Children's Home run by 4d Care Ltd in Cambridgeshire

Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 1 SC064557 Registered provider: 4d Care Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned home is registered to provide education and residential care for up to 6 children who may have experienced neglect, abuse or trauma that has left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children's home

There is a school on the same site. The inspectors only inspected the social care provision on this site.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2009.

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This monitoring visit

This home was judged as inadequate following a full inspection on 18 and 19 December 2025. Shortfalls were identified and, as a result, 2 compliance notices were served in relation to the protection of children and the leadership and management of the home.

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This monitoring visit

A monitoring visit was conducted on 27 January 2026. At this visit, it was found that the provider had not taken sufficient action to meet the steps set out in the compliance notices. One step had been met. However, one of the steps could not be fully verified. The outstanding steps have been raised as a requirement.

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This monitoring visit

Leaders and managers have failed to make enough improvement to ensure that the children are protected from harm. Concerns highlighted at the previous inspection remain. Leaders and managers do not fully demonstrate that they understand how to safeguard children.

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This monitoring visit

Staff have received training to enable them to support and safeguard children. Leaders have ensured that staff have received additional training that is specific to the shortfalls identified. However, concerns remain in relation to how effectively Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 2 management address any concerns raised. Consequently, staff are not confident that their concerns will be sufficiently managed. Additional concerns around poor staff practice and unsafe practice have not been adequately explored in a timely manner or shared with safeguarding partners.

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This monitoring visit

Leaders and managers do not ensure that all staff receive good-quality formal supervision. Records are not always well maintained. They do not always reflect the discussions held or the agreed actions following concerns being raised.

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This monitoring visit

Staff and managers have not demonstrated professional curiosity. They do not hold purposeful conversations with children about potential risks, including the impact of peer relationships. Staff have not considered actions to ensure that situations are managed safely. As a result, emerging safeguarding concerns are not always explored in sufficient depth, limiting the ability to respond to risks effectively. This fails to demonstrate a proactive approach to safeguarding practice, leaving children at risk of harm.

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This monitoring visit

The manager has begun to introduce templates and systems, which are yet to be fully embedded. The quality of record-keeping is inconsistent. Records are not always written in a timely manner, therefore it is unclear as to their accuracy. Management oversight is not yet reflective or evaluative, meaning this does not help to identify patterns and trends or support areas for improvement in staff practice.

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This monitoring visit

All areas of the home have been unlocked for children so that they have the freedom to access all rooms in the home.

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This monitoring visit

Leaders and managers have made some progress with the shortfalls required but more remains to be done. The compliance notices that have not been met will be served again. The requirements made at the last inspection are outside the scope of this visit. These will be reviewed at the next inspection.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/08/2024 Full Good 28/02/2024 Full Good 13/02/2023 Full Good 18/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 3

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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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

* The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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 understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; and

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child's welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

that the home's day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi)(b)) 6 April 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

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; 6 April 2026 Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 4 understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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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)(b) (2)(c)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(1) applies to the home—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person must ensure that the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b)) 6 April 2026

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used, or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(v)(vii)(b)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that restraint records clearly detail the whole incident, including actions taken to try to avoid the use of a restraint and a review of the effectiveness. 13 February 2026

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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

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious; 30 January 2026 Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 5 there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified;

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Requirement Due date

and any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children's safety.

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)) 13 March 2026 Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 6 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

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Requirement Due date

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

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) (5)) 13 March 2026

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject of a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 The registered provider should ensure that staff are familiar with the home's policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. This specifically relates to the language used being child friendly and descriptive about what happened. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 7

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children's home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 8a New Road, Mepal, ELY, Cambridgeshire CB6 2AP

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Inspectors

Naomi Starbuck, Social Care Inspector Leanne Lyon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: SC064557 9 to 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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