Children's Home run by First Blue Healthcare Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 1 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Registered provider: First Blue Healthcare Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. It provides care for up to three children who may have social and emotional difficulties as a result of experiencing childhood trauma. At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home, and inspectors spoke with each of them.

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Information about this children’s home

There is an experienced and qualified manager in post.

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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: 2537375 2 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/01/2025 Full Good 03/08/2023 Full Good 21/06/2022 Full Good 04/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 3 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home, and another child has moved in. Children’s moves were well planned. Staff helped children prepare for their moves, and these were carried out in a sensitive manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living in the home and rate it highly. One child scored it a 9.5 out of 10 while another gave it a perfect 10. Children feel that staff listen to them and help them. These positive relationships support children to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children can see the progress they are making because of the care they receive. Two children spoke of the home being their longest placement, demonstrating the stability provided by staff and the manager. And one child said, ‘My mental health has got better. I am not as shy as I first was when I first came here, I would not talk to people, but now I will not shut up. I am a lot more confident in myself, I know who I am now, what I want to do, what I want to wear.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well supported to spend time with people who are important to them. Where appropriate, staff work in partnership with children’s families to re-establish and progress children’s time with their family. This supports children’s identity, helping them to feel settled and secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One family member said of their child’s experience in the home, ‘The care they provide is excellent. They communicate well; they are brilliant. I am really happy my child is there; it has really improved their character and helped them see who they are. They have really brought that out of them and gone out of their way to help. If they cannot be at home, then I would not want them to be anywhere other than at [name of home].’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s education is, for the most part, treated as a priority, and children are making progress. All children are in full-time education. One child who was previously out of education has been supported to successfully return to mainstream education. However, for one child there was significant delay in them receiving an education, health and care plan, and that delay went unchallenged.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

In most cases, staff are diligent in following up actions in children’s plans, however, this is not always the case. For one child, an action to meet a medical need was not completed before they moved out of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, the home provides children with pleasant places to relax and enjoy themselves. It is warm, clean and well decorated. Children’s experiences are celebrated in photos displayed throughout the home, and their bedrooms are personalised to their individual tastes. However, there are some aspects that detract from the homely feel. The garden was overgrown and contained litter. A fence and wall were damaged and falling down. The roof of one part of the home had discarded make-up containers and a piece of Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 4 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

clothing lying on it. The windowsill in one child’s bedroom was very dusty. The manager addressed some of these issues during the inspection. Those that she was unable to address were scheduled to be fixed later the same week.

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

Children feel safe living in the home, and safeguarding incidents are rare.

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

Children are settled in the home and staff are skilled in calming children when they are upset or anxious. Physical restraint is rarely used. Since the last inspection, there have been four incidents in which staff have had to physically intervene to ensure that children and others are safe. When staff intervene, it is always necessary and proportionate. Staff discuss incidents with children and management oversight is effective, ensuring that children are safe and supported.

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

Children rarely go missing from the home. When they do, staff follow children’s plans, and work with partner professionals to ensure that children are returned to the home safely. Staff speak to children to understand why they have gone missing, and work with them to help them make safer choices.

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

When children make complaints or allegations against staff, leaders and managers take them seriously. They speak to children promptly, and make sure they are safe. Investigations are thorough and children are informed of the outcome. When allegations are not substantiated, children and staff are supported to rebuild relationships.

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

When children harm themselves, staff take appropriate action to ensure they are safe and receive support to improve their mental health. As a result, incidents of self-harm in the home have significantly reduced.

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

Consequences, when used, are natural and proportionate to the behaviours they are designed to dissuade. Children are spoken to and given restorative opportunities. Management oversight of the use of consequences is strong, ensuring its use is appropriate. Children’s achievements are all celebrated and encouraged using rewards. This supports children to feel valued, building their confidence and self-esteem.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have effective oversight of all aspects of children’s care. They use a range of tools to identify areas for improvement and to strengthen staff practice. The learning culture they are developing is supporting children’s progress and enhancing their experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that staff are well supported through regular team meetings and formal supervision. These are reflective and focus on both staff welfare and children’s progress. Because of this, staff feel well supported, and one described the manager as a ‘superstar’. Children are cared for by an established team of staff who are motivated and knowledgeable. Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 5 OFSTED USE ONLY

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is skilled at partnership working. She builds effective working relationships with children’s families and external professionals. This ensures that children receive the help they need quickly. Feedback from family members and professionals about the manager has been wholly positive. One education professional said of the manager, ‘She is doing so well. We appreciate her support. She is always willing to go above and beyond.’ A social worker said, ‘She is fantastic. She is very focused on [name of child]’s needs, advocating for her. She has always communicated really well with me. She is fantastic.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 6 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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that any drift or delay in children receiving assessments or support is challenged. 27 February 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that actions identified in children’s plans are carried out promptly. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure that the garden is well maintained, and that children’s bedrooms are clean. (‘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: 2537375 7 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: First Blue Healthcare Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Seighford Hall, Clanford Road, Seighford, Stafford ST18 9NL

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Inspectors

John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Sharon Kaur, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2537375 8 OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspectors

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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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