Children's home run by Blue Mountain Homes Ltd in Ealing

Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 1 SC059998 Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes 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

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to four children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

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

Date of last inspection: 10 September 2024

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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: SC059998 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/09/2024 Full Good 17/05/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/03/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness 06/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with a safe and secure home that is warm and welcoming. This is very much the children’s home; they are fully involved in decorating and personalising their bedrooms, and their individual personalities are reflected throughout the home. Children are proud of their home and have a real sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living at this home and receive good-quality and nurturing care from staff who understand their needs. Children said they feel happy and that staff are nice and kind.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All three children have educational placements that meet their needs. Staff use their excellent relationships with children to encourage them to participate and progress in education. One child was previously receiving online tutoring. Challenges were experienced in identifying a new school that was able to meet the child’s needs. The manager worked closely with external professionals and advocated for the child’s education, health and care plan to be updated to ensure this was a true reflection of the child. This was updated, and the child has now started school. This is a significant achievement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to have relationships with important people in their lives. Consequently, the manager and staff promote safe and meaningful family time. Staff work closely to support children to repair and rebuild relationships where these have previously been fractured. This provides children with a continued sense of identity and means they can have an enjoyable relationship with those close to them now and going forwards.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand children’s individual needs and have developed positive and trusting relationships with them. These relationships contribute to children making good progress. For example, staff have worked effectively with one child to develop strategies for managing their feelings and emotions. This child is now more able to talk to the staff about their worries. As a result, there has been a decrease in the number of incidents.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Moves into the home are well planned and child centred. A robust transition plan was in place for one child who recently moved into the home. This included the child spending time with staff from the home, engaging in activities with peers and visiting the home. This helped the child to process what was happening. This positive level of support means that there is a team of people around each child, who are all working together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff advocate for children to receive specialist health assessments to identify emerging needs. Children are registered with health services and attend routine Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 4 appointments when needed. This means children receive appropriate support with their health and education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a wide range of experiences. Staff encourage children to plan and participate in enjoyable activities in the home and community. These activities include bowling, theme parks, zoos, day trips at the seaside and visiting places of interest. These activities support children to make memories, grow in confidence, remain stimulated and stay physically fit.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have overcome many challenges. The staff have demonstrated diligence and determination to help the children believe in themselves and have confidence and pride in their achievements. This has been further strengthened through incentive and rewards systems and meaningful conversations with the children.

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

Staff know the children very well. Children’s plans and risk assessments are detailed and kept under regular review, making it clear to staff what they need to do to keep children safe. This effective safeguarding practice promotes children’s safety. It also means children are supported to take measured, age-appropriate risks in line with their development.

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

Staff work hard to identify any safeguarding concerns. They understand the vulnerabilities of each child and place children’s needs at the centre of their practice. They are thoughtful about how to support children when they are together and are aware of the risks associated with this. They have appropriate strategies in place to mitigate these risks. When necessary, the manager takes prompt action and escalates concerns to social workers.

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

The manager works closely with the organisation’s therapy team to establish plans that help children to develop an awareness of their behaviours. This unified approach means that children receive consistent care, advice and boundaries from staff. They help children to understand unsafe and inappropriate behaviours, as well as supporting them to reflect on incidents of concern.

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

Physical restraint is used as a last resort and after extensive proactive measures are tried. Managers assure themselves that each incident of restrictive practice is proportionate. Debriefs are carried out with children and staff to identify lessons learned. These are shared with the team and, if necessary, practice is adapted to ensure that children remain safe.

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

Managers and staff place great importance on preventing risk to children from reoccurring. There is a child-centred approach to the discussions that staff have with the children about risks. They work closely with professionals, including the police, and use innovative ways to engage children in these discussions. This helps children to learn about themselves, their triggers and how to keep themselves safe. Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 5 The staff recruitment process is thorough. When allegations are made against staff, the registered manager takes appropriate action. This safeguards children while matters are investigated.

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

Staff have a clear understanding of safeguarding processes and procedures. This information is included in the induction for all new staff. The manager shares information about all serious incidents. This is done in a timely manner and with relevant professionals. Children’s plans are updated following incidents. This means children benefit from safeguarding practice that is modified in line with their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2025 and is covering the manager’s planned leave. She is highly motivated and dedicated. She strives to achieve the best possible outcomes for children. She is a strong advocate for children and tenaciously challenges any decisions that are not in their best interests. One social worker said, ‘I have never known a manager so passionate and resilient.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are highly skilled and trained. Staff receive training in relation to children’s needs, such as autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder and global development delay. Staff’s trauma-informed practice is further developed by regular consultations with the organisation’s therapy team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive a high standard of supervision that is reflective and provides them with the opportunity to discuss the children. Staff said that they are happy working at the home, and they describe it as ‘a second family’. Staff said that they feel valued and supported by their peers, the manager and the senior leadership team. Team meetings happen regularly, are well attended and are used as an opportunity for the team to refresh safeguarding knowledge and discuss current research-informed practice related to supporting vulnerable children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and staff place a high importance on multi-agency working. They work collaboratively with other professionals, and they confidently challenge others to ensure that children’s plans are met. This has led to one child receiving additional staff support and another child’s additional needs being formally assessed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Professionals talk positively about the support offered by managers and staff. One child’s social worker said, ‘They are so child centred and just don’t give up.’ Another professional said, ‘They are without a doubt the best home and team I have worked with.’ They added, ‘I’ve learnt so much from them.’ Another said, ‘They go above and beyond what is expected to support [name of child], is at the centre of all what they do, they really are incredible.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are skilled and experienced in supporting and safeguarding vulnerable children because of the rigorous induction and wide range of training they receive. This provides staff with the knowledge and skills to be able to deliver the home’s model of care for supporting children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 6 The manager has excellent oversight of the service. She has robust and effective monitoring and quality assurance systems in place, identifying patterns and trends within behaviours of concern and children’s changing presentation. She knows what is happening in the home daily. Regular internal and external audits are undertaken, with any shortfalls quickly addressed. This ensures that the standard of care remains high.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

No requirements or recommendations have been made following this inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 7

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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: SC059998 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 21 Mallard Way, Pride Park, Derby DE24 8GX

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Pradeep Manaktala

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Sarah Callanan, Rebecca Crane

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Inspector

Zoey Lee, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC059998 9 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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