Children's Home run by SANQ Children Services in Sandwell

Inspection report for children's home: 2842413 1 Registered provider: SANQ Children Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

The home was registered with Ofsted in August 2025 and is operated by a private provider. It offers care for up to 3 children who may experience emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2025 and is suitably experienced for the role.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, there was one child living in the home, who was present and spoke to the inspectors during the inspection.

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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 for children's home: 2842413 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children have moved into the home, and one of these children have moved out. Children benefit from well-organised and child-focused moves into and out of the home. Staff ensure that children's needs and potential risks are assessed thoroughly. When children move into the home, the manager works in close partnership with external professionals. Children are able to visit the home prior to moving in, and staff are skilled in building positive relationships. This helps children to settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive relationships with staff. The staff team has shown dedication to understanding children's needs. This has led to staff building strong relationships with children. Children clearly enjoy the company of staff, often engaging in light-hearted interactions and planning future travel together. These trusting relationships create a safe foundation, helping children to grow in confidence and feel more secure.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make significant progress from their starting points. This is particularly evident in education. For one child, attendance increased from 50% to 100%. Staff are ambitious for children and work together with education providers to support children's motivation and academic progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have been supported to maintain close relationships with those who matter the most to them. The manager and staff recognise the importance of family relationships. A family member spoke of staff bringing one child to her home for visits when she was struggling with travel. Staff also advocate for increased time when it is in the child's best interests. This supports children's sense of identity, supporting them to feel settled and loved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to broaden their interests through a variety of activities, such as football and farm visits. One child was involved in planning significant events, which builds their self-esteem and aspirations for the future. Children's physical health and wellbeing are a priority for staff. Staff ensure that children attend routine health appointments. Staff also seek specialist support when emerging needs are identified. Children's physical health and wellbeing are a priority for staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a home that is well maintained and welcoming. Leaders and staff actively encourage children to personalise their bedrooms, which promotes a strong sense of belonging. Children's experiences are celebrated in photos displayed throughout the home. This contributes to a homely atmosphere.

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

Children feel safe living in the home, and safeguarding incidents are rare. Managers and staff know the children well and have a good awareness of children's individual needs and associated risks. The manager and staff team work effectively with external Inspection report for children's home: 2842413 3 professionals, including social workers and teachers, to ensure that children's needs are consistently met.

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

Staff respond with empathy and care when children become upset, using de-escalation strategies that are therapeutically informed. This nurturing approach prioritises children's emotional stability and resilience. This has contributed to one child's increased sense of stability. There have been no physical interventions or incidents of children going missing from the home. As a result of this, children are living in a home focused on creating a safe environment.

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

Children's achievements and progress are supported through the use of rewards and incentives. Consequences, when used, are fair and focused on the behaviour they seek to dissuade. Children are given restorative opportunities and are actively involved in reviewing their plans. This supports them to learn and make good progress.

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

Staff strike a positive balance between safeguarding and promoting age-appropriate independence. One child is being supported to travel to school independently, in line with their wishes. This has successfully increased their confidence and understanding of community risks.

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

The manager and staff's safeguarding practices are generally strong. However, on one occasion, staff missed an opportunity to safeguard a non-resident child. Leaders took appropriate action once the issue was identified, and the shortfall was addressed during the inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is well-led by a manager who is child-focused and advocates for children with the commitment of a 'good parent'. This ethos is mirrored by the staff team, which provides children with nurturing care and genuine affection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported by leaders and managers and receive regular supervision. These sessions are used to reflect on practice, support professional development and promote learning. One member of staff said, 'I love it here.' Another member of staff said, 'The staff are amazing, I feel like we all work together as a team, management is great.' The staff feel confident in their role and have built positive relationships with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals and family members are very positive about the care their child receives. They highlight effective partnership working, strong advocacy and communication as strengths. One social worker noted that a child is now 'doing amazing' following the manager and staff adapting their practice to meet their specific needs, helping to make significant progress in several areas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good understanding of the strengths and areas for development in their home. Management oversight improves children's experiences, such as ensuring Inspection report for children's home: 2842413 4 that a comprehensive induction and training plan is in place for staff. This includes child- specific training. This helps to develop staff practice and better meets children's needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Recruitment processes are safe, robust and thorough. All necessary checks are completed before staff begin their roles, ensuring their suitability to work with children. Leaders take decisive and appropriate action to address any performance concerns. There is a diverse staff team and a culture that promotes equality and diversity for all in the home. Inspection report for children's home: 2842413 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should develop staff skills for safeguarding so that they can identify signs that children may be at risk and can support children in strategies to manage and reduce any risks. Specifically, the registered person should ensure that staff act upon their safeguarding duty to all children, including those not living in the home. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations, including the quality standards', page 43, paragraph 9.10)  The registered person should ensure that when they review significant incidents in the home, they identify learning from this and disseminate this to staff in a timely manner. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations, including the quality standards', page 55, paragraph 10.4).

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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: 2842413 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: SANQ Children Services

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Regus, Edmund House, 12-22 Newhall Street, Birmingham B3 3AS

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Inspectors

Emma Hutton, Social Care Inspector John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2842413 7 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspectors

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