Children's Home run by Mowgli Care Services Ltd in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 1 Registered provider: Mowgli Care Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private organisation and provides care for up to 6 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and/or have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 5 children were living at the home, and all of them spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

A suitably qualified and experienced registered manager is in post.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/03/2025 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Shortfalls in helping and protecting children, along with the oversight of leaders and managers, significantly affect children’s experiences and progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s moves into the home are poorly planned. Children’s risks and vulnerabilities are not always suitably identified and planned for before they move in. Furthermore, leaders and managers often fail to adequately consider the needs of other children already living at the home. At times, this has affected how safe children feel in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Due to inadequate planning before and after one child moved into the home, a serious incident involving two children occurred. As a result, one child experienced an unplanned move from the home at short notice. This led to the child having to stay in temporary accommodation for a month while a new home was found for them. Staff worked with this child’s local authority and their new home to help with their move.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff have failed to ensure that the home is cleaned and maintained to a good standard. Some areas of the home are unclean, and some wear and tear needs addressing. One child’s bedroom wardrobe is broken, and there is no timescale for when it will be replaced. The child said that it has been broken for a year. This does not provide a welcoming or nurturing environment for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff and managers do not consistently encourage children to engage with their education, and some children do not make sufficient progress. One child has been on a significantly reduced timetable for the past year. Their engagement in home learning has not been promoted in line with their needs, and the home does not have copies of important education plans for the child. This has not been escalated sufficiently to ensure that their educational needs are being met. One child achieved good GCSE results and has been able to continue to study for A-levels. Teachers are positive about communication and support from the manager and staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children provide mixed views about living in this home. They said they have some positive relationships with staff, and they participate in enjoyable activities. Children also said that they do not always feel listened to or cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are supported with their emotional well-being. They usually benefit from therapy sessions with the home’s clinical psychologist. This helps them understand their feelings and manage their emotions. Staff have important conversations with children, in line with their needs. However, there are times when the home’s therapeutic approach is not evident and these discussions are not appropriately child focused.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children’s health needs are generally met. However, on one occasion, a child did not receive immediate medical attention for a serious head injury, and it was unclear what Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 4 initial advice staff had been provided by medical services. This does not ensure that children’s immediate medical needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff encourage children to spend time with people who are important to them. Family members said that communication with the manager is good and that staff know their children well. However, they also brought up aspects of care that they believe are not meeting their child’s needs to their full potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children know how to raise complaints, and they are told about what has happened because of their complaint. Children’s wishes and feelings are sought inconsistently, and it is not always clear what action has been taken after they have expressed their views.

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

Staff and managers sometimes fail to take effective action to safeguard children and do not fully understand or consider children’s individual needs and vulnerabilities. Guidance for staff does not always identify children’s risks and clear strategies to keep them and others safe.

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

One child was significantly injured by another child in the home. There were significant missed opportunities for staff to intervene before this injury was sustained. In addition, the injured child did not receive immediate medical attention. The manager’s oversight of the incident failed to identify these shortfalls. Leaders and managers have not reflected on what could have been done differently and have not taken enough action to improve practice. This incident significantly affected other children living in the home, causing them to feel unsafe. Attempts were made to repair the children’s relationships but were unsuccessful.

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

Leaders and managers do not always sufficiently consider how to minimise risks to children and staff. When information suggests that a staff member should not work alone with a child, this is not considered in their plans. This means that one staff member has worked alone with a child when this was not appropriate. This does not protect the child or the staff member from potential harm. During the inspection, the manager agreed to take immediate action to address this risk.

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

Restraint is used infrequently at this home and in appropriate situations to keep children and others safe. Staff are usually spoken with after children have been restrained, but on one occasion they were not. Although the manager has oversight, this does not always occur within regulatory timescales, which reduces opportunities to promptly address any practice issues.

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

When children raise concerns, staff and managers take appropriate immediate action to keep them safe and inform the appropriate agencies. Most children said they currently feel safe in this home and can speak to staff about their worries. However, one child said they do not feel safe. This is because they feel that staff did not believe them when they made an allegation. External agencies have also raised concerns about how one Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 5 allegation has been responded to by the responsible individual, and this is currently being investigated.

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

Staff understand the risks that the internet can pose to children. When staff become aware of any concerns, they are dealt with swiftly, and action is taken to prevent the future risk of harm. Staff support children in developing their understanding of internet safety through important conversations. Children also access training in how to stay safe online. Children rarely go missing from the home. Staff are proactive when children go missing and take appropriate action to help them return home swiftly. As a result, children go missing for short periods.

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

Staff understand the risks of self-harm. They take immediate action to keep children safe. The manager ensures that children receive ongoing support to manage the risks of self-harm. As a result, one child’s risk of self-harm has reduced.

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

One child was able to access medication due to shortfalls in staff practice. This led to them taking an overdose of medication. Staff sought immediate medical attention when they became aware of this. Leaders and managers took robust action following this incident and ensured that learning was implemented. There have been no further medication errors.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not have effective oversight of the home. They sometimes fail to identify shortfalls in staff practice, placing children at risk of harm. As a result, staff are not always given the opportunity to learn from serious incidents. This is a missed opportunity to reduce the risk of harm to children in the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home does not always deliver care in line with the statement of purpose. Some conversations with children do not reflect the therapeutic model of care. At times, conversations appear to be punitive and place blame on the child. Leaders and managers demonstrate limited insight into the negative impact of these conversations on children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Most staff members in the home are qualified. They usually receive training in line with children’s needs. However, when new staff start to work in the home, they do not receive essential training soon enough. This means that some new staff work with children before they have received training in safeguarding or first aid. This does not ensure that staff can safely meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager and responsible individual provide staff with regular reflective supervision. Staff say they feel well supported by managers and enjoy working at the home. Team meetings take place regularly and identify where children need to make progress. They are informed by the home’s therapeutic model of care. When one child left the home, this was discussed during the team meeting, but the reflection and identified actions were not recorded. This affects the manager’s oversight and does not ensure that improvements are made to the care that children experience. Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 6 The registered manager has not ensured compliance with regulations when carrying out reviews of the quality of care. The report fails to identify key areas for improvement and consider the views of children or other relevant individuals. This limits the manager’s ability to enhance the quality of care children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The independent visitor has not provided scrutiny in line with statutory requirements. Their reports lack meaningful feedback from children and any feedback from family members. This limits the usefulness of external oversight of the home. Leaders and managers had not identified this shortfall before this inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 7

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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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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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;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received. 27 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 8 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)(b)(c)(e) (2)(f)(g)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that they consider children’s invidividual risks and vulnerabilities when planning for moves into the home. This must also consider the impact on other children in the home;

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Requirement Due date

leaders, managers and staff must have the required experience, skills and knowledge to provide safe and effective care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

leaders must ensure that managers and staff have guidance to recognise and act appropriately when a child may have been harmed or is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

leaders, managers and staff must ensure that children are provided with the opportunity to provide regular feedback about the care they receive. Action taken to address this feedback should be evident in practice;

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Requirement Due date

leaders and managers must ensure that there is effective monitoring and oversight of the quality of care children receive and take action when needed to bring about improvement;

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Requirement Due date

leaders and managers must ensure that the home is maintained to a high standard.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; 27 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 9 understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff have guidance and take action to prevent children from harming each other.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

maintain regular contact with each child’s education and training provider, including engaging with the provider and the placing authority to support the child’s education and training and to maximise the child’s achievement;

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Requirement Due date

raise any need for further assessment or specialist provision in relation to a child with the child’s education or training provider and the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans; 27 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 10 (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vi)(vii)(viii)(x))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should advocate effectively and plan for children to have access to educational provisions in a timely manner. The registered person should ensure that staff are encouraging children to engage in home tutoring when they are not attending school.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager’s responsibility to ensure that any children moving into and out of the home are supported by effective planning and preparation, taking into account their individual needs. 27 March 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)) 27 March 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 11 This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that the independent person receives regular feedback from children, parents and relatives to inform the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that records of restraint are maintained, enabling them and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. Specifically, the registered person should have oversight of the records within regulatory timescales. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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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: 2786196 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Mowgli Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 58 High Street, Madeley, Telford TF7 5AT

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Inspector

Jenny Smith, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2786196 13 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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