident, they are yet to be fully embedded and sustained at the home.

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

The new manager and the responsible individual have made improvements to the stability at the home. They have given staff more consistency and effective support. This has had a positive impact on how they care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 5 Staff receive regular practice-related supervision. Supervision sessions focus on children and offer staff the opportunity to reflect on their practice, well-being and development. Staff said they feel supported by managers and described recent improvements to the home that have helped to increase team morale.

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

Team meetings take place regularly and give staff opportunities to discuss and agree consistent strategies. In addition, a therapeutic care manager at the home supports the team to focus on children’s needs and how to respond to these. Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirements Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirements Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirements Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs; and

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Requirements Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c))

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Requirements Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 10 September 2025

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Requirements Due date

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

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Requirements Due date

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

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Requirements Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirements Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 10 September 2025

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Requirements 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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Requirements Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 16 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 7 promotes their welfare.

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Requirements Due date

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

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Requirements 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; and

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Requirements Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address unwanted behaviour are restorative in nature. Staff at the home should be skilled to support the child to understand any consequences and the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. (‘Guide to The Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.3)

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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: SC453372 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Park Blue Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 38 Freemans Way, Harrogate HG3 1DH

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Inspector

Mark Cryer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC453372 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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