Children's Home run by Vcare - 24 Limited in East Riding of Yorkshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 1 Registered provider: Vcare - 24 Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and operated by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

The home can care for one child who may experience emotional and behavioural difficulties. Since the last inspection, one child has returned to their parents’ care. One child moved into the home for a short period. One child has moved in and remains living in the home. The child spoke to the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been a change of management in the home. A new manager has been appointed and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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: 4 November 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: 2538267 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/11/2025 Full Good 21/10/2024 Full Good 05/09/2023 Full Good 31/01/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 3

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Summary of findings

Children who have lived in the home have had varying experiences. One child who lived at the home for a significant period was helped to successfully move back to their parents’ care after making good progress.

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Summary of findings

The child in the home has formed positive relationships with staff and is enjoying engaging in activities daily. Support by staff and direct work has been completed around health and hygiene, which has improved the child’s self-esteem.

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Summary of findings

A child who was previously in the home moved on in an unplanned way following immediate notice being served. The manager did not follow the safety plans in place and staff felt unsupported in implementing boundaries around substance use.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff invest time building relationships with the child. The child has positive relationships with staff and feels listened to. They spend time together on activities outside of the home, which the child enjoys. The child identified that they receive consistent nurturing care because staff know their routine and preferences well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Health and hygiene are promoted with the child by staff. The child has made progress in respect of their personal care, which has had a positive impact on their self-esteem. Staff have supported the child to understand the importance of healthy routines and embed these into their daily life. Professionals and family members have recognised the progress in this area.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work effectively with family members and support family time. Staff have committed to transporting the child a significant distance to maintain relationships with people who are important to them. Staff work with parents, communicating regularly, and they have supported restoration plans effectively. One parent commented that they think there is ‘nothing they [staff] can do better. We make decisions together; it’s the best they’ve [their child] been’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The deputy manager advocates for the child’s education and has attended meetings to secure a formal education placement. In the interim period, the child has an informal timetable that staff have created with the child. This informal timetable offers structure to the child’s week. The work completed supports their future career aspirations, which means the child is invested in their learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Planning for moves in and out of the home has been inconsistent. One child who was previously in the home had a poorly planned experience of moving into and out of the home. This resulted in immediate notice being served and a same-day move for the Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 4 child. There have been internal lessons learned and exercises undertaken to improve practice in response to the shortfall in transition care planning.

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

Missing from care is managed effectively. Staff offer a high level of supervision to the child, which means that when they have been missing, there has been a prompt and robust response. The child knows that staff are effective in looking for them if they go missing. The child said, ‘There is no point running away because they always find me.’ This means that, recently, there has been a reduction in missing episodes.

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

The child identifies adults who they trust and can ask for help. The child has contributed to their plans and feels that staff understand how to help them when they are in distress. Staff have used their relationships and positive approach effectively to support and manage behaviour. When talking about the home and staff, the child said, ‘There is nothing I would change in the home, it’s pretty much perfect.’

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

Staff understand the risks for the child. Staff know the child’s vulnerabilities and complete key-work sessions about how to stay safe. Staff were unclear about plans for one child who previously lived in the home. For this child, it meant that substance use was poorly managed. The previous manager did not consistently follow the safety plan in place. There has been a lessons learned exercise completed and actions have been implemented to improve plans. This means that when another child moved into the home, staff were clear about their responsibilities and effectively managed the substance use.

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

One child had not been informed about the fire evacuation procedures and had not participated in a practice evacuation. The child’s plans identified previous concerns relating to setting fires.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There has been a change of management since the previous inspection. When the registered manager left the home, the deputy manager offered continuity of support to staff. Staff describe feeling supported by the deputy manager. Staff receive regular supervision. The quality of supervision has improved since the deputy manager has been managing the home. Staff appraisals have not been completed annually.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are confident in the whistleblowing procedure. Staff know how to share concerns regarding practice and have a good relationship with senior leaders. When staff have identified concerns, the senior leadership team have responded promptly to promote the safety of the child. Together, the responsible individual and quality assurance manager have completed lessons learned and investigations to improve practice and ensure the safety of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 5 Staff have received training relating to the needs of children. The team meetings include a reflective space for staff to think about the child and their presenting needs. Staff and managers bring research to the team meetings to increase staff knowledge about the identified needs of the child. The staff team is presently unqualified. Staff are enrolled to complete the relevant qualification, but the date for completion has passed for one staff

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The deputy manager has oversight of the home, completing regular progress reports for the child. The deputy manager recognises that the progress reports will form a key part of the child’s journey. Records are written with caring language, and the importance of this is understood by staff. The regulator has not received a copy of the quality-of-care review, impacting external scrutiny of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 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 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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to the manager’s responsibility to assess all available information in order to develop and implement plans that safeguard children effectively. These plans should provide staff with clear and consistent guidance on how to promote children’s safety and welfare. The manager must also ensure that staff complete the required qualifications within the specified timescales and that their practice is regularly reviewed and evaluated through annual appraisals. 15 June 2026

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children-

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. 15 June 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure-

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must-

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(d)) 15 June 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children(‘a quality of care review’) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

Make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority; if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home. (Regulation 45 (1) (4)(a)(b)) 15 June 2026

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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: 2538267 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 10, Halifax Way, Pocklington Industrial Estate, Pocklington, York YO42 1NP

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Inspector

Ali Owens, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2538267 9 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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