Children's home run by Smoothstone Care & Education Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 1 Registered provider: Smoothstone Care & Education 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 children’s home is privately owned and is registered to care for up to six children who may have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

Since the last inspection, no children have moved in or out of the home. There were four children and one young person living at the home at the time of the inspection. All children were seen and spoken to by the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a school on the same site, which the children attend. Inspectors only inspected the social care provision on this site.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector was aware during this inspection that an alleged incident that occurred at the setting since the last inspection is under investigation by the appropriate authorities. While Ofsted does not have the power to investigate incidents of this kind, actions taken by the setting in response to the alleged incident were considered alongside other evidence available at the time of the inspection to inform the inspector’s judgements.

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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 March 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 2 Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/03/2025 Full Good 24/10/2023 Full Good 08/11/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 08/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care. Children’s wishes and feelings are regularly sought, and they have a genuine say in their day-to-day care. Children are well supported to maintain relationships with those who are important to them, particularly those children who live far away from home. For example, one child is being supported to get to know their birth parents, and another child has met with extended family for the first time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children do well in education considering their starting points. For one child who struggled to attend school prior to moving to the home, they now enjoy school and have excellent attendance. Another child has successfully completed and passed their exams and is undertaking some work experience at a local authority.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health is well supported by staff. For example, one child has made positive progress with their personal hygiene and improved diet. Another child with Cerebral Palsy lives an active life, which keeps their muscles strong. Children’s mental and emotional health is also well supported. Specialist mental health support is sought where appropriate, and children receive input from professionals such as psychologists and art psychotherapists. This ensures that children’s overall health and well-being improve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children are preparing to leave the home, transitions are thoughtfully considered. Children’s ‘life stories’ are promoted and celebrated through memory books and praise books. When placement endings are unplanned, the welfare and well-being of children remain paramount and the needs and feelings of other children living in the home are considered.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive and meaningful relationships with core staff. These staff know children well and understand their complex needs. However, some children have struggled with the recent high turnover of staff. This inconsistency in care makes children feel insecure and unsettled.

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

Staff respond well to behaviours that are difficult to manage, such as physical aggression. Physical intervention is used as a last resort to keep children and staff safe. The least force and measure are used. Children and adults are spoken to afterwards and a manager reviews each incident to identify any learning to improve practice. Incidents are monitored and tracked to look for patterns and trends. This helps to understand what might be going on for the child.

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

Risks to children are well known and understood by staff. Safety plans are clear and tell staff how to respond. All staff are up to date with safeguarding training. Managers and staff have a balanced approach to risk, which enables children to live fulfilled lives. For example, children with learning disabilities are encouraged to be independent through Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 5 going to the shops while staff stand a safe distance behind, and one child volunteers in a shop taking orders at the till.

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

When children or staff raise a concern, managers take appropriate action. The relevant authorities are informed, such as Ofsted, the police and the local authority designated officer. Effective safeguards are put in place to keep children safe, and children are well supported through the investigations. However, there has been a considerable delay in one member of staff reporting a serious concern. This put children at significant risk. Once this concern was known, effective action was taken by the manager to safeguard children.

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

Medication is safely stored. Daily medication audits are undertaken, ensuring any administration errors are identified promptly. When errors do occur, appropriate actions are taken, and learning is used to improve practice and prevent further incidents. However, there is a shortfall in the recording of medication administration; staff do not record the reason children are given pro re nata medication.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to his role and strives to achieve the best outcomes for children. He leads by example, covering shifts when staff call in sick. However, a high turnover of staff has created an unstable and worn-out staff team. This has led to some staff feeling underappreciated. There is a plan in place to address this, but time is needed for these changes to take effect.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well trained and feel confident in their role. They receive training in relation to children’s needs, such as autism spectrum disorder and sexualised behaviour, and additional physical intervention workshops have helped to upskill the team and support them in this area.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works well with other professionals, such as the police and social workers. He communicates effectively with others and works in collaboration. Specialist support is sought where appropriate. For example, an autism assessment has helped to inform one child’s level of need and subsequent transition plan. This ensures that decisions about the care of children are well considered and in their best interests.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective oversight and quality assurance systems in place. He knows what is happening in the home daily. Regular internal and external audits are undertaken. Areas of shortfall are promptly identified and addressed. However, external stakeholder feedback is not proactively sought. This prevents a holistic review of the service. Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 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

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to staff taking effective action to safeguard children and report concerns to managers without delay. 17 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person must demonstrate every effort to achieve continuity of staffing so that children’s attachments are not overly disrupted, including ensuring that the employment of any temporary staff will not prevent children from receiving the continuity of care that they need. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)  Records must be kept of the administration of all medication. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)  The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Recommendations

This recommendation was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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: 1278966 8

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Children’s home details

Provision sub-type: Residential special school

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Smoothstone Care & Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Datum House, Electra Way, Crewe CW1 6ZF

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Inspector

Emma Dacres, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1278966 9 regulates 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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Inspector

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