Children's Home run by Benjamin UK Ltd in Milton Keynes

Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 1 SC414738 Registered provider: Benjamin UK Ltd

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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 four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since July 2025 and was previously registered to manage a different home within the organisation.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there were four children living in the home. Two of the children were at the home and were spoken to during 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 outstanding

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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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/07/2024 Full Outstanding 07/11/2023 Full Good 06/12/2022 Full Good 01/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most children have made positive progress since moving to the home but following a change of registered manager, there was a brief period of regression for two children. Staff have successfully supported children to manage a difficult period, and consequently children are now in a much more stable place. Children benefit from well-attuned staff. Since moving to the home, children have been well supported to explore their individual identities with increased confidence and acceptance of who they are.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children have individualised education plans and, if necessary, can access the organisation’s registered school. The management team demonstrates strong advocacy and a willingness to adapt children’s education plans so that these meet individual needs. One child in particular, who had experienced significant educational difficulties, benefited from this adaptability, which enabled them to complete the vast majority of their exams, despite this seeming unlikely at one stage. Children directly benefit from access to the organisation’s registered school and the timeliness of bespoke arrangements when required.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children have been able to build positive relationships with staff and can identify preferred adults when they need help or support. One child struggled significantly with the change of registered manager. Through good support and sensitive care they have been able to resolve this and consequently their preferred support network has now increased to three favoured staff. This has helped the child to realise the benefit of having a broader support network and has increased the capacity of staff to meet this child’s emotional needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well presented and homely. Recently, staff have been displaying photos of children around the home. This enhances children’s sense of belonging. Children’s bedrooms have been personalised and reflect their preferred hobbies and interests. One child produced an exceptional welcome video, with support from staff, showing off the home and talking about their experiences of living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children benefit from a substantial range of positive experiences. Staff routinely participate in activities with children. For example, one staff member and a child recently climbed Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), creating a lifelong memory for them. These experiences enable positive relationships between staff and children, and staff take pride in keeping photographic memory books for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although staff have the best intentions to respond to children’s emotional and behavioural needs, some of the strategies used to support children do not reflect the training and preferred approach applied across the wider organisation. In at least one incident, this undermined the child’s ability to develop independent skills to manage their own behavioural needs. Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 4

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

Staff demonstrate a good understanding of safeguarding and a commitment to promoting children’s safety. Staff are good advocates for children and recognise the importance of helping children to become increasingly safe. Children are persistently encouraged to learn and reflect following difficult events.

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

Children benefit from therapeutically informed staff and staff use a range of strategies to support children. One external professional said, ‘Key workers play a vital role in supporting children’s emotional development, and the home’s trauma-informed approach fosters a nurturing environment where children feel safe to express themselves. Staff are attuned to the emotional needs of the children and respond with empathy and consistency, even during periods of behavioural difficulty.’

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

The staff team works well with other agencies to ensure that children’s assessed needs are met, and they receive the help and support they need. Through the wider organisation, children can access therapy without delay, including talking therapies and therapeutic life-story work. Children also benefit from more specialist help when this is required, such as forensic child and adolescent mental health services and alternative education projects.

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

Staff make good use of risk assessments and other monitoring tools to help children reduce known risks over time. This includes advocating on children’s behalf with their placing authorities and parents when amendments might be required to their individual plans. For example, for one child this related to their mobile phone use and proposed amendments to this following their positive progress.

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

Children are well supported to develop their independence and self-care skills, and a recently implemented independence programme will help children to be better prepared for their futures. Staff have adapted this individually to children and it has already had meaningful impact.

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

Most of the time, staff make well-informed decisions to resolve conflicts and encourage children to make positive choices. However, on a small number of occasions, staff have not intervened quickly enough to resolve escalating behaviour or have lacked the confidence to implement some of their training. For example, there have been two police call-outs to respond to difficult incidents in the home. On both occasions, this led to children being arrested.

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

When things do not go to plan, staff use consequences and reflective conversations with children to help them understand what went wrong. However, the use of consequences is punitive at times and does not consistently demonstrate that natural consequences are considered. There are repeated examples of staff using minor financial penalties with children following difficult incidents, despite no evidence to suggest that these measures are effective. Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers demonstrated positive foresight by recognising that a change in registered manager had the potential to have a negative impact on the home. This meant that staff and children were well prepared for this change and the longer-term impact of this has been minimal. The changes to the management structure have provided unforeseen opportunities for staff development, and the new management team is already taking steps to further enhance staff practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Since the last inspection, the staff team has largely remained unchanged, which promotes consistency and familiarity for children. In addition, this has enabled staff to build a strong understanding of children’s individual personalities. Consequently, they can anticipate when children may need help, even if the child has yet to realise this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a strong culture of learning and reflection across the staff team. Some staff have benefited from valuable lessons-learned discussions following difficult incidents. These have been supportive and well received, increasing individual staff members’ insight into how they have managed these situations. All staff benefit from a comprehensive programme of training and confidently articulate how this prepares them to support children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Morale in the staff team is high, and staff are united in aspiring to provide the best care and support for children. Staff value the place they have in children’s lives and have a clear sense of satisfaction and pride in how they have helped children with their positive achievements. One child’s social worker said, ‘Staff have provided space and support for [name of child] to grow, and their holistic approach has had a positive impact, enabling them to articulate their thoughts and feelings more openly. It has been rewarding to witness the progress the young person has made under the care of staff.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager uses team meetings particularly effectively. Staff are invited to participate and share their views, helping to improve consistency and use their acquired experiences to support wider team development. This also supports staff to have a united vision about their respective responsibilities and how they can support children to progress. Staff supervisions are of high quality and evidence leadership by the registered manager which is underpinned by empathy, staff welfare and a clear commitment to child-focused care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff support children to engage in meaningful charitable activities in the local community. In one example, a child assisted the responsible individual with a presentation to a national charity about their experiences of living in care. This inspires a sense of achievement in children and helps them to acquire important values about the importance of helping others and community spirit, while also raising an understanding about children in care. Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(c) (2)(a)(i)(iv)(xi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff have the confidence to respond to children’s behavioural needs in accordance with their individual plans. Staff should use well- informed judgements about how and when to respond to situations, and unless absolute necessary staff should not rely on using external agencies such as the police to resolve children’s behavioural incidents. 8 September 2025

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Requirement Due date

No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child.

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Requirement Due date

The following measures may not be used to discipline any child— 8 September 2025 Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 7 imposing a financial penalty, other than a requirement for the payment of a reasonable sum (which may be by instalments) by way of reparation. (Regulation 19 (1) (2)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the use of natural consequences is considered as a way of supporting children to learn.

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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: SC414738 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Coach House, White House Court, Hockliffe Street, Leighton Buzzard LU7 1FD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Claudette Rudman

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Inspector

Ashley Edwards, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC414738 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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