Children's home run by Beaufort Care Group Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 1 Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private provider that has several other homes in the area. It offers care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2022.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 9 September 2024

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/09/2024 Full Good 22/08/2023 Full Good 10/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 08/06/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector spent time with two of the children and spoke on the telephone to a child who has moved on from the home. Children say they like living at the home and that they develop good relationships with staff. Children feel able to express their wishes and feelings and are confident that staff actively listen to them and consider their views. A child who has moved on from the home spoke exceptionally highly of the support they received from staff. This child said she made clear progress with managing emotions, developing confidence and increasing independence. They attributed these changes to the meaningful relationships they developed with staff.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into the home are well planned. They are encouraged to visit the home and engage in activities, such as bowling, with staff before moving in. This helps children to feel positive and reassured about moving into the home. Where appropriate, children’s moves are supported by family. The manager makes good efforts to engage with professionals and family members to learn about children’s needs and risks, and this is considered alongside the training needs of the staff team. When children move to semi- independence, staff provide effective support and help them learn practical skills to enable them to move on successfully.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to take part in a wide range of fun and varied activities. Children engage in regular activities, such as wrestling, swimming and golf, which supports their physical and social development. Children develop good relationships with staff and enjoy spending time together in the evenings chatting and watching television. One child has felt sad because a favourite member of staff moved to a new role. Staff have acknowledged this and are making efforts to maintain this positive relationship.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to have meaningful time with family members. One child, who previously spent a prolonged period with no contact with a parent, has experienced a significant improvement in this relationship. This parent has been welcomed into the home to spend meaningful time with their child, and they recently cooked Christmas dinner at the home. A social care professional confirmed that this progress was a direct result of the support from staff.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education support is variable. One child is enrolled at a mainstream school; however, their recent engagement is poor. Staff make good efforts to encourage this child to attend. On days they do not attend, staff engage them in structured activities. Another child is regularly engaging with a tutor; however, there have been delays with securing a school placement, despite an identified provision. The manager has taken some steps to escalate concerns, but more action is required from external professionals to ensure that this child receives the education they are entitled to.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is generally welcoming; however, children’s bedrooms need attention. Walls show signs of wear and damage, and some furniture appears broken. Children have not Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 4 yet been involved with choosing the colours of their bedroom walls; however, there are plans in place to redecorate, and children speak positively about the upcoming improvements. Children’s memory books are well presented, capturing important memories and experiences. Photos have written context to help children remember further details of events.

p.3

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

Children are supported safely and effectively by staff who know their individual needs and risks. When children go missing from home, staff search for them in line with agreed protocols. They make sustained efforts to maintain contact with children and their wider network, which helps bring children home quickly and safely. Meaningful conversations take place with children following incidents to explore what happened. The manager makes appropriate changes to behaviour support plans to reduce the likelihood of further risk-taking behaviours.

p.4

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

Staff respond to incidents of self-harm with care and nurture and offer medical attention as necessary. Room searches are carried out as appropriate, and children give their consent to them, which helps them feel valued and respected. When children misuse substances, staff seek medical attention as necessary and increase their monitoring in line with children’s safety plans.

p.4

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

Staff demonstrate a good understanding of behaviours that pose a fire risk, and these concerns are managed through agreed protocols. The manager has made timely referrals to external agencies to ensure that the child receives specialist education to understand and manage risks more safely.

p.4

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

Children are supported in raising concerns about staff. The manager takes timely action when concerns are raised, ensuring that children’s welfare is prioritised. Allegations are taken seriously and investigated. Reparation work is carried out between children and staff following these incidents, helping to restore relationships. On one occasion, concerns raised by a child were not reported in a timely way to social care professionals; however, this did not have an overall effect on the multi-agency response. Children say they feel listened to and that their concerns are taken seriously, with one child reporting that they received clear feedback about the progress of complaints.

p.4

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

Staff engage in meaningful conversations with children about risk-taking behaviours and wider issues in their lives, helping children develop an awareness of how to keep themselves safe. Some staff have identified a need for further training on vaping and substance misuse. The manager is looking to implement this, demonstrating a culture of continued learning to improve practice.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is knowledgeable and committed to providing a home where children are happy, safe and well cared for. The manager has good vision for the continued development of the home. A stable and established core team provides children with Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 5 consistency and continuity of care, which helps children feel secure and settled in the home.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they are supported by the manager, and they speak positively about the leadership of the home. Staff take pride in the positive outcomes that they help children to reach as a close team. Staff speak affectionately about the children and enjoy spending time with the children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings and supervision sessions take place regularly and include effective reflection on staff practice. There are good discussions about children’s needs and emotional wellbeing and challenges faced by staff. Staff feel that their ideas are listened to and that team meetings are a good opportunity to collaborate and share ideas on how to improve outcomes for children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Family members feel that staff go above and beyond to not only provide support to their child but also to the family as a whole. Families say they have good relationships with every member of staff, they are kept up to date with significant incidents and that their child is safe and well cared for.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals describe the manager as ‘approachable’, ‘receptive to advice and suggestions’ and ‘a strong advocate for the children in the home’. Education professionals in particular say that staff respond excellently to the safeguarding concerns in the home and that they are kept up to date with all developments relating to children. Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 6

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

p.6

Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

p.6

Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

p.6

Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that regular conversations take place with children around the presentation of their rooms, reasonable requests are actioned, and that all furniture in bedrooms is of a good standard. 2 March 2026

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

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))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, when there are unreasonable delays with children starting an identified education provision, the manager must take all appropriate actions to escalate concerns to ensure that children are able to access the education they are entitled to. 2 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 7

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that where concerns are raised about staff practice, they are referred to external safeguarding agencies promptly. Where this role is delegated to other members of staff, there should be effective oversight to ensure that all required actions have been addressed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 14.10)  The registered person should ensure that all staff receive training that equips them to manage the safeguarding risks in the home. In addition, this should equip them with a good knowledge base to educate children about risk-taking behaviours. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

p.7

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: 1246831 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group Limited

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 2, Hollygrove business park, Ringwood BH24 2DB

p.8

Inspector

Minnette Sims, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1246831 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9