Children's home run by BREAK

Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 1 Registered provider: Break

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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 charity-run home provides care for one child aged between 8 and 17 years old.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 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 outstanding

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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: 11 February 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/02/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, no children have moved into or out of the home. One child was living at the home at the time of the inspection. They were seen but chose not to speak with the inspector.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good awareness of the child’s individual support needs and have created a safe and stable foundation for the child to grow. As a result, the child has made considerable progress from their starting point, particularly with their social skills and ability to keep safe. The staff help the child to feel secure, and the child appears comfortable in their presence. This has helped the child form stable and trusting relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff follow a child-focused psychological model of communication and support, giving careful consideration to how the child’s lived experiences affect the way they view the world. This approach is threaded into the staff’s practice and captured in the child’s records. Staff are skilled at adapting their style of communicating, ensuring that they approach the child with empathy and understanding. This has helped the child recognise their self-worth and the importance of using their voice to help influence their care. This practice has led to positive changes in routines and experiences for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have created a warm and welcoming home that generates a family feel. Staff understand the importance of creating meaningful moments with the child. For the first time, the child expressed a wish to celebrate Christmas with staff. The staff arranged a lovely Christmas Eve box and took the child out for a meal. Staff capture memories and heartfelt quotes, reflecting on these special moments, along with many other achievements in a book for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage the child’s participation in education, despite their reluctance to engage. Staff continue to be strong advocates for the child, seeking support to remove some of the obstacles contributing to this. A professional said, ‘I am impressed with how staff use the right language to reduce demands on [the child], this helps increase their engagement.’

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

The child has complex needs and vulnerabilities. When the child struggles with their emotional wellbeing, staff take effective action to keep them safe. Staff use well- thought-out, person-centred approaches to help the child reflect on their emotions. Encouragement to help the child develop healthier coping skills is prioritised by staff to help understand and manage their personal safety. Significant incidents have been managed well. The child’s risks have reduced from their starting point as a direct result of staff’s support. Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 4 The child benefits from a nurturing environment where positive behaviour is actively reinforced. Staff do not use consequences, but instead use child-focused incentives to encourage positive behaviour, engagement and the building of independence skills. The child is confident to talk to staff about their feelings and behaviours. This personalised

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

approach helps the child work toward goals that are important to them.

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

The child rarely goes missing from the home. When this does happen, staff take appropriate and timely action to support the child’s safe return. When the child returns to the home, they are welcomed warmly by staff. Staff go on to share important information with the local police to help reduce ongoing risks for the child in the community. This proactive safeguarding practice, which includes the child’s views, means the child has begun to grow a stronger sense of safety.

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

Staff demonstrate curiosity, wanting to understand the barriers for the child in attending planned medical appointments. Staff work to the child’s pace in preparing them for their appointments, explaining the benefit of attending. This has meant the child is able to take part in discussions regarding their health and wellbeing and is more accepting of support.

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

Leaders and managers take effective action to address safeguarding concerns when staff practice has fallen short of expectations. This includes carrying out investigations to identify wider learning. The lessons learned are shared with the staff team as a whole to improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home benefits from having an exceptionally well-informed leadership team. The home is led by a qualified and experienced manager. She has brought much-needed stability to the team. The manager is child focused and has a clear vision and a strong desire to achieve positive outcomes for the child. She uses her experience to motivate the staff to have high aspirations for children and to deliver high-quality care. The child benefits from a consistent staff team that provides a sense of security and stability. This consistency has helped staff to support the child to make continued progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager leads by example, despite the short time she has worked at the home. The manager has created an extremely reflective culture. The staff team is experienced and resilient. There is exceptionally positive morale among the team. One staff member said of the leadership team, ‘They are amazing, approachable, always willing to help, I don’t feel worried to ask them anything. Staff wellbeing is very important to them, we are looked after.’ The staff and the child are supported to learn from when things don’t go well without fear of judgement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s review of the quality of care is extremely thorough. She seeks and values feedback from the child and other stakeholders. This means that the care the child receives continues to develop. Leaders and managers have an extensive knowledge and very good understanding of the child’s needs and progress. The Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 5 manager demonstrates a very good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers enjoy spending significant periods of time with the child, and the child seeks out their company. Leaders and managers have been on several activities with the child, such as brunch and celebratory meals. The management team and staff speak about the child with pride and enthusiasm. The child’s social skills have developed extensively due to having positive role models.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers strongly advocate on behalf of the child. They have supported the child to raise complaints about their care. As a result, the child feels listened to and validated by the managers. Leaders and managers have gone on to challenge other professionals to ensure that the child receives a good level of support and their wishes and feelings recognised. Leaders and managers have offered to share knowledge with other professionals working with the child to support relationship building relating to the child’s preferred communication style.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff feel extremely well supported by leaders and managers. Staff benefit from consistent professional discussions, regularly led by one of the organisation’s clinical practitioners, to support their knowledge base. Staff, leaders and managers have a very good understanding of the child’s journey into care, along with the support they need to achieve. This knowledge significantly influences the progress the child makes. As a result, staff feel confident to fulfil their roles exceptionally well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Some staff have made good progress in working toward gaining their residential qualification. However, other staff have not. They are currently still within timescales. Discussions have been held within supervision with staff who have requested further support. However, leaders and managers have not organised additional support to help staff progress. Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access training and resources to support their learning needs. The registered person should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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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: 2780149 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Schofield House, Spar Road, Norwich NR6 6BX

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Rachel Watkinson

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Inspector

Lexi Mitchell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2780149 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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