Children's Home run by Active Care Organisation Limited in West Northamptonshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 1 Registered provider: Active Care Organisation 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

This home is owned and managed by a private company. It provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2024.

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Information about this children’s home

There was one child living at the home at the time of this 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: 17 February 2025

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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: 2683082 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/02/2025 Full Good 13/02/2024 Full Good 19/09/2023 Full Inadequate 28/03/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good understanding of the child, which has been supported through detailed care plans and assessments. These are personalised to the child and regularly updated. Professionals have praised the staff consistently for how well they know the child and say they are ‘passionate and hold [name of child] at the heart of everything they do’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have built strong relationships with the child, which has had a positive impact on the child’s self-esteem and motivation to succeed in life. Staff are dedicated to supporting the child, and despite some challenging incidents they remain emotionally available for the child and quickly repair relationships with them, consistently letting them know how much they care. The child said that they like their staff and enjoy spending time with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has benefited from a staff and management team that strongly advocates on their behalf. For example, the child is on a court-directed order and wishes for restrictions to be reduced. The management team has commissioned an external professional to write a report for the court which outlines the child’s views and the progress the child has made. In addition to this, the child has access to an independent advocate and other professionals who can support them in this area.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s voice is fluent throughout the home and is used to make positive changes to their care. Staff have regular, in-depth conversations with the child to capture their wishes and feelings on a range of areas. For example, staff noticed the child was struggling during grocery shopping trips, which are in place to support their independence. Staff had open conversations with the child, who said that they were struggling with the noise levels and busy atmosphere of the shop. Staff took this on board and have worked with the child to change the time and day that they go to the supermarket to ensure that the environment is not overwhelming for them. This ensures that the child is still able to practise their independence skills but in a way that works for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is taking part in full-time education that meets their needs. The child engages well in education with the support of staff who have helped them to access the provision in a way that meets the child’s needs. The staffing levels the child requires in their educational provision have reduced significantly due to the progress they have made. This has benefited the child, as they feel more trusted and independent as a result. The child has recently passed exams, which will support them in their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Consequences are sometimes given to the child when they have shown challenging behaviours. While some of these are proportionate, other consequences given are not, and they do not support the child to understand the impact of their behaviours and Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 4 make amends. The recordings of consequences lack the child’s voice, which makes it difficult to understand the conversations held with them.

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

Incidents, including the need to hold the child, have reduced. This is in part a result of staff’s knowledge and skills when de-escalating the child’s behaviours, reducing the need for holding the child. The child is spoken to after these incidents and they are asked about anything they want staff to do differently next time, which staff reflect on with the manager. The debriefs the child is involved in support them to repair relationships with staff quickly, something which the home’s psychologist says is very important to the child’s emotional well-being. The child is often apologetic after incidents, which demonstrates their increased understanding of their behaviours and the impact on others.

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

Staff and the management team have regular access to the home’s psychologist for reflective sessions, which are sometimes centred on safeguarding incidents. This safe space provides the members of the team with an opportunity to reflect on their practice and feel confident going forward when supporting the child in moments of crisis. Staff feel they have benefited from the sessions and say they help them to express themselves and reduce self-doubt and that the sessions are a good learning platform.

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

Staff are proactive in ensuring that the child can take age-appropriate risks in line with their progression plans. Staff are knowledgeable about the child’s risks and how to manage these safely. They have supported the child to have this understanding too, which has contributed to their ability to become more independent in a safe way. The members of the management team are working creatively in their preparation for reducing staffing ratios for the child, in line with the child’s deprivation of liberty order. Managers and staff understand the importance of reducing staffing levels in a safe and planned way to prepare the child for independence and promote their rights.

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

Physical holds are recorded and contain appropriate management oversight. However, further detail is needed in the reports to better understand each staff member’s involvement in the hold, which will improve transparency and accuracy of the records.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

At the time of the inspection, the registered manager was on extended leave. The responsible individual and the trainee manager were supporting the home at this time. The responsible individual thrives in her role and frequently goes above and beyond to support the child and staff and ensures that they have access to the support they need. She has detailed oversight of the home and staff have commented positively on her support. Staff feel happy with the overall management team and say it is a ‘privilege’ to be part of the staff team and that the home is run by a dedicated team who work together to create a nurturing and structured environment. Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 5 There is extensive management oversight of the home which is supported through the use of frequent and detailed audits completed by a range of professionals, including an external consultant. The audits are actively used as a live document and detail any

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

changes that need to be made with corresponding action plans. The management team ensures that individuals are held accountable for actioning tasks and hold high expectations for practice within the home. One audit, which is used each month, has been redesigned as a child-friendly newspaper format which holds the child at the centre of the audit and ensures that the child’s views are discussed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision for staff is effective and supports positive practice development. Walk- around supervision sessions are completed with staff who have a level of management responsibility which focus on the member of staff actively demonstrating their knowledge and skills. The responsible individual uses these supervision sessions to identify strengths and developmental areas in real time, which helps to improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

While staff are compliant with their training, there are members of staff who have not completed their level 3 qualification within the set time frames. However, the management team is aware of this shortfall and is committed to supporting staff to complete their qualifications as soon as possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The members of the management team seek feedback from external professionals to inform their practice. However, this feedback is not incorporated into the review of the quality of care report and other key documents. Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 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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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014,1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b)) 24 November 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records include sufficient detail to understand the involvement of staff during incidents of restraint on children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49 paragraph 9.59)  The registered person should ensure that external feedback from families and professionals is gained during monitoring of the home and used to make improvements in the care provided to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that any consequences given to the child are restorative in nature and help the child to understand the impact of their behaviour, Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 7 and that their responses are recorded clearly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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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: 2683082 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Active Care Organisation Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Windsor House, Bayshill Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL50 3AT

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Inspector

Ladean Wilson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2683082 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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