Children's home run by De Novo Care Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 1 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a private provide. Since the last inspection, the number of children who can live in the home has increased from three to four. The children may have social or emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, four children were living at the home. Two of these children were living in the home at the previous inspection, and another child has returned to live with their family. Two children have moved into the home, with one having moved recently.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has a new manager who registered with Ofsted in July 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: 20 November 2024

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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: 1277584 2 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/11/2024 Full Good 19/03/2024 Full Good 26/05/2022 Full Good 06/01/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 3 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive experiences and make progress. They are happy and relaxed and are confident in their home. They have positive relationships with staff, who provide care, attention and time without hesitation. Spontaneous laughter from children and staff can be heard in the home, creating a warm and joyful atmosphere.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to take part in activities that reflect their interests, age and development, such as a young child enjoying a theme park and a teenager being taken for spa days. Memory books record these experiences in a child-friendly way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to maintain strong family connections, including those who live far away. Staff support family time, including overnight stays, and keep families informed about children’s daily lives through effective communication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into and from the home are well planned. Children receive guides and video tours before moving in, and memory books celebrate their time living in the home. These steps help children understand changes and create positive beginnings and endings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are understood, monitored and responded to. Despite one child’s specialist assessments being delayed, the managers support staff to provide care that is guided by the home’s commissioned psychotherapist and that meets any potential diagnosed needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have high aspirations for children. They work closely with other professionals to meet their educational needs. They advocate strongly for children’s education, ensuring suitable school placements. For one child, this has led to a successful return to school with a clear plan for full-time attendance.

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

Staff build positive relationships with children based on the home’s ethos of nurturing care. When children display challenging behaviour, staff use skills from training to understand what the child is communicating and respond calmly.

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

The manager has a strong understanding of the risks for each child, including those linked to past experiences and individual needs. They respond promptly and effectively when risks arise. For example, concerns about one child’s vulnerability online and potential exploitation were identified and addressed quickly to ensure immediate safety and provide learning opportunities. However, following the incident, expectations for staff were not consistently reflected in written plans, which reduced clarity about required actions. Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 4 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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

There has been one incident of a child going missing from home, which began at school. The actions taken were appropriate, and safeguarding practice was evidenced by the liaison with the school to support the safe location of the child and their safety on return. This incident and one medication error were not notified to Ofsted as significant incidents. The manager was receptive to discussions on meeting regulatory requirements.

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

Physical intervention has been used with one of the four children. Overall, the 31 physical interventions used were deemed proportionate and necessary. Staff actions following physical intervention support positive relationships and ensure that the child does not feel shame or blame. The manager is aware that the timeliness and consistency of oversight of physical intervention incidents need improvement. Additionally, the quality of recording is not consistent. In one case, poor recording made it unclear whether an unapproved hold had been used.

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

The responsible individual and manager address practice concerns promptly, with advice from relevant professionals. When there are concerns about staff suitability or practice, action is taken swiftly with appropriate referrals to ensure safe employment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers are ambitious for children and want them to achieve their full potential. They understand and respond to individual differences and needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring systems ensure that staff receive induction, training and development opportunities. Staff feel well supported and give overwhelmingly positive feedback, valuing team meetings, supervision and informal support in the home. Records do not yet consistently capture reflective practice or specific targets and actions, but this is acknowledged.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professional partners report a collaborative and inclusive approach, using support and, when needed, escalation effectively. Care is delivered in line with the statement of purpose and agreed aims and objectives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers note the impact of change and reflect on how this is supported and the lessons learned. They understand the need to continue actions that promote team stability and aspire to develop a collaborative learning and development culture.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced, responsible individual supports the manager. Both share the ambition that understanding children’s individual needs and gathering their views are central to the home’s development. They model expectations for staff and ensure that children are engaged naturally and formally in decisions. Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 5 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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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 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

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should address inconsistencies in recording. They must ensure that the recording contains the required detail, especially in incidents of physical interventions, to remove any ambiguity of what happened or note gaps in oversight with actions to be assured that staff are delivering care appropriate to assessed strategies for each child. Also, the registered person should ensure that plans are of consistent quality and contain specific and measurable actions in response to risks of exploitation. 30 December 2025

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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

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there; 30 December 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 6 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child —

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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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)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must consistently undertake this duty.

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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: 1277584 7 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bank Green, Fox Lane, Holmesfield, Dronfield S18 7WG

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Inspector

Ashley Arkless, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1277584 8 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspector

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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