Children's home run by Blue Mountain Homes Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2500044 1 Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes 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

This home is operated by a private provider. It is registered to care for up to two children who may require support with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection 2 children were living at the home.

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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: 27 January 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 2500044 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/01/2025 Full Good 29/02/2024 Full Outstanding 09/03/2023 Full Outstanding 08/02/2022 Full Outstanding Inspection report children's home: 2500044 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a warm, nurturing, and thoughtfully designed home. The manager has used her knowledge and research into supporting children with sensory needs to create a space that is calming and responsive to individual patterns of behaviour. Consideration has been given to colours and textures throughout the home, and children have easy access to a range of sensory toys and equipment. These adaptations have helped children manage their emotions and divert their attention during times of challenge.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive, trusting relationships with staff, and this has contributed to the good progress they are making. Although recent staff departures, particularly those without prior notice have been unsettling, the strong and secure relationships that children have with the manager have been essential in maintaining stability. One child spoke very positively about the support they receive from the manager, highlighting the impact of her consistent presence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has worked hard to build and sustain meaningful relationships with children’s families. Feedback from parents is complimentary. They praise the manager’s commitment, her understanding of their children’s needs, and the progress their children have made since she began working in the home. Families were particularly grateful for the manager’s efforts in enabling the children to spend Christmas Day with them, helping to strengthen important family connections. This is particularly important when considering the children’s longer term care plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress in education. One child has made significant improvements in attending their new education provision, while another has maintained excellent attendance throughout the year. This consistency has helped establish routine, improving their overall wellbeing. Outside of school, children are encouraged and supported to engage in hobbies and activities that interest them. For example, staff ensure that one child regularly attends a motorcycle activity some distance from home. Their commitment to supporting the chosen hobby has allowed them to thrive by developing confidence and a positive focus.

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

Although children continue to live with high levels of risk, the frequency and severity of incidents have reduced significantly because of effective staff support and intervention. Staff also implement strong online-safety measures, with clear oversight to ensure these are consistently applied. This has helped children make safer and more informed choices when using digital devices. For one child, this support was particularly important in helping them comply with the requirements of a youth offending order.

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

One child has made excellent progress reducing incidents of going missing from home. Staff work collaboratively with the child’s parent to develop a safety plan, which has Inspection report children's home: 2500044 4 helped ensure the child's safe return during periods of distress. While this approach has reduced missing episodes, positively the child has begun to explore other strategies to cope during difficult moments.

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

Physical interventions have been used when children have placed themselves or others at risk of harm. The manager maintains oversight of these incidents, ensuring they are appropriately reviewed and that staff practice remains safe and proportionate. Over recent months, the number of physical interventions has reduced noticeably. Children now respond positively to de-escalation, verbal reassurance, and distraction techniques, which further supports their emotional health.

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

Children are encouraged through positive reinforcement and rewards, which has strengthened their sense of ownership and pride in their home and belongings. The manager does not use consequences as a behaviour management tool, recognising that they have not been effective for the children. Learning from previous incidents has informed thoughtful adaptations to the environment. For example, after repeated damage to one of the televisions during moments of distress, the manager replaced it with a projector. This has removed a potential risk while providing a resource that children enjoy and use safely.

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

One child is receiving support to manage self-harm behaviours. This includes direct work with trusted staff and regular therapeutic input. Staff carry out room searches when required and record these appropriately. However, the recording of self-harm incidents has not been consistently completed. This shortfall has limited the staff’s ability to explore patterns and identify emerging themes in the child's behaviour, as well as provide a thorough overview of how the incident was managed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s strength of character, resilience, and unwavering commitment to children are evident in the progress they are making. She is experienced in supporting children with complex needs, multiple risks, and challenging behaviour. Her determination to provide every child with stability, regardless of their previous experiences, is a defining feature of her leadership. She does not give up on children and communicates this ethos clearly to her team, resulting in a culture of perseverance and care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has not benefitted from a consistent and robust staff team, particularly the absence of a deputy manager. This has resulted in her taking on most tasks and not having the option to delegate effectively. Although this has contributed to some shortfalls within leadership and management of the home, there has not been a direct impact on children. The manager has always ensured that children’s staffing ratios have not been compromised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have not received consistent and meaningful supervision in line with expectations. This is particularly notable for a newly recruited team member. For staff who work across more than one children’s home, the manager does not yet have an effective system to ensure that supervision is coordinated and delivered regularly across both settings. Inspection report children's home: 2500044 5 Despite these gaps, staff speak very positively about the support they receive from the manager. They value her availability, daily guidance, and reflective discussions that help them understand children’s behaviour and develop their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has not completed a quality of care review since the previous inspection. This shortfall has reduced the manager’s ability to robustly monitor, evaluate, and evidence the quality of care being provided. Although day-to-day oversight is evident, the absence of a formal review limits opportunities to identify emerging patterns or areas for improvement. Inspection report children's home: 2500044 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 registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular this relates to the registered manager ensuring that staff receive supervision in line with the Statement of Purpose and this is documented. 14 February 2026

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular this relates to the registered person maintaining a complete and accurate record of all incidents involving children in the home. Sufficient detail is required to enable monitoring of patterns and trends, which is necessary for effective management oversight. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 14 February 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and 14 February 2026 Inspection report children's home: 2500044 7 any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1)(2)(a)(b)(c)(3)(4)(a)(b) and (5))

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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 children's home: 2500044 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Blue Mountain Homes Limited, 21 Mallard Way, Pride Park, Derby DE24 8GX

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Pradeep Manaktala

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Inspector

Kayleigh Spinks, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2500044 9 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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