Children's home run by The Beeches UK limited in Redbridge

Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 1 SC053529 Registered provider: The Beeches UK Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned children’s home provides care for up to six children with a learning disability and/or other complex needs. Five children were living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The new acting manager has been in post since April 2025.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/08/2024 Full Good 12/09/2023 Full Good 20/07/2022 Full Good 28/10/2021 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All five children living at the home contributed to this inspection. The children benefit from high levels of stability in their care. Most children have been living at the home for several years. They receive care and support from staff who know them well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Because the staff know the children well, they are able to help them make measurable progress in relation to their individual starting points. The one child who has moved in since the last inspection has made huge progress in a short space of time. Initially, they required support with all aspects of daily living, including dressing and personal hygiene. This child is now able to follow a daily routine, manage their personal hygiene with little support and is becoming involved in daily living tasks such as the preparation of meals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are in education. The staff help the children work towards targets that are tailored to their specific learning and development needs. Staff work with the children to develop weekly reward charts. Staff recognise and celebrate success, which supports the children to work towards their individual targets.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff plan discussions and one-to-one support sessions for children well. They help children learn about topics that are pertinent to their individual needs through discussion and the use of workbooks and videos. The manager supports the staff to carry out effective one-to-one work with children through the use of booklets that the manager has developed. The one-to one support that staff provide the children with is highly successful and has helped them to make positive progress from their starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support and encourage children with communication difficulties to share their needs and wishes through the use of communication aids. One child who is non- speaking is now able to communicate their choices of snacks and meals and is starting to convey their personal care needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support the children with different levels of supervision and assistance that meet their individual needs. Two children are able to have free time in the community and regularly use the bus to travel to and from school, while others require more intensive support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy a range of activities and opportunities to expand their life experiences. They have enjoyed caravan holidays and trips to seaside towns and big cities.

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

The staff support the children to communicate in a way that meets their specific needs. Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 4 This includes the use of verbal communication, electronic communication aids, pictures and objects of reference. Staff are knowledgeable about children’s preferred methods of communication and ensure that the children always have access to their communication aids.

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

There have been several incidents of children missing from home during this inspection period. When children have gone missing, there has been a strong response by staff to these incidents. Staff act like a caring parent would and search for the children for prolonged periods. Managers do their utmost to ensure that professionals carry out return home interviews when children have gone missing from home.

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

The manager and staff listen to the children’s opinions and act on these. For example, the manager has worked in partnership with one child who frequently went missing from home to understand why they went missing. The child expressed a wish to have more independence in the community. Staff supported the child through one-to-one one discussions and planning to help them understand about how to stay safe in the community. Consequently, the child has been able to have free time after school hours. This builds their confidence and self-esteem. This partnership working with the child, and considering their wishes in a safe way, has resulted in no further incidents of them going missing from home. The manager responded effectively to the one medication error that has occurred since the last inspection. All staff involved in the error completed additional training and assessment of their ability to administer medication. Additionally, further guidance and

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

training have been provided for all staff to reduce the risk of recurrence.

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

There are several restrictions at the home, which mean that children are not always able to access parts of their home and, on occasion, potentially have their privacy unnecessarily intruded on. For example, the front door is keypad locked at all times, one child’s en-suite bathroom is kept locked and an audio monitor is used in the hallway area of the home. These restrictions are not clearly documented as agreed by the local authority. Nor are they kept under regular review to ensure they are appropriate for all of the children who are subject to these restrictions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been several changes to the leadership and management of the home since the last inspection. However, the people in senior roles continue to be familiar to the children and staff. The previous registered manager has moved into the responsible individual role, and the current manager was promoted from a deputy role. Consideration has been given to how to provide continuity for children during these changes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has applied to register with Ofsted. She has plans to continue to develop the home and has begun to implement these changes. She is clear about her expectations of staff and has high aspirations for the experiences and care of children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 5 The manager has ensured that risk assessments and children’s individual plans are clear and easy for staff to follow. They are written in line with the home’s chosen therapeutic model, and they guide staff responses to ensure children experience consistency in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses effective monitoring and review systems to monitor the progress and outcomes for children. The manager reviews children’s progress through regular review reports.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. The manager delivers regular workshops and presentations in team meetings to further strengthen the knowledge and skills of the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager follows safer recruitment processes to ensure that the staff working at the home are suitable. One member of staff has not yet achieved the relevant level 3 qualification within the specified timeframe. This was a requirement at the last inspection and has been restated. Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 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 privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)) 28 September 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform. 28 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 7 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. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a))

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Requirement Due date

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

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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: SC053529 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Beeches UK Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: S B C H House, 212 Ballards Lane, London N3 2LX

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Inspector

Andrea Bounden, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC053529 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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