Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 1 Registered provider: Esland North 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 privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to 4 children who may have emotional or social difficulties or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

There were 4 children living in the home at the time of the inspection. The inspector met all 4 children and spoke to 3 of them.

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Information about this children’s home

During this inspection period, one child has moved out and 2 children have moved in.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2024.

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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: 26 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: 2483823 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/02/2025 Full Good 03/01/2024 Full Good 14/03/2023 Full Good 18/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have provided children with a comfortable living environment which is well decorated, furnished and maintained. Staff have consulted with children and have created a games room in the garden which has a pool table and arcade machines. Staff support children to decorate and personalise their bedrooms. Staff have provided children with toys, games and books. Staff display photos of the children throughout the home. This creates a sense of belonging and ownership.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff give children the opportunity to meet them, look around, and receive information about the home before moving in. However, when children are unable to visit or meet staff beforehand, staff have not been creative in exploring alternative ways to help the child feel prepared for the move.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

For one child the manager ensured that staff were equipped with the skills and knowledge to meet the child’s needs before moving in. For another child, staff do not yet have a full understanding of how to meet their needs, including communication needs. Although the manager has plans in place to address this, these plans were implemented after the child moved in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move out of the home, staff develop plans collaboratively with professionals. Staff have supported a child to live within a family setting. The manager has maintained contact with the child and has supported the child’s carer. A professional said the child is now thriving and that this progress would not have been possible without this support from staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support all children to attend school and children are making progress. Staff help children build positive relationships with others and to manage any conflict safely. This has supported one child to need less support during school breaks when spending time with other children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children access to a range of activities of their choosing. Such as go karting, gymnastics, football and arts and crafts. Staff support children to spend time with their family and friends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have ensured that all the children have access to universal health services. Where children require more specialist health services the manager arranges for children to access this support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff develop children’s independence through helping them learn the skills to cook, clean and manage their money. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 4

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

Staff know how to respond if a child goes missing, how to hold a child safely if needed and how to respond to any allegations a child may make. However, these risks have not yet needed to be managed by staff.

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

Staff allow children to take risks appropriate to their age such as spending time independently in the community or having access to the internet and smart phone. This is done in partnership with professionals. Staff speak to children about their needs and any associated risks. This supports children to understand how to be safe. These conversations are supportive and kind.

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

Staff have developed trusting relationships with children. A child said, ‘if I have a worry I can talk to basically everyone.’ Another child described staff as ‘thoughtful’ when helping them to settle at night. However, children don’t know how to make a complaint if they are unhappy with the care they receive. The manager is aware of this and has plans to address this. Staff have put measures in place such as bedroom door alarms and restrictions on windows. These measures are not in response to children’s needs or regularly reviewed.

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

Staff have implemented clear boundaries and routines for the children providing a sense of stability. Staff use consequences to help children understand and manage unwanted behaviour. However, measures of control used to support children with their behaviour are not always recorded as such. Therefore, the manager does not have full oversight of all measures being used or their effectiveness.

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

Staff create incentives to promote childrens positive behaviour. Children know what these are and how to achieve these. Staff regularly offer children verbal praise to recognise and celebrate their achievements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has established a full staff team to care for the children. The manager, when necessary, will take on additional responsibilities themselves to avoid using agency staff. This maintains consistency for children in that they are cared for by staff known to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

When recruiting staff, the manager follows safer recruitment practice. New staff receive a structured induction and complete a probationary period. This enables the manager to review staff’s ability to care for children and to put in place development plans that support them to build their skills and knowledge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has created systems to monitor the care provided to children. This helps the manager have oversight of care provided and understand children’s progress. The manager welcomes input from other leaders to contribute to these systems. This has supported a culture of learning and improves care provided to children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 5 The manager has developed and maintained good working relationships with other professionals. If the manager believes that professionals are not providing expected support, they will take action to address this. A professional said the manager was ‘child focussed.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides staff with supervision which considers the needs of children and the development of staff to meet these needs. Staff speak positively about the support they receive from the manager, highlighting they feel supported both professionally and personally. The manager provides monthly team meetings as well as a monthly meeting to consider childrens needs and progress. The manager provides staff with the opportunity to come together as a team to build and strengthen relationships. This has developed a positive working culture in the home and good team morale.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Both recommendations made at the previous inspection have been met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children's home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child's behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 21 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 7 a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (1) (a) (b) (2) (3) (a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii) (b)(i)(ii) (c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff understand what constitutes a measure of control and the circumstances in which such measures should be used to support children with their behaviour.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they have oversight of all measures of control used by staff to support children with their behaviour.

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children's home's premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child's privacy or access to any area of the home's premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 21 (a) (b) (c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 21 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 8 In particular, the registered manager must ensure use of door alarms and window restrictions are used in response to supporting children with their needs.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should work in partnership with relevant people as appropriate to ensure that each child is provided with support in all aspects of their care planning, including when children move into the home. This includes ensuring children’s communications needs are understood and met. (Guide to the children s homes regulations including the quality standards Page 22 paragraph 4.6)

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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: 2483823 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Suites 1 & 5 Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 0RN

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Inspector

Laura Copus, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2483823 10 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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