Children's Home run by Forte Care Ltd in Birmingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 1 Registered provider: Forte Care 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

A private company owns this children’s home. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home does not currently have a registered manager.

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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: 2652817 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/08/2024 Full Good 02/08/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is currently one child living in the home. Staff are working hard to provide the child with a stable and nurturing home where they are safe and able to make progress. Staff are supporting the child to make progress from the child’s individual starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move in and out of the home, staff work hard to make this a positive experience for them. Moves are planned and staff took the time to meet the child and explore their needs before they moved in. A children’s guide was shared with the child to help them understand what the home is like and help alleviate any anxieties they may have.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While the child is not currently in formal education, staff are taking proactive steps to support their reintegration. The child benefits from a structured weekly routine, which includes activities designed to promote learning and reduce distractions. For example, the child regularly attends a designated location which enables them to focus on educational activities. Staff recognised that the educational support provided for the child when they moved in did not meet their needs and have sourced alternative arrangements to help promote the child’s engagement in education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is supported to participate in a range of activities and interests. These help to promote the child’s general well-being and enable them to have fun. This is particularly important given that they are the only child living in the home. The child enjoys music and has access to musical instruments to pursue this interest. In contrast, the child has purchased items in the home that are not appropriate to their age and understanding, which has the potential to have an impact on their dignity and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child’s health needs well. Medicines are safely managed and administered by staff. Staff who administer medicines are trained to do so. There are systems for safely storing and recording medicines to reduce the risk of errors. This helps ensure the child receives medicines needed to support their general well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home’s environment is well maintained. It is homely and child focused. There are pictures of the child proudly displayed, and the child’s room is decorated in a personalised way to reflect their individuality. This helps to provide a pleasant environment for the child to live in.

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

The child has developed positive relationships with staff. They are happy living in the home and report that they get on well with everyone. Staff provide structure for the child with clearly planned days, routines and boundaries to help keep them safe. Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 4 Staff take appropriate action to safeguard and minimise the risk to the child. Following an increase in incidents, leaders and staff worked with the professional network to disrupt the behaviour and devise safety plans to keep the child safe. This has led to a decrease in incidents and a reduction in the child’s vulnerabilities.

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

Staff understand the child’s risks and the action they need to take to keep them safe. When the child goes missing from the home, staff are aware of the signs and places they may go. They take appropriate action to help locate the child quickly and secure their safe return home.

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

Overall, the use of physical intervention is safe and implemented in line with the home’s policy. All staff have received appropriate training in approved restraint techniques. However, on one occasion, staff did not adhere to authorised methods of restraint. While the child did not experience harm, the failure to follow approved procedures has the potential to leave the child vulnerable.

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

In addition, leaders do not always ensure that restraint records are clear and accurate. Some incidents lack the required information and robust management evaluation. Furthermore, it is unclear when and how the child and staff are spoken to after incidents, which limits the opportunity for reflection and learning.

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

Since the last inspection, there have been some changes to the leadership and management of the home. These changes have led to some instability in leadership systems. The home does not currently have a registered manager. However, a suitably qualified interim manager has been temporarily appointed to provide support needed while a permanent manager is recruited.

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

The disruption in leadership has adversely affected the oversight and monitoring of the home. There has been insufficient management scrutiny of some incidents, a lack of formal opportunities for the child to express their views and some weaknesses in staff recording and reporting practices. These shortfalls have not been effectively addressed. As a result, opportunities to identify and respond to concerns, improve practice, and promote reflective learning have, on occasions, been missed. This undermines the delivery of high-quality care and has the potential to compromise the safety and well- being of children.

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

Staff and leaders do not always recognise when reports relating to serious incidents should be sent to Ofsted. Also, they do not always ensure they are sent in a timely manner. This reduces Ofsted’s oversight of incidents and actions taken to ensure that the child is kept safe.

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

Despite these shortfalls, leaders and staff have worked hard to provide a stable home for the child. Feedback from external professionals has been very positive about the care and support provided in helping the child to keep safe and remain living in the home. This gives the child the best opportunity to thrive and make progress. Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 5 Staff work well as a team and are supported to develop in their roles. Staff receive regular training opportunities that are specific to the child’s needs. All staff are on track for obtaining the required qualification in children’s residential care. Staff receive regular supervision sessions, in which they can discuss their learning and development needs. This helps to ensure that the child is supported by staff with the skills and knowledge needed to do so. Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f)(g)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they have a clear management oversight of incidents and the experiences of the child living in the home to support improvements in the quality of care provided. 2 September 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and 2 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 7 the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 8 (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii) (b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that all incidents requiring physical restraint with children are recorded factually and that they provide a clear overview of the incident.

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Requirement Due date

Also, it relates to the manager’s oversight of incidents requiring physical restraint with children at the home and the need to ensure that the effectiveness of each measure is reviewed and that children and staff are spoken to and provided with opportunities to reflect on their experiences.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child —

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Requirement Due date

is instigated; or concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that Ofsted are notified of serious incidents in a timely manner and that they provide relevant updates in relation to a child protection enquiry. 2 September 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff provide a nurturing environment that is welcoming. This specifically relates to the provision of items that are inappropriate to the child’s age and understanding. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7) Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 9  The registered person should ensure that that any form of restrictive practices is appropriately assessed and authorised. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.55)

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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: 2652817 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 213 Station Road, Stechford, Birmingham B33 8BB

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Victoria Chinchen

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Inspector

Louise Naylor, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2652817 11 and inspects to 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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