Children's Home run by Isle of Wight Council in Isle of Wight

Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 1 SC395944

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Registered provider: Isle of Wight Council

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

The home is owned and operated by the local authority. It is registered to provide care for up to 10 children with learning disabilities and social and emotional difficulties. It provides both short breaks and long stay placements.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since September 2023.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, five children were living in the home, and three children were staying for short breaks

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Information about this children's home

Date of last inspection: 9 December 2025

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Information about this children's home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this children's home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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'. Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the full inspection in December 2025, managers have met three of the four requirements raised. The remaining requirement has been restated.

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Findings from the inspection

Children benefit from the relaxed atmosphere and nurturing care that staff provide. They learn how to be more independent because staff help them to achieve their goals. One child no longer uses a mechanical seating aids to at mealtimes because staff gradually reduced its use and found ways to help them to sit more comfortably at the table.

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Findings from the inspection

Significant improvements have been made to the quality of some areas of the home. Two new sensory rooms have been created, providing interactive and stimulating spaces for children to use. One child has been helped to make choices about the new décor in their bedroom. This has meant that the child has been more settled when using their room.

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Findings from the inspection

When physical intervention is used to manage the children’s behaviour, this is done in a proportionate way. Managers critically review incidents involving the use of restraint and help staff to find less restrictive measures when needed. As a result, the frequency of restraint has recently reduced significantly.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff know childrens risks and support needs extremely well. They know how each child prefers to communicate. For example, new systems have been created to capture childrens views about their experiences following the use of restraint by staff. These systems have been tailored to each childs preferred communication style so that they are as accessible as possible. The helps managers to identify any potential learning, which is then shared with staff and incorporated into childrens care plans.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff feel supported by their managers. They work well as a team and say that morale is high. During periods of higher levels of incidents where children have been upset, the frequency of supervisions have been less consistent. Despite this, staff say that managers are accessible to them whenever they need to seek any additional support. Improvements have been made to staff supervision records which focus on improving staff knowledge of important safeguarding information.

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Findings from the inspection

Staffing levels have improved significantly. Several new staff are in the process of onboarding and induction. New staff say that their initial training fully prepares them for their roles and that high quality care plans mean they fully understand how best to help each child. At times, short breaks for some children have been impacted by other childrens circumstances. Managers have worked closely with families to rearrange these stays to minimise disruption, while additional short breaks have Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 3 been provided for those who have needed them because of the increase in staffing capacity.

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Findings from the inspection

The registered manager has improved their monitoring of the quality of care in the home. For example, they now use a training and supervision tracker which gives them better oversight of where more targeted support or additional training may be needed. Additionally, improvements have been made to several upcoming training courses so that they better reflect the care as stated in the homes Statement of Purpose. As a result, the registered manager has a good understanding of the strengths of the home and have clear plans in place to address areas of identified development.

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Findings from the inspection

The registered manager is working with the local authority to establish a learning pathway for staff to ensure that they have the skills and training needed to meet the needs of all the children they are registered to provide care for. This work is still in its infancy and training has not been fully embedded into practice. The impact of this is minimised as no new children have moved into the home since the last inspection. Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/12/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 11/11/2024 Full Good 19/03/2024 Full Good 01/03/2023 Full Good Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 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, 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 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 promotes their welfare. 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 staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of 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

In particular, the registered person must only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that staff have sufficient skills, training and experience so that the home can respond effectively to the child's assessed needs and deliver care as described in the homes Statement of Purpose

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Requirement Due date

This requirement has been restated 15 May 2026 Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Isle of Wight Council

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, High Street, NEWPORT, Isle of Wight PO30 1UD

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Inspector

Glen Strowbridge, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children's home: SC395944 7 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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