Children's home run by Shropshire Council

Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 1 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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SC370982 Registered provider: Shropshire Council

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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 local authority. The home is registered to care for five children who have emotional and social needs and/or a learning disability. At the time of this inspection, four children were living in the home. There has been no manager registered with Ofsted since February 2025. The new acting manager has applied to be registered and has stepped up from their previous role as deputy manager.

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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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 2 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/03/2025 Full Outstanding 06/03/2024 Full Outstanding 05/01/2023 Full Outstanding 22/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 3 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Four children have continued to live at the home since the last inspection. All four children were seen and spoken to. The children said they really like living in this home. They said they feel safe, and they get on well with the staff who care for them. They are not worried about anything now, but if they are, there is always someone in the home they can talk to. They really like their bedrooms and have personalised their rooms, so this feels like their own space.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have made exceptional progress and settled very well since living in the home. They have opportunities to experience new activities including scouts, air cadets and swimming which helps them to build confidence and gain social skills. Children’s health needs are met to a good standard, and they attend school regularly. Most children are progressing very well from their starting points, staff are aspirational and help children achieve well. One child has made excellent progress with their school attendance, which has significantly improved over the past year. Another child continues to struggle with being on time for school, which staff support them to manage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children talked about fun adventures they have enjoyed, such as going to theme parks, having a caravan holiday and visiting the beach. Children talked positively about these experiences and said that they also enjoy playing sports or going to local clubs or activities. All of this means that children feel well supported by the staff who care for them, and they can make good progress in all areas of their development. Staff also strongly encourage children to maintain links with their families.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is clean, safe and warm. There are spacious areas for children to play and relax, so the children can spend time together, or separately if they prefer. There are lovely photos on the walls of the children having fun. All of this helps children to relax and feel at ease. Leaders and managers acknowledged that the home may benefit from being modernised in some areas, some maintenance of the home has been delayed and there may not be a need to keep some of the rooms locked. Children have ready access to fruit, however children’s main meals are not always as nutritious as they might be, for example ensuring the inclusion of fresh vegetables, or salad.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Professionals are positive about the home and say communication with managers and staff is good. They said staff advocate well for the children and they provide a strong presence at any meetings that are held. Managers identify when additional assessment or support might be needed and share this with social workers. This strong level of practice ensures that there is a team around each child who are all working together. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 4 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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

Children feel safe in the home. The manager and staff work hard to tackle any risks that children are experiencing so they can learn from any concerns that arise. The staff have worked hard to build strong relationships with the children, and this has been a key factor in reducing risk. For one child, successful intervention from staff in the home has significantly reduced exposure to exploitation risks. The review of the child’s risk assessment indicates the child is no longer at high risk; vaping has stopped and they are safer online.

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

Staff know the children well and communicate with them in a way that enables them to feel safe and supported. Staff respond well when there are safeguarding concerns, and ensure there is timely communication with social workers and other professionals to address any worries for the children.

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

Children receive care from a core team of staff who know the children well. They have positive routines and boundaries in place for them. Children generally build positive relationships with others. When there are difficulties between the children, there is a strong level of support available from staff so they can rebuild relationships and repair any hurt or upset. Most children receive support from staff to learn to be safe in their local community and to safely navigate friendships and relationships. Staff support children to understand risk, which leads to increased opportunities. However, staff are not always proactive in taking steps to actively supervise children when there are fractious peer relationships. This means for some children, they have had to complain about their experiences with peers when they feel intimidated. Staff have increased their vigilance and supervision as a response to children’s complaints.

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

There have been several incidents where one child has needed to be physically restrained. This was done to keep the child and others safe. When children have expressed that they are experiencing problems with their emotional well-being, or they are struggling to manage their emotions, a strong level of support is provided to them to ensure they remain safe.

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

Managers recognise when there are concerns about staff practice, and investigate appropriately, including making referrals to safeguarding authorities when necessary. There has been one concern about medication practice, and this is still being investigated. This was a recording error, and this situation did not have any impact on the child. There has been reflection and learning taken from events that have happened to ensure that staff continue to learn and develop their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Child centred leaders have maintained the stability of relationships for children living in the home with the seamless transfer from the previous manager to the acting manager. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 5 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The committed registered individual and acting manager, both have good, detailed knowledge of the children’s individual needs, and they have high aspirations for their futures and successfully help children flourish.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most staff said they love working in this home and feel valued and supported by their managers. They say they have access to good training, consultation with the clinician who visits the home and generally have regular supervision. Newer staff have received a positive induction to the home. This ensures that staff feel well supported and receive advice about caring for the children so they can respond to their individual needs. A range of professionals who work with the home’s staff and acting manager, provided overwhelming positive feedback which highlights most children’s needs are met within the home’s safe, supported and nurturing environment. The staff in the home communicate exceptionally well with social work professionals and schools, enabling an effective team around the child approach. This helps children to progress very well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a proficient level of management oversight in this home, and steps are being taken to further embed therapeutic parenting approaches in this home. Managers have provided good oversight of children’s records. Over time incidents of restraint have reduced and time is taken by the acting manager to understand children’s needs and ensure that staff intervention is proportionate. When gaps are identified in recording, this is addressed, and action is taken to improve this. For one child who has expressed specific views about their identity, staff responses and written records have not consistently and respectfully acknowledged the child’s wishes relating to their bespoke identity needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have had access to mandatory training; however, they have not yet been provided with additional training that supports the care and support of children with more complex care needs. Leaders consider areas for development and when learning needs are identified, plans are put in place to augment staff development. Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 6 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background.

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Requirement Due date

The health and wellbeing standard is that- children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being;

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to such dental, medical, nursing and psychiatric and psychological advice, treatment and other services as the child may require.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 10(1)(b)(2)(c)) 30 January 2026

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12(2)(a)(iv)) 31 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The Leaders and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to 30 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 7 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on -

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13(2)(g)(i) Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 8 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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: SC370982 9 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Shirehall, Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury SY2 6ND

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Inspector

Sarah Sheffield, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC370982 10 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Inspector

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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Inspector

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