Children's home run by Amber Care Group UK Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2783212 1 Registered provider: Amber Care Group (UK) Limited

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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 managed by a private provider. It provides care for one child who may experience social, emotional and mental health difficulties and have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered in March 2024.

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Information about this children’s home

The child was seen 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 good

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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: 19 November 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: 2783212 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/11/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2783212 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has moved out of the home since the last inspection, and another child has moved in. Children benefit from planned introductions to the home before moving in, which helps them to become familiar with the home and the staff who will be caring for them. This helps children to feel more at ease in their new environment. When children move on from the home, the manager and staff plan for the child’s move and provide ongoing support in their new home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warm and welcoming with a family atmosphere. The child has their own bedroom, which is personalised. The child has access to toys and games in the home, including their own bedroom and communal areas. Staff maintain the cleanliness of the home, which provides a pleasant environment for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress from their individual starting points. This is because staff and managers develop a good understanding of their development needs. Children have made progress with their independence, including personal hygiene, and also in developing meaningful relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to attend school. For example, the child now living in the home has excellent attendance and has received a positive end-of-year report. The home and school work collaboratively to support the child and address any barriers that children may face. This has included ensuring that children have the right education provision to meet their needs. Staff provide structure and routine in the home during periods to support children to learn at times when they are not attending school. This helps to ensure that children continue to learn while their educational needs are addressed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff care for children who have additional needs and vulnerabilities. Staff know the children’s health needs well and support them to attend health appointments and seek medical advice where necessary. The child living in the home has a number of medical issues and is supported by staff to take part in structured activities and eat a balanced diet. This helps to ensure that they are in good physical health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff keep a record of activities and special memories for children. This is easily accessible to children and provides a record of their time in the home that they can take with them when they move on. This helps the child to look back on and remember important life events.

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

Care plans and risk assessments are detailed and individualised to the child. They are regularly updated to reflect the changing needs of the child and provide staff with guidance on how to respond to risk and keep the child safer. A child-friendly care plan is available for the child, which helps to include the child in their own care planning. Inspection report for children’s home: 2783212 4 Staff respond promptly to incidents and ensure that the safety and well-being of the child are prioritised. Risk assessments and plans are reviewed to include additional information to support staff in safeguarding the child. The manager reviews the recording of incidents to maintain oversight of staff practice. This enables the manager to take appropriate action to address any shortfalls in a timely way.

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

The use of physical intervention is rare and used only to ensure the safety of the child. Staff record incidents in detail and engage in debriefs to help them reflect on the intervention and its effectiveness. The manager has good oversight of incidents to ensure that staff practice in the home is scrutinised and that any holds that are used are safe and proportionate.

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

The manager follows safer recruitment procedures to ensure that all necessary checks are completed, including overseas checks where relevant. This helps to assure the manager that the staff working with children are safe and have the necessary skills to fulfil the role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good understanding of the children and has good insight into their previous experiences and how these may impact the child. The manager speaks positively of the children and has high ambitions for the progress they can make.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the strengths of the home and the areas for development and is open to new ideas. Staff are encouraged to share their views and are also supported with their professional development through taking on extra responsibilities. Staff complete all necessary training and specialist training to support the needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly and are well attended. The meetings provide an opportunity for staff to share their views and ask questions. Meetings are also used as an opportunity for staff development and will cover topics that are important to the care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak highly of the manager and feel well supported in their role. Supervision takes place on a regular basis and covers a variety of topics. However, the recording of supervision sessions does not always capture the reflective nature of discussions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent person does not consult with the child or other professionals when they complete their monthly visit to the home. This means that there is a lack of independent feedback to inform an accurate evaluation of the standard of care provided to the child. In addition, on one occasion, the independent person wrote a report but did not attend the home in person. As a result, the manager does not benefit from effective external scrutiny of the performance of staff, the progress of the child or their experiences of living in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2783212 5

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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 registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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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 (1) (2)(a)) 8 August 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that a note of the content of supervision sessions is kept and ensure that both the person giving the supervision and the staff member have a copy of the record. In particular, ensure that the record is an accurate reflection of the discussion. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4)

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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: 2783212 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Amber Care Group (UK) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Boho Zero, 21 Gosford Street, Middlesbrough TS2 1BB

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Inspector

Kerry Chater, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2783212 7 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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