Children's home run by Hillcrest Children’s Services Ltd in Havant

Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 1 SC482303 Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to eight children who experience social and emotional difficulties. There were five children living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since December 2022.

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Inspection dates: 3 and 9 September 2025

The inspection was paused on 3 September 2025 and resumed and completed on 9 September 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

Date of last inspection: 4 December 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/12/2024 Full Outstanding 12/03/2024 Full Good 14/03/2023 Full Outstanding 11/10/2021 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy and well cared for and like living in the home. They are making positive progress in all areas.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, well decorated, well resourced and personalised. Children’s photos and achievements are proudly displayed, providing an enriching family-like atmosphere. Children are involved in personalising their bedrooms and are involved in choosing decorations that reflect their individual taste.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s progress is celebrated. Monthly letters written to children in a child-friendly, supportive tone, reflect to children their significant achievements. Memory books, photos and letters provide an opportunity for staff to show children how valued they are. These records share information about the experiences and enjoyment children have had spending time with the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Positive relationships are central to the support given to children. A consistent staff team are dedicated to developing warm and trusting relationships. Staff know children well and can identify the support each of them needs to progress. They act as advocates for the child with professionals and their families when needed, to ensure that plans align with children’s wishes and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are able to identify staff they can share worries with and are supported to learn to talk through their feelings. They know how to make a complaint. Complaints have been appropriately managed and responded to in a child-friendly manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have fun and develop new skills, hobbies and interests. They take part in a range of activities in and out of the home, including baking, horse-riding, swimming, camping and football. In addition to this, careful planning has supported children to develop relationships with other children outside of the home. Children have been supported to have sleepovers and playdates with friends at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to maintain lifelong connections. They are able to see and spend time with people they identify as important. Children and their families are supported to have positive time together and families are involved in special occasions and celebrations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children are attending and engaged in education. Education is a priority and staff work closely with schools to support children in having positive experiences of education.

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

Effective action is taken when allegations or concerns are raised. Managers take prompt action to ensure that relevant professionals are notified. Staff take time to reassure Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 4 children, offering support and exploring with them the importance of telling staff if they are worried.

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

Staff work closely with external professionals to explore incidents, and when new risks emerge. Joint discussions and planning inform guidance available to staff to intervene to help children become safer. Professionals are kept well informed. One social worker reported that there has been a reduction in behavioural incidents for their child.

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

Children have personalised behaviour management plans, rewards and incentive systems. There are clear expectations for behaviours and child-friendly records to help children understand the home’s rules.

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

There have been weaknesses in record-keeping in relation to behaviour management practices. Incident reports indicate there have been multiple occasions when consequences have been used. However, these have not been recognised by the staff or managers as consequences and therefore have not received the required scrutiny or evaluation of effectiveness.

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

On one occasion, a door was locked during an incident to prevent a child from moving through the home. This has not been recorded as a restrictive intervention and therefore has not been reviewed by the manager to ensure it was proportionate. Due to this not being recorded, managers have been unable to review the use of the practice to identify other strategies that may have been used to avoid the use of the measure.

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

Staff use a range of de-escalation and co-regulation strategies to avoid the use of physical restraint. When physical restraint has been used, managers have taken time to speak to children. However, records are not clear and do not show that managers have spoken to the staff using the measure or reviewed the report within 48 hours of the measure being used. Managers have been unable to offer the level of scrutiny and oversight required to review the proportionality of the measures used.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have high aspirations for children. The registered manager is reflective and passionate about providing high-quality care. She is a committed and consistent presence in the home for both staff and children. The manager is supported by a proactive deputy who is equally passionate about providing a home where children thrive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have created a caring and compassionate culture in the home. Staff strive to provide children with the warmth, boundaries and consistency they need. They are able to describe the impact of their work on individual children and show a good understanding of the home’s statement of purpose and how this guides their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff value the support they receive from leaders and managers. They receive regular supervision and said they also feel able to seek support from managers as and when it is required. Staff feel leaders invest in their personal and professional development. Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 5 Nurture and support for the team from managers have been significant in creating an environment where staff enjoy coming to work. As a result of this, the staff team is stable and committed to providing children with high-quality individualised care and experiences. Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 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

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)) 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 7

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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: SC482303 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Keys Group, Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen B63 4AH

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Inspectors

Georgia Carty, Social Care Inspector Ashley Arkless, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC482303 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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