Children's Home run by Caring Feathers Ltd in Derby

Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 1 Registered provider: Caring Feathers Limited

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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 home is operated by a private provider. It is registered to care for up to 2 children who may require support with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager recently resigned. The post is vacant.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, no children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

This inspection took place remotely due to unavailability of the provider. The inspector was able to visit the home on day 2, facilitated by the maintenance team.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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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: 2803209 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/03/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children have lived here during the inspection period. However the home was unoccupied during the inspection, yet it remains well presented, decorated and furnished to a high standard. Recent repairs have addressed damaged caused by previous children, ensuring the home is ready to be personalised to the preferences of children when they move in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive experiences while living here. One child particularly enjoyed participating in activities with staff. For example, the child took part in a series of ‘come dine with me’ events where they were supported to create menus, cook, and serve food to the staff team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since leaving the home, two children shared positive feedback regarding their experiences here and the quality of relationships they formed with specific staff members. A parent expressed high praise for the care provided during her child’s short stay, stating they, ‘can’t thank staff enough for what they did for him’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into the home, managers review documentation thoroughly to ensure the staff team possess the specific skills and knowledge required to meet each child’s needs. Before moving in, managers and staff prioritise meeting or speaking with children to gain a better understanding of their individual identities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While all three placements during this inspection period ended in an unplanned way, these decisions were made by managers who determined that the children’s risks could no longer be safely managed. To ensure continuous improvement, the manager completed end of placement reflections, scrutinising the care provided and exploring areas for future development.

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

Staff prioritise positive reinforcement, using achievable incentives to help children make better choices. A ‘wow box’ initiative has been particularly effective, giving staff the autonomy to provide instant recognition for a child’s achievements. This approach has helped children engage positively with the team and celebrate their own progress.

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

One child only lived here for a month. During this time, they made several complaints to their social worker and to Ofsted. The manager ensured these were clearly evidenced, acknowledged, and explored. Despite extensive efforts to help the child feel secure, a multi-agency decision was ultimately made for the child to move to a different home.

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

When children have been missing, a clear and co-ordinated approach supports their safe return. Staff take proactive action to search for children, using known information about their movements and associates to facilitate their return home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 4 Staff have received varied and appropriate training to meet the individual needs of children. This training has informed the completion of children’s risk assessments, providing clarity on how risks are identified and managed. Risk documentation is updated following incidents, reflecting good communication with the children’s wider professional teams.

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

For one child presenting with high levels of risky behaviour, such as self-harm or suicidal ideation, staff are proactive in care planning. Meaningful keywork sessions are used to explore these risks directly with children. However, there has been a serious incident which led to the child taking a significant overdose of prescribed medication. The manager was efficient in identifying lessons learned. This resulted in more robust measures being implemented to mitigate future risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

There has been instability in the leadership and management of the home. With three registered managers in the last 13 months, the provider has failed to establish a consistent leadership presence which raises concern around sustainability and consistency of leadership. The high turnover undermines the providers ability to drive long term improvements and maintain a stable environment for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The recent resignation of the manager, and patterns emerging from similar circumstances in the providers other homes, indicates a failure in the providers ability to support and retain effective leadership. While children have received good care from the staff team, the lack of a stable, long-term manager means the systems used to monitor the quality of care are not yet embedded or robust.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Notifications of serious incidents have not been consistently submitted to Ofsted, or there has been a delay. This failure to comply with regulatory requirements has affected both management oversight and professional scrutiny of these incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Supervision for staff has been effective in monitoring performance and assessing competency, particularly around safeguarding. For example, safeguarding scenarios have been shared to assess staff responses. In addition to this, team meetings have been improved with better attendance from the team. This was particularly important when staff were facing challenges with the most recent child living in the home, as emergency team meetings allowed the staff to re-group and connect during a difficult period.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Where there have been concerns about staff conduct and performance, probation reviews have been effective in determining overall suitability to remain in the role. This has impacted on workforce stability but also demonstrates the managers emphasis around good quality staffing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Due to the home being unoccupied and the inspection taking place remotely the inspector was unable to speak to any staff members to better understand any impact on the workforce. Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 5

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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 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to an incident where staff did not take effective action in preventing a child from taking a significant medication overdose which resulted in her experiencing significant harm. 4 April 2026

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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

promotes their welfare. 4 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 6 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 the home has sufficient staff to provide care for 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

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)(d)(e)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that a consistent manager and staff team is in place. The provider must have systems in place to address the reasons for resignations of registered managers. Systems for recruitment, induction, and ongoing support for leaders must be robust enough to ensure the sustainability of the quality of care provided to children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child— is instigated; or

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. 4 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 7 A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified;

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Requirement Due date

and any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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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: 2803209 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Caring Feathers Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 4b, The Park Estate, Bury Park Road, Luton LU1 1EN

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Inspector

Kayleigh Spinks, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2803209 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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