Children's Home run by Impact Childcare and Education in Northumberland

Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 1 Registered provider: Impact Childcare and Education Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to 5 children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there were 5 children living in the home. The inspectors met with 3 of the children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2025.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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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: 2758201 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/08/2025 Full Good 15/01/2025 Full Good 17/09/2024 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 3

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Summary of findings

Children are well cared for and staff understand their individual needs. Children experience well-planned moves in and out of the home.

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Summary of findings

All children attend education, and each child has regular opportunities to have fun experiences. There have been no incidents of children going missing from the home, and physical interventions are only used when absolutely required to keep children and staff safe. This reflects the positive relationships between staff and children. Leaders and managers are committed to advocating for children, ensuring that they receive good care. However, the lack of systems for management oversight means staff do not always receive the direction that they need. This affects the consistency of practice and, at times, the quality of care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they are happy living in the home and that they have positive relationships with staff. Children take part in a wide range of enjoyable activities, both within the home and the wider community, including Scouts and youth groups. As a result, children build friendships outside of the home and feel part of their local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into the home, the registered manager and responsible individual plan for this with sensitivity and care. They gather detailed information and spend time with the child in familiar surroundings. Children are invited for visits, shared meals and an overnight stay before moving in. Staff complete additional training to ensure that they can offer consistent and individualised care to children. Children’s needs are at the forefront of decision-making regarding their moves into the home, including the needs of children already living in the home. Moves out of the home are equally well planned, and children are supported to maintain relationships with staff and peers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support relationships between children and their families, with parents and siblings being encouraged to visit. Staff support children to make regular phone calls and to travel to see people who are important to them. One relative said, ‘I have nothing bad to say about them, the staff are amazing. There is good communication, the house is perfect, there is nothing I would change.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop independence skills. Children have made progress in areas such as self-care, shopping, cooking and using public transport. These achievements help children feel more confident when facing new situations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff capture memories in photos and display them in children’s individual memory books. However, these books are not updated regularly, and therefore children do not Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 4 have access to their memories and experiences. This was a shortfall at the last inspection and no progress has been made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child enjoys spending time with their pet guinea pigs. These support the child’s emotional expression and engagement, which was highlighted by their therapeutic worker. Despite this, none of the staff were able to name the pets, which limits opportunities to build deeper connections with the child and engage them in meaningful work.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have meaningful conversations with children, tailored to each child’s needs. These discussions help to develop positive relationships and ensure that children feel heard. However, recently, when preferred staff have not been in the home for prolonged periods of time, one child has been left feeling isolated and too anxious to raise concerns. No alternative communication methods had been explored to ensure that the child’s views are gathered and listened to during unsettled periods.

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

Children say that they feel safe living in the home and that staff understand them well. Staff provide clear, consistent boundaries and are skilled in understanding and responding to children’s behavioural triggers. As a result, there have been no self-harm incidents, no incidents of children going missing from the home, no allegations and no complaints raised by children since the last inspection.

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

Staff use physical interventions only as a last resort. They prioritise de-escalation strategies, such as humour, distraction and reassurance. When physical intervention is used, its use is necessary to reduce risks to both children and the staff.

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

Staff are not always aware of the home’s medication systems, including processes for medication entering or leaving the home. Since the last inspection, there have been 2 medication errors, and gaps in staff’s understanding have contributed to these. Staff have been provided with additional training to develop their understanding and improve practice.

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

Staff understand the individual risks for each child and respond to their needs. However, written information in children’s plans is confusing and does not provide clear and concise guidance to staff. This reduces the usefulness of the documents and limits staff’s ability to deliver a consistent approach.

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

Staff do not have a clear understanding of what to do in the event of a fire. Not all staff have access to essential fire safety equipment. These shortfalls had not been identified by the registered manager, highlighting gaps in safety oversight.

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

When an allegation is made about a member of staff, senior leaders understand the correct procedures. However, the registered manager is not fully confident in how to Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 5 respond, and relies on senior management to take effective safeguarding action. This limits her ability to lead safeguarding practice independently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager is committed to achieving positive outcomes for children and has high expectations of the support that children should receive. She knows the children well and understands their individual needs. However, there are no clear systems in place for her to review staff practice and, therefore, the consistency and quality of care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff have completed the provider’s mandatory training alongside specific training in relation to the needs of the children. However, one staff member’s physical intervention training has lapsed. As the registered manager does not have an accurate monitoring system for training, this was not identified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Team meetings are of poor quality. They are primarily used for leaders and managers to pass on information to staff, with little opportunity for reflection or team development. This results in missed opportunities to strengthen practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff receive regular supervision sessions, but the quality is variable. Some staff supervision sessions are of good quality and allow staff to reflect on their practice and discuss their understanding of scenarios. However, other sessions lack reflection and do not focus on staff development. This inconsistency reduces the opportunity for staff development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager advocates for children, providing healthy challenge to professionals and external agencies involved in children’s care. Leaders and managers support external agencies to understand children and their needs while also providing advice and practical support to ensure that they meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff speak highly of leaders and managers. They feel listened to, supported and confident in approaching them. This reflects the positive morale and culture within the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 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

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’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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)(b)(c)(e)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the improvement of monitoring and review systems, team meetings and staff supervision.

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Requirement Due date

This also specifically relates to the management of allegations.

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Requirement Due date

This also specifically relates to ensuring that all staff have completed the provider’s mandatory training.

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Requirement Due date

This also specifically relates to ensuring that all children’s records are kept up to date. 1 September 2026

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on— 1 September 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 7 mutual respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children;

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Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (2)(a)(i)(viii)(ix)(x)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff being supported to understand the importance of life-story work, children being able to share their views with staff and staff recognising the importance of pets to children.

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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

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire; and

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Requirement Due date

make arrangements for persons working at the home to receive suitable training in fire prevention. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 1 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 8

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that medicines are administered in line with a medically approved protocol. Records must be kept of all medication. In particular, ensure that all records of medicines are accurate to provide clear oversight of medication in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)

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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: 2758201 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Impact Childcare and Education

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3-5 Brenkley Way, Blezard Business Park, Seaton Burn, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE13 6DS

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Inspectors

Karen Karlsson, Social Care Inspector (lead) Sarah McGow, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 10 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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