Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 1 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private company. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living at the home. They were spoken with during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2023.

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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 good

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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: 28 January 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: 2654084 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/01/2025 Full Good 19/02/2024 Full Good 25/05/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is making good progress and has positive experiences in the home. They say that they are happy and safe and that they share ‘great’ relationships with staff. The child has experienced significant emotional challenges, but staff have supported them well. This has resulted in reduced incidents and the child feeling more emotionally secure in recent months.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the child and their background well. They understand the child’s individual support needs, including any areas of risk. Staff work with specialist services, such as child mental health teams, to help further develop this understanding. Staff’s knowledge helps them to create and follow individualised support plans for the child. This helps provide consistency of care, which supports the child to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child takes an active role in making decisions about their care. They occasionally attend staff meetings when appropriate. Issues are discussed openly, including risks, education and what is needed to achieve positive outcomes. Actions are agreed and a copy of these is given to the child. This ensures the child is supported to understand and feel in control of their own care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work well with the child’s family to support family time. The child’s parent commented on the progress that their child is making at the home, and that they ‘could not fault’ the care they are receiving.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work with the child to help them learn independence skills. This has included sessions on cooking, cleaning, managing finances and using public transport. This work is ongoing, and the child has responded well to it and the extra responsibilities it brings. Good support for the child in this area is helping them gain key skills for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has been out of formal education for several months. Staff have worked hard to provide alternative education through home study and educational activities. The child says this has helped them to continue their learning and develop their skills while they have been out of the classroom setting. However, there was a delay in staff contacting an education provider as part of an agreed plan. This means that the child may have been out of education longer than necessary.

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

The child is kept physically and emotionally safe within the home. They have close relationships with staff, which helps increase their sense of safety. Risk assessments are up to date, containing relevant information and clear plans for support. Staff follow these plans, which means the child receives care that keeps them safe and is attuned to their needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 4 Staff implement clear boundaries for behaviour. They model positive behaviour to the child and speak to them when they need to challenge certain behaviours. This is done through daily discussions and focused key-work sessions. The child responds well to this and can make changes while feeling supported.

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

There have been previous occasions of crisis for the child, which have affected their emotional wellbeing. Some of these incidents have led to the child and others being at risk of harm. Staff work effectively to support the child to keep them safe. This has resulted in the child feeling more settled in recent months, with a reduction in the frequency and seriousness of incidents.

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

Staff work well to help the child understand risks. Key-work sessions are clear and well targeted, focusing on mental health, self-harm, family relationships and online safety. The child has responded well to this work and is gaining skills to help them keep safe.

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

Staff work with the child’s local authority to ensure that the child is safe. They attend strategy meetings when necessary and contribute well to these. Staff share relevant information and complete any actions from these meetings as agreed. This ensures that there are multi-agency approaches to managing risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably skilled and experienced. They inspire a positive culture in the home. Staff say that they feel well supported by managers and can access support when needed. The manager is supported by an effective deputy manager and senior staff members.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers speak confidently about the home’s strengths and areas for development. They are familiar with the home’s ethos and model of care, and they ensure that this is known and understood by all the staff. Staff are able to speak about the therapeutic approaches that they take and how these support them in caring for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff supervision sessions are completed regularly. These are collaborative with staff and reflective in nature. Annual appraisals are also completed with staff and are similarly detailed with appropriate action plans. This ensures that staff receive good, ongoing support in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff undertake a suitable induction programme when they start working at the home. This includes key training linked to the needs of the child. Staff who complete their induction are enrolled onto their diploma. Their progress is then monitored and reviewed by the management. This ensures that once staff are in post, they are equipped with the knowledge and skills to provide good-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have not carried out necessary checks on the previous qualifications of some staff members. This means that when the manager is initially appointing staff, they Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 5 cannot be certain that the staff have the required knowledge and skills to undertake their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s statement of purpose has not been updated in a timely manner. This has meant that there are inaccuracies in terms of the current service provision and some staffing details. This has not impacted negatively on the child’s level of care, but it does not give a clear overview of the care being provided.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers provide effective responses to complaints. However, one matter was not initially viewed as a complaint. Although it was dealt with well, and actions were taken to safeguard the child, it was not filed or processed accordingly in the initial stages. A failure to follow correct processes in response to complaints means that staff may not have the opportunity to learn and develop from such incidents going forward. Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 6

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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 within the given timescales.

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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

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(b)(d)) 26 March 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s statement of purpose is kept under review. In particular, they should ensure that any changes to the care being provided to children are updated in the statement of purpose without delay. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)  The registered person should ensure that when children are not participating in education, they work with relevant professionals so that children are supported and enabled to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In particular, they should contact education providers when needed without undue delay. (‘Guide to the Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 7 Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)  The registered person should ensure that records relating to complaints are stored and processed appropriately. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including

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Recommendations

the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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: 2654084 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: First Floor, Harbour House Portway, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 2DW.

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Inspectors

Jon Collins, Social Care Inspector (Lead) Lee Riley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2654084 9 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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