Children's home run by Woodford Children‟s Home Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2817443 1 Registered provider: Woodford Children’s Home Ltd

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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 privately owned home provides care for up to 4 children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in August 2025. This is the home’s first inspection.

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Information about this children's home

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

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children's home: 2817443 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child lives in the home. Staff know the child well and provide attentive, nurturing care. The social worker reports that staff help the child to understand their feelings and says the child has ‘great relationships with staff’ and feels loved in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff listen to and respect the child’s views. These views are clearly reflected in the child’s detailed care plan. The child sometimes leads ‘time together’ sessions to share what they want to achieve and identify the support they need. This helps the child to feel valued and heard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide the child with a consistent daily routine and ensure that the child attends health appointments. Staff support the child to engage in school. As a result of this consistent support, the child enjoys school and is making good progress in their learning and social development. Professionals report that the child may be ready to attend mainstream education due to the progress they are making. When the child is not in school, staff support them to complete an enrichment programme. Staff use this time to extend the child’s learning through creative activities and to further strengthen the child’s skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that the child experiences a range of positive activities. They support the child to attend swimming lessons and to visit the zoo and aquarium. These experiences help the child to build confidence and develop interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff carefully planned the child’s move into the home to ensure that the child felt safe and supported. Following risk assessment and professional consultation, staff supported the child’s brother to move into the home. When living together did not meet both children’s needs, managers arranged for one child to move to another home within the organisation. Staff support the child to spend safe and meaningful time with their brother and family members.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When the child becomes upset, staff use natural consequences to help the child reflect and learn. Staff consistently recognise and reward positive behaviour. Managers have adapted the reward system to ensure that it meets the child’s individual needs and promotes positive outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff maintain a clean and welcoming home environment. They support the child to personalise their bedroom. The child enjoys puzzles, and staff nurture this interest by providing a range of puzzles and spending time completing them alongside the child.

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

Staff manage safeguarding concerns effectively and work in partnership with other professionals to promote the child’s safety. Staff keep the child’s risk assessment up to Inspection report children's home: 2817443 3 date and use it to guide their practice. This ensures that staff understand the child’s vulnerabilities and take appropriate action to reduce risk. The child does not go missing from the home. Staff provide consistent supervision to help the child to stay safe.

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

Staff use physical interventions only as a proportionate last resort. They follow the child’s behaviour support plan and provide empathetic, age-appropriate support when the child becomes upset or faces challenges. However, staff do not always clearly record discussions with the child afterwards or provide sufficient detail about physical interventions. This limits opportunities for the child to reflect on their experiences and for managers to fully review the support provided.

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

The child has made one allegation about a member of staff. The registered manager followed safeguarding procedures and involved the local authority designated officer. However, records do not clearly detail all discussions held with the child.

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

Managers maintain effective oversight of medication and ensure that staff administer medication safely. There have been no medication errors and staff keep clear and accurate records.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is dually registered to oversee two children’s homes registered with this provider. The registered manager ensures that the child receives individualised care and positive experiences tailored to their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager holds regular team meetings for staff to review the child’s progress, wellbeing and their own practice. The registered manager recruits staff safely and ensures that they are suitably qualified to meet the child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager uses monitoring systems to review the quality of care provided to the child. This helps them to track the child’s progress, evaluate experiences and identify areas for improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals speak positively about communication with the registered manager. However, managers do not consistently support the independent visitor to gather professional feedback. This feedback is important to evaluate the child’s care in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Not all staff receive supervision in line with the home’s workforce development plan. Newer staff do not always receive supervision at the required frequency. Some staff say that they would welcome clearer guidance from managers and more opportunities to work alongside experienced colleagues to continue to build confidence in their role. Inspection report children's home: 2817443 4

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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 ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all staff, including new staff are receiving frequent supervision as set out in the home's workforce development plan. 30 March 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the independent visitor can obtain feedback from children's professional networks so they can make a well-informed assessment of the home's safeguarding arrangements and children's welfare. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 65, paragraph 15.5)  The registered person should ensure that children's records are kept up to date, including clear records of discussions with children and accurate details of any incidents. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that staff receive effective guidance from managers and that the staff are able to work together to support one another in their roles. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 52, paragraph 10.7) Inspection report children's home: 2817443 5

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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 children's home: 2817443 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Woodford Children’s Home Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 37B Chipstead Valley Rd, Coulsdon, Croydon CR5 2RB

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Inspector

Chelsea Agyeman, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2817443 7 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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