Children's Home run by Blue Elephant Childcare Limited in Devon

Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 1 Registered provider: Blue Elephant Childcare Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home provides care for up to 3 children with emotional and social difficulties. It is part of a local organisation that owns several homes.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, 2 children were living in the home. The inspector spoke with one child.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since September 2025 and has applied to be registered with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/08/2024 Full Good 23/10/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/08/2022 Full Good 01/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The care provided to the children living in the home is variable, which affects their day- to-day experiences. One child has made progress since living in the home and has good relationships with the staff. Another has not been supported to make sustained progress. There have been increasing concerns in respect of the child’s drug and alcohol use, which have not been effectively addressed by the manager or the staff team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Managers have identified that some of the staff are overwhelmed and struggling to connect with the children which has negatively impacted on their ability to support the children effectively. This has resulted in the children experiencing inconsistent care and staff do not proactively respond to their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One child attends an education provision on a full-time basis. Another is not in any education or training and has limited structure to their days. This has resulted in them often staying in bed until late in the day, which has impacted their overall emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Health plans for the children are unclear and contain conflicting information about their health conditions, for example, when and how medication needs reviewing, or one child’s specific diagnosis. Risk assessments and plans overall do not contain up-to-date information about children, limiting how useful they are for staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Feedback from families about care is positive in some areas, but one parent noted that communication from the home has reduced and become more inconsistent since the new manager has been in post.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children have access to therapeutic support, and they are encouraged by staff to engage with this. The focus on supporting independence for children is inconsistent and therefore has had a limited impact on one child’s outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

When children have moved on from the home in an unplanned way, this has been managed appropriately, and children have been provided with effective support to help them to settle in their new home.

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

Staff and the manager do not fully understand, or act on, the risks in the home. Staff and the manager are aware that one child smokes cannabis and cigarettes in their bedroom regularly, and it is suspected on at least one occasion in the communal areas during the night. Despite the risk of fire this poses, staff and the manager have not taken action to enhance fire safety precautions. This has resulted in children and staff being at risk of significant and serious harm. Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 4 Staff and the manager have failed to support and help one child in reducing and stopping their substance use which is in line with the child’s goals and plans. When staff have been aware of substance misuse taking place in the home, they have not consistently followed procedures outlined in children’s plans. Staff were provided with some online training on substance misuse, however, did not implement this within their

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

practice. As a result of this failure, the other child living in the home is repeatedly exposed to cannabis and alcohol use.

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

Staff are unclear how to respond to incidents or what is expected of them by the management team. Boundaries for the children are inconsistent, and some staff do not follow the plans which have been put in place to improve practice around supporting children in the home. There have been significant incidents for one child in the home. The other child has experienced and witnessed these incidents, and staff have been unable to provide the child with a safe environment to live in. Staff do not always demonstrate how they have considered this child’s location or welfare during incidents, and the manager does not explore this with staff.

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

When children go missing from home, staff respond and actively search for them and are ultimately successful in bringing them back to the home. Records of these incidents are variable. Some are detailed and outline staff actions, others are unclear about what staff have done to find the child. Leaders and managers do not identify these gaps, and as such, do not follow up potential practice concerns.

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

The manager’s understanding of risks related to online gaming is poor. This has resulted in a lack of oversight of one child’s online activity, and knowledge of who they are communicating with when they are playing certain games which are known to expose children to high risk of potential grooming.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The care provided to children is inconsistent and poorly understood. The manager does not have clear oversight of staff practice or records, and there have been ongoing concerns in respect of staff failing to follow plans. This has resulted in limited progress for the children, and serious concerns such as smoking in the home not being addressed. The manager has high expectations for the children but these are not being followed through.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager has some understanding of children’s previous experiences and how they may impact on their behaviour, however, the response to supporting and managing this behaviour is ineffective and has impacted on children’s progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff report different experiences of working in the home and are not working well together as a team which impacts on their ability to provide consistent, focused care to the children. One child commented on the impact of a change of manager, saying they do not feel they have as good a relationship as with the previous manager. Some staff say they are supported and have regular supervisions and feel they are clear on how to support children. Others say the recent change in manager has had a significantly Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 5 negative impact on the welfare of the team. They do not feel well supported and do not feel that concerns they have raised have been taken seriously or listened to. Some also say they do not understand how to respond to certain incidents and have not received training to enhance their knowledge. Senior leaders have begun to address some of these concerns, including providing specific support for staff in respect of barriers to care

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Some staff say they have reported significant concerns to the manager about the impact on one child of being exposed to cannabis use and disruptive incidents involving another child, but that they have not been listened to in a timely manner. This has resulted in one child continuing to be impacted by these risks and concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager has identified some of the strengths and weaknesses of the home and has begun to address some of these with senior leaders. However, leaders and managers have not identified some areas of significant concern. The manager does not identify inconsistencies with staff practice and this has a subsequent negative impact on children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

External professionals say the home’s staff communicate well with them. Leaders and managers appropriately challenge external providers when their responses are ineffective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Children’s views are gathered during one-to-one conversations with staff; however, the quality of these conversations is varied. Some conversations cover important and meaningful discussions. Others involve speaking to children about things which do not align with their care planning and may be confusing for them in future discussions about their future in the home. Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 6

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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

*The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(d)) 27 March 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 7 In particular, the registered person must take immediate action to ensure staff have the necessary knowledge and skills to prevent cannabis and cigarette smoking in the home. This must include support for staff to understand the associated risks and to help children cease smoking and their use of substances.

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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

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Requirement Due date

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 work as a team where appropriate;

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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 has sufficient staff to provide care for 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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff are following up-to-date and well-recorded plans, providing consistent care to children which supports them to make progress. 1 May 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 8 The registered person must also ensure that they have clear oversight of staff practice and of records.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand and manage the impact of any experience of abuse or neglect;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iv)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children’s plans and records are written in a child-focused way and include information which supports staff to understand how best to support children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also ensure that staff understand, and act in accordance with, the overall aims and outcomes that the home seeks for children. 1 May 2026

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 9

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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: 2568557 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blue Elephant Childcare Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 30, Chivenor Business Park, Barnstaple, Devon EX31 4AY

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Inspector

Helen Cushnie, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2568557 11 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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