Children's home run by Rivendell Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2827658 1 Registered provider: Rivendell Ltd

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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 is a privately owned home that provides care for 5 children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The home and the manager 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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 2827658 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home’s registration, staff have supported one child to move in and settle. Staff have spent time getting to know the child’s individual needs. Staff are building trusting relationships and providing support that helps the child to feel safe and secure. The child said they are happy, cared for, and liked the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise children’s progress, however small. Persistent work by staff to engage the child in activities has had some success. This has resulted in the child spending more time with staff in communal areas rather than isolating themselves in their bedroom.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff use everyday opportunities to have meaningful conversations with the child. Keywork sessions focus on the child’s individual needs. Positive relationships between staff and the child ensure that the sessions are meaningful and beneficial to the child. The child speaks about things that concern them and staff are able to support them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand how important education and learning is for the child. They raise concerns when education is not provided or is not suitable. As a result, a new education plan is being implemented to ensure that the child’s learning needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of relationships and support the child to maintain connections with their family and friends. Staff are working with the child’s professional network to develop an understanding of new relationships with extended family members to ensure that contact is managed appropriately and safely.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding and know their role and responsibilities to keep children safe. Staff know the child's risks and vulnerabilities well. The child’s risk assessments are effective by detailing the risks, triggers, and actions that need to be in place to reduce the risks to the child.

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

Staff implement consistent boundaries to ensure that the child knows the expectations. Although the child continues to push against these boundaries, staff respond in a calm, playful way, that de-escalates situations and supports positive engagement. This has significantly reduced challenging behaviours in the home.

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

Since moving into the home, the child’s missing from care behaviour has improved. If the child is away from the home, they now keep in touch with staff. Staff use their professional curiosity to understand the child’s relationships and people they are in contact with. This enables staff to identify the child’s whereabouts and work with the professional network to support their safe return home. Inspection report children's home: 2827658 3 Staff do not always record all incidents clearly. Staff sometimes record incidents in incident logs, but also in daily logs, or records of keywork sessions. This inconsistency limits leaders and managers’ oversight and prevents effective support for the child and monitoring of emerging risks, patterns and themes.

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

A significant incident that took place in the community that was not reported to Ofsted. Although the incident was managed appropriately, it does not allow for effective regulatory oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager offers visible leadership, and models best practice in the day-to- day running of the home. The registered manager and team are supported by an experienced acting deputy manager. Leaders and managers have a clear understanding of the team’s strengths and areas for development. They are proactively supporting staff in delivering high-quality, individualised care for children. Feedback from the child, staff and professionals was overwhelmingly positive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff morale is high. Staff say that there is a culture of continuous learning and professional growth in the home. Staff feel safe and supported to share ideas and are confident in meeting the child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from an effective probation process. This allows leaders and managers to monitor performance, ensure that there is good practice and address any shortfalls promptly. Managers and staff have regular supervision that further supports reflection and professional development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and challenges and are seeking to make improvements. For example, training has recently been delivered to staff around reporting and recording.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Stakeholder feedback is very positive. Professionals feel that the relationship the child has with staff allows the child to make small but significant progress from their starting points. Stakeholders commented on the leaders and managers’ ability to effectively raise and escalate their concerns and that communication is a key strength of the leaders, manager and staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home environment is well maintained and safe for children. The home feels comfortable and homely. Inspection report children's home: 2827658 4

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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, 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 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) (a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 5 February 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff complete detailed recordings of incidents in one record format that is easily accessible to managers. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 61 paragraph 14. 2)

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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: 2827658 5

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 44 Violet Lane, Croydon CR0 4HF

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Children's home details

Registered manager: Sheila Powell-Doyley

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Inspector

Jo Tarbie, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2827658 6 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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