Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 1 Registered provider: Esland North 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 managed and run by a private provider. It provides care for up to six children who may have social and emotional needs or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living at the home at the time of this inspection. Three children were spoken to as part of 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: 4 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: 1257013 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/02/2025 Full Good 12/12/2023 Full Outstanding 09/08/2022 Full Outstanding 16/06/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making progress. Children benefit from the support of a stable and consistent staff team whose members know them well. Staff take time to build trusting relationships, which helps children feel safe and secure. Children engage in positive experiences that promote their social, emotional and physical development. They access local community resources and activities, as well as opportunities further afield. These experiences reflect their individual interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are listened to, and their views are respected. Staff create regular opportunities for children to share their thoughts, including through house meetings. Children’s requests and suggestions are recorded and responded to, helping children feel valued and heard. Children’s voices are evident in their care plans and written records. Their views inform decision-making and planning. Staff know the children well and advocate for them effectively. Where appropriate, independent advocates support children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is promoted for children living in the home. When children do not have an appropriate school setting, the manager challenges this. Children are making progress in their learning. One professional told the inspector that children come ready to learn. Education professionals attribute the care provided to the children and how they feel safe as part of the reason they are making progress in their education settings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to be healthy and manage their lifelong health conditions. Staff ensure each child has access to the appropriate health services. Some children need to take medication to stay healthy. Arrangements are in place to manage medication, which includes checks to prevent errors. However, the process to ensure safe administration has not been consistently effective. This has resulted in children not receiving the correct medication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s emotional well-being is prioritised and supported through in-house therapy. Children access therapeutic sessions tailored to their individual needs. Therapy is inclusive and available to all children in the home, regardless of their placing authority. This ensures that every child receives specialist emotional support as part of their care experience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s relationships with family members are promoted. Staff work closely with families and the wider network. This builds and maintains safe and meaningful relationships with people who are important to the children. Family members say they feel supported by the staff team. One parent said that staff are working with them to amend family time arrangements to ensure they are beneficial and enjoyable. Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 4

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

Children feel safe. Children have settled routines with consistent boundaries to provide predictable care. Risk assessments are reviewed regularly as required. They provide clear plans for staff to follow which mitigate known risks and support children in staying safe. Managers and staff are curious about new behaviours from children and update risk assessments accordingly. This means staff are supported in managing risks in a safe way.

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

Staff are skilled at de-escalation. The use of any physical intervention is a last resort to ensure safety. When physical interventions take place, managers provide oversight and complete debriefs. Time frames are considered to ensure children are spoken to in line with their ability to manage any reflection in a meaningful way.

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

Positive behaviour is supported. Staff use praise to reinforce positive behaviour and celebrate individual achievements. Where consequences are used, they are fair, proportionate and clearly explained to children. There is evidence of a restorative approach being used to help children reflect on their actions and repair relationships. Managers promote restorative discussions and actions as an effective and meaningful way to support children. This approach helps children to develop empathy and take responsibility.

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

Allegations are managed effectively. Staff know how to raise a concern and how to access managers for support while maintaining the child’s safety. When allegations have been made, they are shared with the appropriate agencies and explored in line with statutory expectations. Children remain the priority and are supported within these processes, with support being provided both to the person making the allegation and the person subject to the allegation.

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

Managers and staff collaborate effectively with local authorities and wider professionals to safeguard children. Communication is timely, consistent, and focused on promoting children’s safety. This includes raising concerns and challenging safeguarding issues. Staff demonstrate professional curiosity, ensuring that safeguarding concerns are explored and addressed. These actions support children’s safety and well-being and promote accountability across agencies.

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

Children are monitored by staff using internal door alarms. Staff are alerted to a child’s movements by a door alarm sounding if a child leaves their room for any reason. The use of door alarms is not assessed or reviewed to address specific risks for children on an individual basis. There is no evidence of a dynamic assessment around their use.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a resolute management team. Managers are open to feedback and reflective in their practice. They welcome observations and challenge, using these to Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 5 inform development and improve the quality of care. This supports a culture of continuous improvement and enhances the experiences of children living in the home. The registered manager has effective systems to monitor the quality of care provided. Information gathered through monitoring is used to identify themes, implement change and reflect on practice. The registered manager has a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. They are committed to achieving the best outcomes for children and a reflective and responsive approach to leadership.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision takes place regularly. Staff are supported to have discussions about children and reflect on their own practice. Staff are challenged in supervision to assess their knowledge. This means managers are assured that staff are knowledgeable about risks identified for children and how they should act to reduce these.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Case recordings are written with care. Most key documents are written in a child-friendly format for children to read and understand. Use of language is considered and child- centred, referring to children as they identify themselves. Most written records reflect this standard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have access to training opportunities to support their knowledge. Staff are expected to complete a recognised qualification relevant to their role, ensuring they are qualified and skilled. Managers have implemented a system to track staff progression and ensure accountability. Staff are aware of the expectations, and managers continue to monitor and support progress to maintain the expected standards across the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s experiences are captured in memory books. This is a reminder of what they have achieved while living in the home. Children can take the memory books with them when they move on. Staff ensure these books include photos; they capture memories which are pleasant to look back on as the future child. However, they are not written in a personalised style to the child. They do not include any mementos or individual comments to reflect the emotion as a living memory for the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 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 registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that limits on privacy are only put in place to safeguard each child in the home (regulation 21(c)(i)). Any modifications to the environment of the home must only be made where this is intended to safeguard the child’s welfare. All decisions should be informed by a rigorous assessment of that individual child’s needs, be properly recorded and be kept under regular review. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Staff should keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of their time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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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: 1257013 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1 & 5 , Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Corrina Bethell-Passam

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Inspector

Kate Jackson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1257013 8 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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