Children's Home run by Hopedale Children and Family Services Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children's home: 2815265 1 Registered provider: Hopedale Children and Family Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This home was registered with Ofsted in July 2025 and is owned by a private company. It provides care for up to 4 children who may be experiencing social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

This was the home's first inspection. However, the manager, staff and children moved to the home from another home that was previously registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, 3 children were living in the home. All 3 children 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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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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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: 2815265 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living in a home that is welcoming and well presented. Children's bedrooms are personalised, reflecting their individual tastes and celebrating their achievements and important relationships. The photos and furnishings in the home create a homely atmosphere that supports children to relax and enjoy themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children like living in the home and score it highly. Two children scored it 10 out of 10, and one gave it a score of 8 out of 10. One child said, 'Out of all the care homes I have gone to, this is the best I have ever been in. 100%.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care that supports them to make progress. Children's school attendance is improving, their relationship with family members is progressing and their ability to understand and manage their feelings has developed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children regularly spend time with people who are important to them, including family members. Staff and the manager have formed positive working relationships with the children's families. This promotes children's understanding of their identity, contributes to them feeling settled at the home and strengthens the network of support children have access to. Feedback from family members is very positive. One family member said of their child, 'They have given [them] a good quality of life, [they] did not have that before. I cannot imagine [they] would have made the progress [they have] anywhere else.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's health is treated as a priority. Staff work in partnership with external health professionals and the home's therapist to ensure that children's physical and emotional health needs are met in a timely manner. For one child who experienced emerging health concerns, staff advocated for them as a good parent would. This resulted in the child receiving the support they required. Children benefit from weekly sessions with the home's therapist, who also supports staff to embed a therapeutic approach to caring for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well supported in their education. Managers and staff work in close partnership with children's education professionals to identify and overcome barriers to education. One professional described how a child's attendance has gone from almost non-existent before living in the home, to being 68% currently. Prior to living in the home, the child was at risk of losing their education placement, which is no longer the case.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff speak to children about important topics. These conversations aim to involve children in their plans, understand their wishes and feelings, develop the skills they will require in later life and become increasingly independent. Inspection report for children's home: 2815265 3

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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. Staff have a good understanding of the risks to children and how to keep them safe. They are supported in this by clear and detailed plans and assessments, which are regularly reviewed to ensure that they accurately reflect children's needs. This supports a consistent and well-informed approach to keeping children safe.

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

Children enjoy positive relationships with staff, who know them well. Staff are skilled in supporting children to calm when they are upset or worried. As a result, the use of restraint is rare. There has been one incident of a child being held to keep them and others safe. Management oversight of the use of restraint is robust, ensuring that its use is necessary and proportionate. Managers actively involved the child in considering how to improve their experiences in the future. This helped to repair relationships and to make the child feel safe and understood.

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

When children are unhappy, they feel able to speak to staff and are confident that staff will help them. Staff involve children in discussing any issues and in creating solutions. This ensures that children feel listened to, develops their understanding of others and empowers them to problem-solve.

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

Children's progress and achievements are celebrated and encouraged using rewards. Children are involved in creating and reviewing their plans and in creating the systems to reward their achievements. This builds the children's self-esteem and supports their progress.

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

Consequences, when used, are restorative in nature. Children are given opportunities to repair relationships and any damage caused. Management oversight ensures that the use of consequences is appropriate and supports children's learning.

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

When children make allegations, leaders and managers take them seriously. One child has made 2 allegations against external professionals. In each incident, managers have reported this to safeguarding agencies and worked in partnership with other professionals to ensure that the child was safe. The child was kept informed throughout, helping them feel safe and heard.

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

There has been one medication error in the home. This was quickly identified by staff, who took appropriate action, seeking medical advice and informing the relevant professionals. Leaders have investigated and implemented learning to prevent a reoccurrence. There was no impact for the child arising from this error, which was a missed dose of prescribed medication.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are inspirational, confident, ambitious and child focused, and they are building a strong ethos of reflection and learning in the home. They have high Inspection report for children's home: 2815265 4 aspirations for children and are strong advocates for them. They use a range of mechanisms to oversee every aspect of the care children receive. They continually seek to improve children's experiences and have embedded a strong learning culture within the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers take the wellbeing of their staff seriously. They ensure that staff are well supported through regular supervision, team meetings, reflections with the home's therapist and high-quality training relevant to children's needs. Because of this, staff feel incredibly well supported and describe the home as feeling like a family.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The positive environment created by leaders and managers means that staff enjoy their work and are highly motivated to provide children with excellent care. Staff turnover is exceedingly rare. No staff have left the home since the home was registered, and all staff working in the home have worked with the children for several years previously. This stability means children are cared for by an experienced staff team, who are well qualified and who know them well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers have developed strong relationships with families and other agencies. They work hard to promote a collaborative approach to meeting children's needs. Such an approach ensures that children's needs are met promptly and that children have strong, well-informed networks of support helping them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Feedback from professionals has been exclusively positive. They have highlighted strong partnership working, communication, advocacy and child-centred care as key strengths. One professional said, 'For me Jamie and his team, they are phenomenal. If I could have all my children placed with Jamie, then I would. He is so child centred. They work so restoratively, they involve family, think outside of the box, and make sure the child's wishes and feelings are paramount. I cannot thank them enough for what they have done for the young people I am involved with.'

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

No requirements or recommendations have been made at this inspection. Inspection report for children's home: 2815265 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 for children's home: 2815265 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Hopedale Children and Family Services Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Hopedale House, Wall Lane Terrace, Cheddleton, Leek ST13 7ED

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Children's home details

Responsible individual: Olubunmi Fabusuyi

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Inspector

John Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2815265 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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