Children's Home run by Platform Childcare Ltd in Derby

Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 1 Registered provider: Platform Childcare Ltd

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private provider. It can provide care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2022.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Three children and one adult lived here at the time of this inspection. The inspector observed and spoke to two children.

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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/03/2025 Full Good 12/03/2024 Full Good 03/01/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children with warm, nurturing care in which their individual needs, identity and emotional wellbeing are central to practice. Children make positive progress and benefit from stable, consistent care delivered by the staff, who are patient, committed and emotionally attuned to their needs.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively promote meaningful relationships with family members and others who are important to children, recognising how these connections strengthen identity and belonging. One child is supported to maintain positive contact with their family, including overnight stays with siblings. These efforts help children sustain important attachments.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work effectively with schools, virtual schools and other professionals to promote children’s attendance, engagement and achievement in education. One child’s school has provided positive feedback following staff involvement in addressing a safeguarding concern, highlighting the helpful direct work completed around relationships and appropriate behaviours. Another child has also been supported to improve their school attendance, with the manager providing practical daily support and working closely with education professionals to address barriers to learning.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a varied programme of activities tailored to their interests, while also being encouraged to try new experiences that build confidence and resilience. Two children attend weekly therapeutic horse riding sessions, which positively supports their emotional wellbeing. Another child is looking forward to starting wrestling classes. Staff capture positive memories in personalised memory books, which reinforces children’s experiences and a sense of belonging.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively listen and empower children to make choices about their lives. This includes opportunities to personalise bedrooms, explore identity and develop independence skills through structured support. One young adult is living in the home under a staying put arrangement. They are being supported to bid for accommodation and gradually build independence without impacting the stability of younger children in the home.

p.3

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

Children’s risk assessments and behaviour support plans are individualised and demonstrate a clear understanding of each child’s needs. Staff are proactive in reducing the potential for emotional distress, and the plans provide detailed guidance on appropriate de ‑ escalation strategies. These documents are reviewed and updated as children’s needs evolve, ensuring that they remain relevant and effective. Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 4 Safeguarding incidents are responded to promptly and shared appropriately with relevant agencies. The manager maintains strong oversight of children’s emerging needs, and staff use reflective practice to strengthen learning and improve future responses. Leaders respond effectively to allegations. They work closely with the local authority designated officer and other safeguarding partners to ensure investigations are thorough, well recorded and child centred. Learning from allegations is embedded swiftly

p.3

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

into practice, strengthening staff competence and improving overall safety for children.

p.4

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

Staff demonstrate professional curiosity and a strong awareness of online risks and possible exploitation. The provider’s internet monitoring systems are effective and support early identification of concerns. As a result, risks reduce significantly through proactive and skilled safeguarding practice. Children receive support to understand safe and unsafe relationships and develop the resilience needed to make safe choices.

p.4

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

Staff and children have meaningful conversations about important topics. Direct work focuses on risks such as substance use, bullying, online safety and healthy relationships. They use appropriate tools and approaches that help children make sense of their experiences and build emotional resilience. This contributes to effective safety planning, supports learning and reinforces feelings of safety and trust.

p.4

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

Staff demonstrate an effective, nurturing and child ‑ centred approach to behaviour management. Practice promotes emotional safety, builds trust and supports children’s self ‑ esteem. Consequences are used proportionately and only when necessary, with a clear focus on learning and encouraging positive behavioural choices. However, consequences do not consistently include clear time frames or opportunities for review, which limits children’s ability to understand expectations and reflect on progress.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to providing effective leadership and provides clear, consistent direction to her team. The manager has excellent knowledge of therapeutic care which focuses on relationship-based practice, high nurture and low shame. The clear vision of child-centred and attuned care and support helps children develop meaningful relationships and make progress.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager demonstrates a commitment to staff development and support through induction, training and opportunities to embed learning through modelling best practice. The manager’s aptitude ensures that staff have opportunities to get creative and practise aspects of play which promote further understanding of how attachments and trust can develop through playful activities. These support systems contribute positively to staff cohesion, confidence, consistency of practice and reflective child-centred care.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision is good quality. It is regular, child focused and well balanced between performance management and professional development. Reflective discussions are robust, encouraging staff to consider what has gone well in their practice and what could be improved. This creates a learning culture in which staff feel safe to reflect and grow professionally. Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 5 Leaders maintain collaborative relationships with the wider professional and social network. Feedback from family and professionals is positive.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team functions cohesively, demonstrating a strong awareness of each other’s strengths and areas for development. This cohesion creates a settled and stable environment, which provides children with a secure base and contributes significantly to their progress.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff sleeping arrangements have not been well considered. Currently, staff sleep in the children’s games room, which restricts children’s access to this area of their home during the night. This arrangement does not promote staff privacy or uphold children’s right to freely use all communal spaces. This was a recommendation at the previous inspection and has not improved.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Quality assurance systems effectively capture the quality of care and progress children are making. However, independent scrutiny does not effectively capture the strengths and areas for development. In addition, managers repeatedly do not support the annual survey facilitated by the regulator, representing a missed opportunity to seek feedback from others to drive improvement. Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 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 privacy of children is appropriately protected;

p.6

Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises

p.6

Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that the design of the home provides staff who sleep overnight with appropriate accommodation and facilities to do so without restricting children’s access to all areas of their home. 3 April 2026

p.6

Recommendations

 Staff should understand factors that affect children’s motivation to behave in a socially acceptable way. Staff should encourage an enthusiasm for positive behaviour using positive behaviour strategies in line with the child’s relevant plans. Any consequences for behaviour should be time limited and reviewed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.13)  The registered person must ensure that the point-in-time surveys are distributed to all relevant people, so they have the opportunity to provide feedback. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person must ensure they actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. This also

p.6

Recommendations

includes ensuring that the point in time surveys are distributed to all relevant people so that they have the opportunity to provide feedback. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24) Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 7

p.6

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: 2689391 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Platform Childcare Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: First Avenue, Centrum 100, Burton upon Trent DE14 2WE

p.8

Inspector

Tazim Akhtar, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2689391 9 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.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