Children's Home run by Dorset Council in Dorset

Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 1 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is managed by the local authority and provides care for one child who may have social and emotional difficulties for a period of 12 to 14 weeks. This is the first inspection of the home since it was registered with Ofsted in March 2025.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Since December 2025, one child has been living in the home. They were present during the inspection and spoke with the inspector. Two other children have also moved in and out of the home since the home was registered.

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 requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 2 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive experiences in the home because staff recognise their interests and provide nurturing and attentive care. Staff support children to experience daily life characterised by play, laughter and chatter, with sensitive support when children face more difficult moments. Staff promote fun and enjoyment, recognising how this can also motivate children and be used to celebrate their achievements.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work collaboratively with other professionals to promote children’s health. Routine healthcare is prioritised, and staff respond to any complex needs through timely referrals to specialists. Children also benefit from access to specialist assessments, as part of the homes offer, including speech and language therapy, which help staff understand the child’s communication needs.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s time with family and friends is recognised and promoted with understanding of their needs and experiences. The model of care is built on repairing and supporting connections and, when possible, supporting a safe return to family or those connected. However, staff do not routinely create memory books with children during their time living in the home.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child living in the home is confident and relaxed in the space. The home is well decorated and offers a wide range of toys and games. The rural location provides opportunities for woodland walks and access to a large garden. However, some areas lack cosiness and personalisation, and there is delay in replacing broken furniture in the staff sleep rooms. Additionally, fire safety signage and emergency lighting, which seems disproportionate to the simple layout, contribute to an institutional tone.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child’s time at the home was adversely impacted due to inconsistent expectations among professionals. This created avoidable barriers to their engagement and increased risks as they stayed at the home infrequently. The manager took effective steps to support the child’s education by ensuring daily transport. This helped maintain the child’s attendance and strengthened relationships with their parent, enabling continued oversight of the child’s safety and wellbeing.

p.2

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

Staff know the child and understand their needs. Staff understand the model of care used in the home and implement this consistently with the child. The manager builds a culture where the impact of trauma is recognised. Staff understand that spending time with the child and building strong relationships through play helps them to support their behaviour. Restraint has been used once since the home opened. The use was necessary and proportionate. The manager spoke to the child about the incident and offered support for an injury reported by the child. However, it is not clear that the manager further explored how the injury occurred. Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 3 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.2

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

Staff ensure that they keep children safe at the home. There have been no incidents of a child going missing from the home. Plans in place guide staff should an incident occur, supporting a swift and coordinated response that prioritises the child’s safety and meets statutory guidance and agreed protocols. The manager identifies and responds to concerns raised about staff practice. However, they do not consistently apply policy or formally record their actions in line with safeguarding procedures.

p.3

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

Some restrictions in the home do not reflect the level of risk posed to the child. Plans do not consistently set out the strategies staff should use to reduce restrictions over time. For example, the child currently has restricted access to knives but there is no understanding of when this will be reviewed or how the risk will be assessed.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The responsible individual and registered manager have built a positive working relationship. They are committed to children and promote a strong cohesive ethos. While the manager is aware of the strengths of the home, they have not consistently identified gaps in planning and oversight.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager is committed to developing a stable, skilled workforce capable of delivering the home’s assessment-led model. They recognise the link between staff stability and children’s experiences. Staff feel valued and supported through supervision, training and induction that help them fulfil their roles.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home’s statement of purpose describes the model of care and the short-term assessment offer. This aligns well with the home’s location and intended purpose. However, the outreach element, in particular the support offered after children move from the home, is less well explained. In one example, additional outreach was provided because staff were available rather than because this was planned in line with assessed need. This limits the consistency and clarity of the service offer.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager has identified the benefits of joint access to recording systems across the home and social work services and described how this supports their planning. However, they do not have assurance that documents accessed from external systems have been quality assured by a relevant manager before being uploaded to the home’s records. The absence of clear protocols governing what should be accessed, when this should occur, and how such activity is audited limits oversight and weakens the robustness of information management within the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 4 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.3

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.4

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—

p.4

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.4

Requirement Due date

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

p.4

Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

p.4

Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

p.4

Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

p.4

Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

p.4

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)(a)(e)(g)(ii)(h)

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that plans to support children are written in plain language. Plans should contain measurable and specific strategies. These should be linked to the child’s needs, and what actions are required to support independence aligned with risks and the age of the child. Furthermore, the registered manager should ensure that they accurately record complaints and investigations into staff practice, and develop effective systems to monitor outcomes, ensuring that these are shared appropriately. Finally, the 16 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 5 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.4

Requirement Due date

registered person must ensure that they maintain an environment that is a cosy and homely environment, and that they take swift action to address any damaged furniture, including furniture in the staff bedrooms.

p.5

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—

p.5

Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that any complaints of injuries sustained during physical restraints are documented, and they must ensure that this documentation includes any treatment given or steps taken to ensure that treatment is sought, including, where necessary, from a trained medical professional. 16 March 2026

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that in complying with relevant health and safety legislations, they do not compromise the nurturing and supportive environments in order to maintain a domestic rather than ‘institutional’ impression. In particular, when considering fire safety, the registered person must take into account the home’s layout, it’s size and needs of the child living there. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them, in particular ensuring that only items assessed as needing to be restricted, for example sharp knives, are locked away. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should ensure that staff keep appropriate memorabilia of

p.5

Recommendations

children’s time living in the home. In particular, staff should provide context to the photos that are included in memory books so that children are helped to remember where they were, what they were doing and who they were with when they look back at the photos in later life. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5) Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 6 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.5

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: 2839712 7 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Dorset Council, County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester DT1 1XJ

p.7

Inspector

Ashley Arkless, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2839712 8 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

p.7

Inspector

regulates and inspects 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.

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.8

Inspector

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

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8