Children's home run by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 1 Registered provider: Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A local authority owns and operates this home. It provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties, and who may have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since October 2025 and is suitably experienced.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/08/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 30/10/2023 Full Good 25/01/2023 Full Good 20/07/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

There has been significant improvement and change in the progress and experiences of children since the last inspection. This is due to the excellent quality of care that the children receive from the staff team. The passion, determination and resilience of the managers and staff promote children’s life chances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

When children are new to the home, they are helped by staff to settle in quickly through extremely well considered and child-focused moving-in plans. This includes staff providing the new child with information about the home. They are given the opportunity to meet the staff team and the other child already living in the home. The child is also encouraged to choose how their bedroom will be decorated. For the child living in the home, exceptionally careful planning and preparation takes place to ensure that they have a positive experience during this time of change.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The managers and staff are relentless to ensure that children have access to suitable learning opportunities, and they work closely with education providers and the virtual school professionals. When needed, staff support children in the school environment. The staff team’s advocacy and determination have allowed one child to resume education and has helped another child to maintain their good school attendance.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children benefit from a range of extra-curricular activities that help them to learn new skills and develop their confidence. These also provide children with the opportunity to spend time with peers and to make new friends. Furthermore, children’s day-to-day experiences are enhanced through being able to spend time with those that matter the most to them. This has helped the children to maintain and strengthen relationships with their family and friends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children’s health is championed by the managers and staff, and this supports children to be healthy. When children struggle to attend health appointments, the staff find creative ways to ensure that children have access to universal and specialist health services. Staff support the children to eat a healthy diet by providing nutritious home cooked meals that the children enjoy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The home is beautifully presented and well maintained. The staff take great pride in the home and make a concerted effort on a daily basis to make the home belong to the children through having photographs of the children on display. The children are encouraged to contribute their ideas to the internal décor of the home and the outdoor space. This enhances the children’s sense of permanence, belonging and sense of being valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Feedback from professionals and a family member about the impact of the care provided by staff is overwhelmingly positive. One professional was astounded at the progress that one child has made since living in the home and something that they ‘never would have Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 4 imagined’. Another professional spoke about the ‘transformation’ that the child has experienced. In addition, one parent described the manager and staff as being ‘very supportive and ambitious’ and is reassured that the manager and staff have created a family for their child.

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

Staff work extremely hard to keep children safe. Staff have an excellent understanding of each child’s individual needs and vulnerabilities, and how best to help them. This is due to the time that staff spend with the children. In addition, staff work cohesively to ensure that children have clear and consistent boundaries. This, combined with kind and caring conversations that staff have with the children, helps children to feel safe. Children are supported to develop a healthy understanding of their behaviours and how they can manage these safely.

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

Equally, staff are highly adept at using distraction techniques and providing emotional reassurance to support children who are struggling to manage their feelings and emotions. The therapeutic parenting models used by staff are firmly embedded, and the manager and staff continuously improve their understanding and use of these parenting skills to support children to become increasingly safe. This has led to the introduction of staff being able to access therapeutic support. Staff’s understanding of the needs of the children and what they are communicating through their behaviours has been enhanced. Consequently, the number of times when children have gone into crisis has significantly reduced.

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

Positive behaviour is encouraged through effective reward, praise and the use of natural consequences. Sometimes children need to be held by staff. This is proportionate and effective to keep them and others safe. Recordings of these incidents are clear and help managers understand what has happened. Management oversight of the use of physical intervention is robust, and staff reflect on their practice.

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

Children benefit from having individualised, comprehensive and up-to-date plans that effectively address any known and emerging vulnerabilities. These plans help to support staff to respond quickly and effectively when they are worried about a child’s safety.

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

The quality of relationships that the manager and staff have with external professionals and family members is a strength of this home. Communication is timely and effective, and this enhances children’s safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager of this home is inspirational. He is exceptionally ambitious for children and inspires the utmost confidence in his staff team. The manager is supported by an equally ambitious deputy manager and together they are very influential in making positive changes to children’s lives. They have the highest expectations of themselves and their staff. Consequently, the care that the staff provide to children is needs-led, forward Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 5 thinking, dynamic and wholly focused on helping children to reach their full potential and succeed in life.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Management oversight of this home is very effective, and this is strengthened by the manager’s and deputy manager’s presence in the home and the positive relationships that they have with the children and staff. New and creative ideas have been embedded in practice to help children’s development. For example, aspirational timelines for each child to achieve milestones help to sustain high quality care and promote the children’s progress and safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has worked tirelessly to ensure that the home is staffed by a stable staff team. Careful recruitment of staff means that children receive care from adults who have the motivation and skills to meet their needs. Staff morale is high and staff benefit from reflective supervision and training that is related to the needs of the children. Staff apply their learning effectively in their day-to-day care of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a very strong learning culture in this home, which is role modelled exceptionally well by the manager and deputy manager. This means that feedback from children, staff and external professionals is welcomed and helps to continuously drive up the standard of care that children receive. On the rare occasions that children have complained about the care they have received, their complaints have been taken seriously and investigated thoroughly so that improvements can be made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The managers and staff care about, value and uphold children’s rights. Children are consulted in numerous ways and are genuinely involved in day-to-day decisions about their lives and have real influence. Managers and staff are proactive in ensuring that children can build strong support networks outside of the home so they have a wide range of trusted adults that they can talk to.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Children’s records are very well organised, up to date and detailed. They are written to the children. Each child has a journey file, memory box and recipe folder which includes photos of activities they enjoy, time spent with family and friends and food that they have enjoyed cooking and eating. When children move on from the home, they take these with them. This helps children to maintain positive memories of their time living in the home and their achievements. Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 6

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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: 2629335 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council,

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Riverside House, Main Street, Rotherham, S60 1AE

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Inspector

Shirin Khan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2629335 8 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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