Children's Home run by Cheshire West and Chester Council in Cheshire West and Chester

Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 1 Registered provider: Cheshire West and Chester Council 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 local authority. 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 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home. Both were observed, and one engaged in conversation with the inspector.

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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: 2537847 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/03/2025 Full Good 27/02/2024 Full Good 21/02/2023 Full Good 26/07/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, two children have moved out of the home and two children have moved into the home. At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a happy and relaxed home and receive care from a consistent group of staff who support children’s needs and consistently reflect on their practice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff team focuses on supporting children as they transition either into foster care or back to their families. Outcomes are positive, with children successfully placed in foster care, reunited with their parents or, in one case, moved to a different residential setting that was better suited to their individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively support children’s health needs by ensuring that they receive regular medical check-ups. In addition, children benefit from in-house psychological services, which assist them in managing their mental well-being. Children report that these services are helpful and they feel supported by staff in discussing any personal concerns or difficulties.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to maintain relationships with those who are important to them. Staff listen to the wishes of children about family time and provide them with support to spend quality time with their families. Families say that staff keep them informed about what is happening in their children’s lives so that they remain involved in their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the importance of education with children. The two children who are currently living at the home have excellent attendance at school and are making good progress with their education. When children are experiencing issues with education, staff are proactive in liaising with professionals to secure suitable educational arrangements for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have high aspirations for the children in their care and strive to offer them a range of opportunities during their stay at the home. Children have participated in activities during their summer holidays, including a short break away with staff, which was enjoyed by children and staff. Photos around the home provide memories of the summer, which children have enjoyed.

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

Although the home is currently settled, there has been a period of time when the behaviours of one child escalated quickly following significant changes in their personal circumstances. Although staff worked hard to manage these behaviours to enable the child to remain living in the home, this was not possible. During this challenging time, professionals commended the manager and staff team for going Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 4 ‘above and beyond’ to safeguard all children and ensure a new home was secured for the child in crisis.

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

Risks to children currently living at the home are low. Staff consult with children about their understanding of risk and how they can keep themselves safe in all areas of their life, such as when using social media or when they are out with friends in the local community.

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

Staff are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities. Staff are reflective in their practice, and although risks are currently low for the children in their care, they remain reflective and demonstrate professional curiosity in their daily responsibilities.

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

Staff prefer to concentrate on celebrating children’s successes and positive achievements rather than using consequences for negative behaviour.

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

Staff use a range of interventions to prevent the need for physical intervention of children. When physical intervention is used, records reflect that the use of intervention is proportionate and necessary to safeguard all concerned. Records could be improved to reflect any learning that is identified after the incident, including the manager’s evaluation of staff’s actions and approach used towards children.

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

Although the home is welcoming, there are household repairs that remain outstanding. This is despite ongoing requests about the need for repair by the manager, responsible individual and independent visitor. This does not promote the importance of a well-maintained, safe property for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a qualified and experienced manager. She is reflective in her practice, and she shares her vision and ethos with the staff to ensure that they are also reflective in their day-to-day care of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they receive support from the manager, and she provides them with guidance to help them develop in their roles. The manager ensures that the staff have the skills, knowledge and experience that they need to support the children in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive a range of training to ensure that they have the necessary skills and experience for their role. Staff say that they receive regular supervision. This provides them with an opportunity to discuss their performance in their role. Clinical supervision is also available for staff. This provides additional independent support during times of crisis, which staff say has been helpful.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a range of internal quality assurance tools that she implements to ensure that standards of care at the home are maintained. However, the manager’s evaluation after incidents could be improved to ensure that any learning identified is used to improve practice further. Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 5 Staffing at the home is consistent and stable. Staff say that they work together as a team and that team meetings help them to provide a consistent approach to children. Professionals say that staff know the children in their care well, have gone above and beyond in their approach to meeting children’s needs and ensure that they are cared for. One professional said, ‘Staff are very attentive,’ and ‘I know that my child is safe and well cared for at the home.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 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—

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d)) 31 March 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. They should be skilled in anticipating difficulties and reviewing incidents, such as learning from disruptions and placement breakdowns. They are responsible for proactively implementing lessons learned and sustaining good practice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: 2537847 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cheshire West and Chester Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Portal, 4 Civic Way, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire CH65 0BA

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Inspector

Julia Toller, Ofsted Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2537847 8 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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