Children's Home run by Almond Care Limited in Leicestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2826596 1 Registered provider: Almond Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in June 2025 and is owned by an independent provider. It offers care for up to 3 children with physical or learning disabilities or sensory impairments.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home.

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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: 2826596 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child lives in a home that is well maintained and homely. The child has a spacious bedroom, which is personalised according to their tastes. The child said they like living at the home and are happy with their bedroom.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There was a clear and coordinated transition plan for the child moving to the home. The manager appropriately challenged the local authority to ensure that the move would only take place once staff members had received the necessary training to care for the child. Staff ensured that the child understood the role of the carers and the support they would receive while living at the home. As a result, the child has settled well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager works effectively with the wider team of professionals that supports the child, ensuring excellent continuity of care with both health and education. The child attends a specialist school where they have established friendships and enjoy participating in several clubs. School staff said that communication with the staff at the home is regular and effective. They recognise that the child is increasingly well rested and ready to learn when they attend school. As staff from the home are now meeting the child’s health needs, this is allowing for greater focus on the child’s learning and time spent in the classroom with peers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s care plans are detailed and nuanced, despite their recent move to the home. The plans provide staff with a thorough understanding of the child’s needs and how their past experiences have influenced them. Informative daily routines have been established for the child. Staff receive clear guidance on how to support the child’s personal care while encouraging their independence. Staff know and respect the child’s preferences for how they receive their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the close relationship that the child maintains with their siblings and wider family. Staff have supported the child in spending time with people important to them, both in person and online, soon after they came to live at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child can influence their care and feels comfortable expressing their views and preferences. Direct one-to-one conversations and children’s meetings take place regularly. However, recordings lack clarity regarding how the child will be informed of outcomes from these discussions.

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

The child is developing positive relationships with staff and has adapted well to living at the home. There have been no serious safeguarding incidents since the child moved in, and the child has not gone missing. Staff have a clear understanding of the child’s risks and behaviours, which they incorporate into their plans. Staff continue to develop strategies to support the child as they learn more about their needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2826596 3 The child’s health and support plan is clear and detailed. It has benefited from clinical oversight from the registered nurses working at the home. There is a strong focus on supporting the child in a dignified and child-focused manner, while also encouraging and developing their independence skills. Feedback received from the child’s orthopaedic consultant states that historic pressure sores experienced by the child have significantly improved since they have been living at the home.

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

There are comprehensive plans in place for understanding and responding to the child’s medical needs. Good advocacy from the manager has prevented the child from having unnecessary invasive medication following a doctor’s review. There is staff competency testing in place for health-based tasks, overseen by a nurse. These evidence that the team of staff have a good understanding of their required tasks.

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

Staff have ensured that the child understands how to respond should there be an emergency at the home. A personalised evacuation plan is in place, and the child engages well with fire drills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is overseen by a committed manager and deputy manager. They have ensured that care planning for the child is thorough. As a result, staff understand how to provide attentive care to the child and are committed to their roles. Managers have a trusting relationship with each other, ensuring consistency in approach and oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals spoken to said that communication with the staff is excellent. Staff utilise the school diary effectively, which helps ensure good consistency in approach. Staff work collaboratively with safeguarding partners, which ensures holistic care of the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are appropriate support systems in place for staff. Staff value their team meetings and supervision sessions as opportunities to reflect and learn. Minutes of these meetings capture collaborative discussions between staff and the managers. Staff have benefited from thorough induction processes tailored to the specific criteria of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a broad range of training, lots of which is bespoke and responsive to children’s needs. The manager does not always maintain clear and timely records of training that staff complete. This makes it difficult to establish when staff’s training needs to be renewed or identify any gaps in their learning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective oversight of the home and appropriately draws on the responsible individual's clinical expertise to inform care planning. Auditing systems are in place to track children’s progress effectively moving forward.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose has not been submitted to Ofsted since the registration of the home, despite it having been updated. Therefore, it has not been received within regulatory timescales. Inspection report for children’s home: 2826596 4

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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

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that any revised statement of purpose is submitted to Ofsted within 28 days. 13 April 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Due consideration should be given to the child’s cognitive ability in the development and implementation of any consultation processes. Children should be able to see the results of their views being heard and acted on. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.11)  The registered person should maintain good employment practice, as set out in regulations 31 to 33. They should ensure that staff recruitment, supervision and performance management safeguard children and minimise potential risks to them. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and

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Recommendations

resources to support their training needs, and they should understand the key role they play in the monitoring of training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11) Inspection report for children’s home: 2826596 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: 2826596 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Almond Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4 Barling Way, Nuneaton CV10 7RH

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Inspector

Louise Copping, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2826596 7 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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