Children's home run by Acheron Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 1 Registered provider: Acheron Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private provider and provides care for up to three children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home. Two of the children spoke to the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The previous registered manager left the home in September 2025. A new manager was registered with Ofsted in October 2025. She also manages another of the provider’s homes.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded, and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/03/2025 Full Good 09/08/2023 Full Good 24/01/2023 Full Good 16/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

There are significant shortfalls in safeguarding practice and leadership which have adversely affected children’s experiences and progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Previous management arrangements did not support staff to address behaviours that are difficult to manage. This led to a culture in which staff were reluctant to manage any escalation in children’s behaviours, due to fear of the children’s responses and feeling undermined by the manager. As a result, staff confidence and decision-making were negatively affected. This left children vulnerable and hindered their progress. The absence of consistent boundaries and structure has contributed to poor outcomes for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One child left the home because staff were unable to meet their needs together with those of another child living in the home. The dynamic between the children became increasingly negative and the issue was allowed to escalate due to a lack of effective boundaries and oversight from staff. This has impacted the stability of children’s placements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s experience of education is mixed. While some make progress, one child has not received sufficient support from staff to overcome barriers to engagement and has not participated in education since July 2024. This is negatively impacting on their learning and future life chances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children do not receive help from staff to make sense of their emotions and manage their behaviours in a positive way. Opportunities for staff to use learning approaches to promote positive behaviour are limited. As a result, children have fewer opportunities to understand the impact of their behaviour and do not receive the nurture required to meet their individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s wishes and feelings about their care are not consistently sought or captured by staff, managers or the independent visitor. Children’s voices are not used by staff to help inform practice or decision-making, which limits opportunities for staff to help improve children’s experiences and outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Some areas of the home require maintenance and redecoration and repairs are not carried out within reasonable timescales. Despite the manager’s efforts to chase the company responsible, there have been significant delays, which negatively impact the overall appearance of the home. Because of this, the home is not a nurturing, supportive and homely environment for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 4

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

Children are not adequately safeguarded by staff. Safeguarding arrangements are not proactive and fail to ensure that all children are safe. Incidents are not always responded to appropriately. Although the staff team is experienced, poor decisioning-making by staff has placed children at risk of harm. This has been compounded by weak management oversight, which has failed to support staff to reflect and learn from incidents. These shortfalls significantly compromise children’s safety.

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

Plans to reduce and mitigate risk to children are underdeveloped and ineffective. Children who self-harm have had items in their bedrooms that they could use to injure themselves, and they are not provided with the right type of help and support they need from staff. This failing places children at significant risk of harm. When staff have concerns about a child’s welfare, they carry out room searches to ensure the child’s safety. However, these searches are not always carried out promptly, which increases the risk of harm.

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

Children’s health needs are not well supported by staff or given the time and attention they need. For some children, basic first aid is not always provided following incidents of self-harm. Children are not consistently helped to engage in meaningful conversations to help them explore their emotions and behaviours. For some children, staff did not seek appropriate medical advice when they returned under the influence of alcohol and substances. Children are not consistently receiving appropriate medical help that meets their needs and reduces risk.

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

Children who go missing from home or spend time in the community are not always safeguarded effectively. Staff are not sufficiently curious about children’s whereabouts. They do not follow safety planning when children go missing or spend time out in the community. This places children at increased risk when away from the home. Incidents are not used well to inform children’s plans and the lack of meaningful follow-up limits learning opportunities for staff to help prevent further incidents.

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

Behaviour management in the home has been ineffective, and this has resulted in children being harmed. Staff have reported feeling anxious about using physical intervention to prevent harm, which shows a lack of confidence in their own skills and the support available to them. Managers have not acknowledged or acted on these concerns, missing opportunities to provide reassurance, training and guidance. These failures have significantly compromised the safety and well-being of both children and staff.

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

Risk management plans are not consistently updated following incidents to include new information and emerging vulnerabilities. As a result, staff do not always have access to accurate up-to-date details about children’s risks, limiting their ability to minimise harm effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not maintained effective oversight of the home. Monitoring systems have failed to assess the quality of care and children’s experiences or to provide robust oversight of incidents. There is a lack of professional curiosity, and recording and reporting remain weak. These shortcomings limit opportunities to learn from practice, identify further support for children and staff or to reduce and manage risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not consistently notified the regulator of all serious incidents in a timely manner. Several incidents were reported late or not at all, preventing the regulator from maintaining effective oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

An independent person conducts monthly external monitoring of the home. Previous monitoring was limited as the independent person did not consistently speak to all children or seek their feedback. A new independent person has now been appointed, with improved oversight and the capacity to raise concerns with senior leaders.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There have been recent changes to the leadership team. Changes within the management team have been managed well to help limit the impact on children and staff. Senior leaders acknowledge the identified shortfalls in practice and are implementing actions to address the concerns and improve the care being provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff speak positively about the new manager and say they feel supported. They describe a noticeable improvement in the culture of the home and in the progress of the children within a short period of time.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Clear expectations and boundaries have been established, contributing to a calmer atmosphere and a reduction in incidents. These early signs of progress indicate that a more structured and supportive environment is beginning to emerge, which is essential for improving children’s experiences and outcomes. Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 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

*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— that staff—

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff understand the steps required to safeguard children when they are at risk of harm. This includes seeking medical assistance when children are under the influence of alcohol or substances. When children have self-harmed, staff must take immediate action to prevent further harm and provide appropriate medical assistance.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also ensure that guidance provided to staff for mitigating risks and safeguarding children is 15 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 7 thorough, accurate and regularly reviewed in light of emerging risks and vulnerabilities.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership 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

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home.;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must implement robust quality assurance and monitoring systems and maintain effective oversight of the home to improve the quality of care provided.

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Requirement Due date

They must also ensure that a supportive and positive culture is promoted between leaders and staff in the home. 15 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff— 15 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 8 ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to express views, wishes and feelings;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child’s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child;

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Requirement Due date

regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children’s view, wishes and feelings are sought and taken into account in decision-making.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff help each child to achieve the child s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are regularly engaged in education and helped to overcome any difficulties they have in achieving this. 15 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home;(Regulation 14 (1)(a) 15 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 9 In particular, the registered manager must ensure that children are supported to make progress against their individual plans.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all serious and significant incidents are notified to Ofsted within the required timescales, in accordance with regulation. 15 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home is a nurturing, supportive and homely environment that meets the needs of the children. This specifically relates to ensuring that repairs are carried out promptly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: 2638470 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Acheron Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Manor House, Hilderstone, Stone ST15 8SQ

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Inspector

Tonia Dubidat, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2638470 11 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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