Children's home run by Axis Residential Care Solutions

Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 1 Registered provider: Axis Residential Care Solutions

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home registered with Ofsted in June 2025 and is owned by a private organisation. It provides care for up to 2 children who experience social and emotional difficulties. This was the first inspection after registration.

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Information about this children’s home

An experienced and qualified registered manager has been in post since the home was registered. They are supported by an experienced and qualified responsible individual.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living in the home. No children have moved out of the home since it was registered.

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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: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child benefits from living in a home that is welcoming and comfortable. The manager ensures that the home is well maintained and decorated to a high standard. The child’s bedroom is thoughtfully designed, and the layout of the home provides shared spaces and private areas, enabling the child to spend time together with staff and enjoy their own space.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are committed to helping and supporting the child; they have adapted practice to meet the child’s communication needs, ensuring their views and feelings are captured and acted on. For example, staff have used alternative ways to communicate when verbal communication is not effective and use electronic devices to ensure the child’s views are understood and promoted. Leaders and managers act on the child’s views and as a result family time has increased, and an advocate has been sought for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good understanding of the child’s health needs, and the child has made progress in a short period of time, including in eating and drinking. Staff adopt a nurturing approach to help the child understand the importance of a balanced diet and positive mental well-being. The child is registered with local primary healthcare providers. When barriers prevent the child attending appointments, such as GP visits, staff seek medical guidance to ensure support continues. All relevant referrals to specialist services, including children’s mental health services, have been completed. Additional plans are in place to encourage the child’s attendance at appointments. A clinical psychologist provides guidance to staff to manage the child’s behaviours and improve engagement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child spends time with people who are important to them. Managers and staff work together with the child’s placing authority to ensure this happens safely. This has taken place in the home and is meaningful for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, the child had recently moved into the home. They are experiencing difficulties in settling in as they struggle to understand the reasons for leaving their family. The plan for the child to move into the home was not well thought through. The manager did not sufficiently advocate for the child’s needs with the placing authority. Consequently, the experience of moving is impacting the child’s emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s educational needs are not well understood by staff. Their education, health and care plan was received only after they moved into the home, which prevented timely assessment of whether their educational needs could be met. The child had not attended education for several years before moving in. Despite this, the manager has not sufficiently challenged professionals regarding the lack of access to education. Staff have attempted to engage the child in educational activities; however, these efforts have not been successful. Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 3

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

Missing-from-home incidents are managed effectively. Staff respond promptly and follow agreed procedures to ensure the child’s safety and wellbeing are promoted. Leaders and managers review each incident thoroughly and take appropriate action to reduce risks. Strategies include implementing individualised risk assessments and developing personalised plans that identify triggers and provide clear guidance for staff. Staff maintain regular communication with the child when they are away from the home and work closely with the local authority and police to ensure they return at the earliest opportunity. They speak with the child to help them to understand risks and reinforce positive choices. As a result of these proactive measures, the frequency of episodes of going missing has reduced.

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

There is clear guidance to support staff to manage identified risks. As a result, staff have a good understanding of risks that the child may be exposed to, and they act quickly when new concerns arise. For example, when the child’s parent raised concerns about communication with the child regarding their wellbeing, staff responded sensitively by exploring this with the child and adapting monitoring arrangements to ensure their safety was promoted. Staff also explored the child’s feelings and provided creative solutions, such as sharing contact details for external support services. They liaised with the child’s placing authority and agreed to introduce a safety plan. However, on some occasions, incidents are not consistently recorded, which means managers have missed opportunities to review the child’s experiences and learn from practice.

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

Safer recruitment practices are in place. However, when staff transfer internally, managers do not have an effective system to review recruitment checks. This means a discrepancy in employment dates for one new staff member was not identified or explored. However, other checks had been completed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s experienced and qualified manager also manages another home nearby that is part of the same organisation. Leaders and managers have a strong understanding of the child’s experiences and have clear plans in place to support the child’s progress in line with their care plan. They advocate for the child, to ensure professionals who support the child act in their best interests.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The child is supported by a stable and committed staff team. They demonstrate a nurturing and patient approach to supporting the child. Staff have completed some training specific to the child, however, they have not yet had training on bereavement and trauma. Plans are in place for the clinical lead to deliver this. Staff are creative and adapt well to meet the child’s needs and this helps the child to build trusting relationships with the staff who care for them. Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 4 Staff feel supported and enjoy working in the home. External professionals said communication is strong and that leaders challenge decisions that are not in the child’s best interests. They are confident that managers are proactive in addressing concerns and improving practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Some monitoring systems are in place, however, these systems are not always effective as there are gaps in information in records. Leaders recognise this as an area for development and plans are in place to strengthen monitoring systems to ensure practice continues to evolve to meet the child’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 5

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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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(iii)(iv)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the child has access to education that meets their identified needs. 29 March 2026

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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 promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 29 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 6 ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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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)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all staff complete training to meet the child’s individual needs and implement effective monitoring systems to understand the quality of care the child receives and to learn from practice.

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Requirement Due date

Furthermore, safe recruitment processes should be followed when staff transfer from within the organisation.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure there are effective plans in place to prepare children who are moving into the home, so that they have a positive experience that helps them to settle. 29 March 2026

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of the child 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: 2815432 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Axis Residential Care Solutions

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 15 Heritage Park, Hayes Way, Cannock WS11 7LT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kerry Hutchinson

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Inspector

Joanne Humphreys, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2815432 8 achieve excellence in the care of the child 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 The child 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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