Children's Home run by Affinity Childrens Care Ltd in Wakefield

Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 1 Registered provider: Affinity Childrens Care 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

A private company owns and manages this home. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of this inspection, two children were living in the home and both were spoken with.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted on 23 May 2025. The manager registered at the same time and is working towards the required qualification.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the first inspection of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: none

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 2

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improvement to be good

The home currently looks sparse in some areas due to removal of items that could be used to cause harm and damage to people or property. This reduces the domestic, cosy feel. There is a plan to reintroduce the items when it is safe to do so, and this will improve the home’s appearance. Children’s personal spaces do have more homely touches.

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improvement to be good

Staff encourage children to engage in appointments with health professionals. However, this is ineffective and means that children’s specific needs are not always identified, and help that might benefit children is not always accepted. Some essential documents are missing from the children’s records, and staff are unclear of the content of these documents.

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improvement to be good

Staff use an electronic recording system. Staff’s understanding and functionality of this system make some records and documents difficult to locate. This means staff and managers do not have easy access to all the information that they need. This also does not provide reassurance that care is being delivered that aligns to multi-agency agreements and plans.

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improvement to be good

Children are not currently attending school, but managers work closely with the wider professional network to make plans for the children’s re-entry to education. In the interim, staff help children to build their social skills and confidence. Staff are unaware of the children’s current level of attainment so are unable to offer more structured, informal education opportunities.

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improvement to be good

The company has a therapeutic practitioner whose advice is welcomed but not yet fully embedded in staff practice. There is currently no system that allows managers to check if staff know the latest suggestions made by this practitioner.

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improvement to be good

The home is recently registered and is staffed by a newly established team. Children and staff have good relationships, despite the relatively short time the children have lived there. Trips away provide children with opportunities to try new things and consolidate those strong relationships with the staff.

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improvement to be good

Children’s time with their family is supported by staff, in line with children’s care plans. This sustains relationships that are important to children. Staff and social care professionals work closely together to monitor the impact of the children’s time spent with their family. Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 3

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improvement to be good

Children who live far from their home area struggle to settle in this home. This increases their risk and vulnerability. The children’s risks and vulnerabilities affect their compatibility, and living together creates conflicts and makes them feel unsettled. The need to remove the homely touches for safety reasons does not promote children feeling comfortable and relaxed in the shared spaces in the home.

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improvement to be good

Self-injurious behaviour has recently become a concern, but the context for this behaviour is not fully understood by staff. There has recently been a related change to one child’s risk management plan, but staff were unaware of this. Again, there is no system for the managers to check that staff are up to date with changes and understand and respond effectively in line with the amended plans.

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improvement to be good

There has been an escalation in children going missing from the home. Staff do search for children and follow the children’s plans, including reporting them as missing to the police and requesting their assistance. However, these plans do not accurately represent the children, and the actions taken by staff to prevent missing-from-home incidents are not wholly effective. Staff are not stopping children leaving the home, even when late at night and there is a risk of harm. Staff have not ensured that when children return to the home after being missing, they can speak to an independent person. This is a lost opportunity to understand push and pull factors for the children.

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improvement to be good

One child moved into the home, but it was several weeks before a practice fire drill took place. This does not provide staff with the chance to see if the child has understood the instructions about what to do in the event of an emergency. There is no system in place that would have identified that this had been overlooked.

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improvement to be good

Occasions when children have needed to be physically held for their own safety have been well managed. Initial inconsistencies surrounding debriefs with the child and the staff were addressed effectively. The use of physical restraint appears fair and proportionate and there is evidence of management oversight.

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improvement to be good

Key-working discussions are a strength of the home as staff take every opportunity to have focused conversations with children. This helps staff to get to know the children and promote their welfare and well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager is new to the role and says she is still learning. She is enthusiastic and aspires to deliver good-quality care. Some of the systems that would assist her in having oversight of staff understanding and practice are not yet in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The independent visits required under the regulations did not start when the home was registered with Ofsted. This missed an early opportunity for external scrutiny and feedback for the manager. However, now that visits are regularly carried out, the impact Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 4 of this delay is minimal.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers have not always been effective in obtaining the information staff need to support them in delivering care. They also are unaware of all professionals who have a role with the children. Although there has been some effective co-working with other professionals, there are still stronger links to be developed within the wider landscape.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff are appropriately trained, and supervisions sessions are delivered regularly. Staff speak well of the managers. They say that the manager and her deputy bring different complementary qualities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

A strength of the home is the cultural awareness and sensitivity that is apparent. The managers advocate strongly for children in this respect, considering their views and wishes. This shows children that they are taken seriously and validates their views. Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 5

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that plans include all available information, and that strategies to manage risks are effective. Also, that relevant statutory guidance is followed. 14 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that all those documents listed in Schedule 3 are available, and that the information contained in them guides practice. 14 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 6

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Recommendations

 The registered provider should ensure that staff are aware that the child’s relevant plan may include a strategy for a particular type of care, treatment or intervention (for example, strategies to mitigate a particular risk). The care staff will need to understand the purpose of any such care and the way in which the past experiences of abuse or neglect may manifest themselves in the day-to-day life of the child. Managers should have systems that identify if staff do not know or are not following plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.15)  The registered person should ensure that children feel safe and be safe. Staff should support children to be aware of and manage their own safety both inside and outside the home to the extent that any good parent would. Staff should help children to understand how to protect themselves, feel protected and be protected from

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Recommendations

significant harm. This includes ensuring that children know what to do in the event of a fire through participation in fire drills. Records of these drills should make it clear who has and who has not participated (both staff and children) to ensure that everyone knows what to do in the event of a fire. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.9)  The registered person should only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. This extends to keeping the compatibility under review where new information emerges, and it would be helpful to evidence where difficulties are arising. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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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: 2821080 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Affinity Childrens Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Azzurri House, Walsall Road, Aldridge, Walsall WS9 0RB

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Inspector

Rachel Ruth, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2821080 8 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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