Children's Home run by Hestia Homes for Children in Reading

Inspection report for children’s home: 2816100 1 Registered provider: Hestia Homes for Children Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. It is registered to provide care for up to seven children with learning disabilities. It is next door to its sister home, and the two homes share a staff team. Two children were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager is registered for both homes. They were registered to manage this home at its registration in December 2024.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2816100 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children develop secure and trusting relationships with the staff at the home.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a sound understanding of children’s communication methods and their preferences. There is a strong commitment to ensuring that children can make choices about how they are cared for and supported. However, there are missed opportunities to capture learning through key-work sessions with children.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are given the opportunity to engage in a range of activities, such as cooking and going out to the shops, fast-food restaurants and to farm parks. Children have fun at the home and are encouraged by staff to expand their experiences and make memories. Photo compilations at the home beautifully capture children’s joy.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s needs are well understood by staff, who are attentive to any changes outside of their usual presentations. Children’s anxieties, as communicated through their behaviours, are well documented in incident reports.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress from their starting points, and targets are set that are meaningful to each child. However, it is unclear how staff support the children to achieve their goals, as they are not broken down into measurable steps. Furthermore, staff are not consistently recording the progress that children make.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend education or are supported to engage in personal tutoring linked to education. Staff advocate strongly for them and attend all meetings in relation to their schooling.

p.2

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

Staff have a good understanding of the individual vulnerabilities and needs of each child. They have effective strategies in place to help keep the children safe, and these are clearly set out in the children’s individual risk management plans. As a result, children are safeguarded effectively.

p.2

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

When medication errors have occurred, leaders and managers have taken appropriate action to investigate them and to ensure that the risk of further errors is reduced.

p.2

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

Staff are trained well to meet the individual needs of the children living in the home. They are trained in positive behaviour management and make effective use of de- escalation techniques when incidents occur; this has led to a reduction in physical interventions. Inspection report for children’s home: 2816100 3 Leaders and managers ensure that safer recruitment processes are followed. They are fully aware of their responsibilities to ensure that health and safety processes are implemented. Consequently, children, staff and visitors are protected.

p.2

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are dedicated and have an ambitious vision for children. They lead a team of staff who have high expectations for children’s achievements, and they ensure high standards of individualised care. The managers have good oversight of children’s day-to-day experiences.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have comprehensive knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Managers are supportive and ensure a clear ethos so that children are cared for consistently and in line with the home’s statement of purpose.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management arrangements provide a supportive, collaborative and caring culture for everyone in the home. There is a real sense of teamwork, with strong working relationships between staff, who acknowledge any difficulties and support each other. This provides a stable team for the children.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are given opportunities to develop their skills through training. Leaders and managers have high expectations of staff practice, and they address any poor practice promptly.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive a thorough induction and training, tailored to meet the specific needs of the children in the home. Additionally, they have regular and evaluative supervision to ensure that they have the skills and support required to continue to meet the children’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2816100 4

p.3

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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

p.4

Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

p.4

Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

p.4

Requirement Due date

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

p.4

Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(vi))

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure the children’s plans have clear detail in how their targets are to be met; ensure the staff are recording on to the children’s target forms daily and ensure that key-work sessions or their equivalent are recorded by staff. 30 November 2025

p.4

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: 2816100 5

p.4

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hestia Homes for Children

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Cottage, Emerys Farm, Beckfords, Upper Basildon, Reading RG8 8PB

p.5

Inspector

Jennie Christopher, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2816100 6 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.

p.5

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.6

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.6

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.6