Children's home run by Homes for Support

Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 1 Registered provider: Homes for Support 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 owned and managed by a private organisation. The home provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. All three children spoke to the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in August 2024.

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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: 2787878 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/01/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they feel safe and listened to by staff. The staff have built trusting relationships with the children. One child said, ‘I like spending time with staff.’ Staff know the children well and can identify their risks and triggers. A social worker said, ‘[child’s name] has attachments to staff.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with regular opportunities to express their wishes and views. Additionally, children are supported to understand their care plans. Children often participate in their reviews and meetings with support from staff. One social worker said, ‘Staff make sure [name of child’s] voice is heard.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy taking part in a range of activities with staff. These range from going on holiday, visiting local amenities and doing arts and crafts. Children are also encouraged to join extra-curricular activities which include football and rugby. This supports children’s physical and emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to attend their education provisions. For some children, this has been difficult. Staff work closely with education providers to support children to remain in school. For one child, this has included staff supporting the child in school to help to regulate their emotions. This has been successful in reducing the child’s anxiety and has improved their attendance.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well met. Staff foresee potential barriers to children attending appointments and seek to resolve these. For example, staff identified one child’s worries about having a blood test and arranged for them to have numbing gel. Staff seek appropriate medical advice when necessary.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children spending time with their family in line with their plans. This supports children’s sense of identity. Additionally, staff support parents to be actively involved in their children’s lives, where appropriate. Staff take one parent to watch their child play sport.

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

Staff support children to understand how staff will keep them safe. Children are fully aware of the complaint’s procedure. When children make a complaint, these are explored and resolved appropriately. One child reported that they were happy with the actions taken following their complaint and that these were effective. However, children are not always informed about the outcome of their complaints.

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

Staff help children to manage their feelings safely. Staff understand the children’s experiences and respond well when children need support. One parent said, ‘Staff are amazing at recognising when something is wrong.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 4 Staff put into practice any recommendations which have included the use of sensory aids and visual aids throughout the home. Additionally, some children have direct access to therapy, and this supports their emotional development.

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

Staff speak confidently about their safeguarding responsibilities. One child has made allegations, and these have been appropriately shared with the social work team. However, the protocol to determine if allegations meet the threshold for referral to external services is unclear. Furthermore, some comments made by one child have not been fully explored.

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

Staff support children to understand their emotions. Staff ensure that this is completed in line with their age and understanding. A social work team manager said, ‘Staff have gone above and beyond to complete work around safety, risks and dysregulation, and they are therapeutic in their approach.’

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

When children go missing from home, staff look for them and follow agreed plans. The manager works with the local authority and children to implement safety plans. These safety plans and continued emotional support offered by staff have resulted in a recent reduction in the number of missing-from-home incidents for one child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is qualified and experienced. The manager is supported by a deputy manager. Together, they are dedicated to ensuring that children receive a good level of care. One member of staff said, ‘The management team are amazing.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that reflective practice is embedded into everyday practice. Staff are supported to reflect on potential triggers for children and to be creative in respect of the strategies they implement to support children. Supervision is child focused, and staff are encouraged to discuss each child’s care and individual crisis management plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are held regularly and are well attended by staff. They provide staff with the opportunity to reflect on children’s needs and to have open discussions. One member of staff said, ‘Our team meetings are a platform for all staff to voice new ideas and strategies.’ Additionally, team meetings include consultation and training from the commissioned clinical team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have good oversight of staff training and development. They identify appropriate additional training for staff. This ensures that staff have the knowledge and skills to be confident in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are appropriate staffing levels in place to meet children’s needs. There is good staff retention at the home. When there are gaps in the rota, these are covered by staff at the home or from other homes in the organisation. This ensures continuity of care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 5

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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 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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that when children make allegations, they are managed effectively. This further relates to the registered person ensuring that records and protocols are clear in respect of allegations. Additionally, this relates to the registered person ensuring that the regulator is notified of any allegations made against staff. 6 November 2025

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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 Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 6 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: 2787878 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes for Support Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Northern House, 3 Kennerleys Lane, Crewe, Cheshire SK9 5EQ

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Inspector

Kitty Wiper, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2787878 8 regulates 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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