Children's home run by Fonjock's Social Work Practice Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 1 Registered provider: Fonjock’s Social Work Practice Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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: 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: 2608645 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/02/2025 Full Good 05/12/2023 Full Good 23/11/2022 Full Good 08/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, 2 children have moved into the home, and 2 have moved out.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have supported 2 moves out of the home in planned and thoughtful ways. One young person moved into supported accommodation as an adult. The other child moved to live closer to their sibling. Staff prepared both individuals for these changes through clear planning and ongoing discussions. Memory books were created to help the child and young person understand their journeys and reflect on their experiences. They were involved in discussions about their moves, which helped them feel informed, supported and emotionally prepared.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, well decorated and personalised. The child’s drawings are displayed throughout the home, and a sensory tent is available to support the child when they feel upset or stressed. These features help the child feel settled and valued in their living space.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively engage the child in daily activities that reflect their interests. These include magnet fishing, role play and creative play. Staff use these activities to build relationships, reduce anxiety and support emotional regulation. The child engages well and appears proud of their achievements. Positive interactions between staff and the child are evident, and the child appears happy and emotionally safe in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child had not been engaging with education for several years before moving into the home. Staff worked persistently with education professionals to support them in re- engaging with learning. They supported him through a gradual and sensitive transition back to education. As a result, the child now attends school every day. This represents a significant and positive change from their starting point. Professionals and parents speak positively about their progress and report improvements in emotional regulation and growing independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff also support the child in building and maintaining family relationships. The child now has sleepovers with a family member, which reflects improved stability and trust. Staff help the child feel settled, supported and able to make meaningful progress in their daily life.

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

Staff understand the child’s needs well. A clear and detailed needs assessment sets out the child’s background, risks and emotional requirements. This helps staff respond with empathy and consistency. The child’s voice is captured in key documents, including one written with them called ‘How l want to be supported’. This supports a more child- centred approach to care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 4 Staff take clear and consistent steps to keep children safe and support their emotional wellbeing. Staff follow established routines and provide predictable care, which helps children feel secure. Bedtime routines, including bedtime stories, help the child settle better at night and reduce anxiety.

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

Staff use de-escalation strategies when children are experiencing difficulties. They respond calmly and without using restraint. The child currently living at the home has not gone missing from care. When children previously living at the home went missing, staff followed agreed protocols. They worked closely with police and other professionals to locate the children and support their safe return to the home. The staff made sure to welcome the children back in a supportive manner. This approach helps reduce risk and reassures children that staff care about their safety.

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

The child knows who to speak to when they feel worried and has identified a trusted adult in the home. This supports emotional safety and helps the child share concerns before issues escalate.

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

Staff use consequences in a fair and proportionate manner. They focus on helping the child understand their behaviour rather than punishing them. Staff talk with the child about what has happened and involve them in agreeing on appropriate consequences. Children understand why consequences are used and feel they are fair. This approach helps children take responsibility for their actions and promotes positive behaviour.

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

Staff work collaboratively with parents and professionals to manage risk and safeguard children. When incidents occur, staff follow protocols and inform the child’s social worker, who is happy with the actions taken. However, it is not clear when incidents related to allegations should be referred to the local authority designated officer. This lack of clarity could delay appropriate oversight.

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

Staff respond appropriately to incidents and concerns and follow agreed procedures. However, the placement plan is not always kept up to date. The plan contains outdated information and does not clearly reflect the strategies staff currently use to support the child. This increases the risk of staff responding inconsistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is currently managed by an interim manager, who is supported by the responsible individual. This arrangement provides continuity, guidance and oversight. The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers provide steady support to staff and promote a positive team culture. Staff report feeling supported in their roles and having access to regular supervision. Managers are described as ‘approachable’ and ‘available’ when staff need advice or support. Supervision provides staff with time to reflect on their practice and discuss children’s needs, especially following incidents. Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 5 Leaders and managers ensure that staff are trained and prepared to meet the needs of children. Induction, training and ongoing development activities are in place, which helps staff feel confident in their roles. Staff work collaboratively and provide consistent care to children. Daily logs clearly reflect the child’s daily experiences and the work staff carry out with them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers advocate strongly for the child and challenge other professionals when necessary to ensure that decisions are made in the child’s best interests.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Quality assurance processes are in place, including visits from the quality assurance team. These provide opportunities to review practice and identify areas for improvement. Initiatives such as ‘employee of the month’ help boost staff morale and contribute to a positive staff culture, which supports stability for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers always speak to staff for a debrief following any incidents that occur. However, some debriefs lack detail and sometimes miss key aspects of what happened or the learning identified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers must ensure that the local authority care plan is always followed and reflected in daily practice. Some aspects of the plan are not fully reflected in how support is provided day to day. When plans are not followed as intended, it can affect the child’s sense of stability and make it difficult for staff to provide clear and predictable support. Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that leaders, managers and staff continuously and actively assess the risks each child faces and the arrangements in place to protect them. When there are safeguarding concerns for a child, there must be a plan agreed between the home and the child’s placing authority and any other relevant professionals that includes details of the steps the home will take to manage any assessed risks on an individual basis. All relevant information should be recorded in children’s plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should make the best use of information from internal monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. They should be skilled in reviewing incidents. They are responsible for proactively implementing lessons learned and sustaining good practice. Ensuring consistency in conversations with staff and children

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Recommendations

after incidents is key to this. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that they and their staff engage proactively with the placing authority to fully contribute to the relevant plans for the child’s care on an ongoing basis. This specifically relates to ensuring that agreements around staffing levels are clear. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.3)

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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: 2608645 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Fonjock’s Social Work Practice Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Orchard House, 1 Old Convent Orchard, Bury St Edmunds IP33 3PQ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Monica De Castro

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Inspector

Thembie Mzila, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2608645 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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