Children's Home run by Phoenix Children’s Homes Limited in Devon

Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 1 SC403234

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Registered provider: Phoenix Children’s Homes Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider and offers care for up to three children who experience emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since September 2018.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/04/2025 Full Good 12/06/2024 Full Good 28/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 10/01/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 3

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Summary of findings

The children are happy and content. They have made steady progress from their starting points. Since the last inspection, three children have lived in the home. One child has moved out of the home and staff have supported another child to move in.

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Summary of findings

The manager demonstrates a genuine commitment to the children and provides good support for staff, who say they enjoy their roles. External professionals speak highly of the home and the care and support provided to the children. Both children spent time with the inspectors and shared their views.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff listen to children, invest time in them and know them well. Both children have been supported to develop a sense of belonging. One child has lived at the home for two years and is making good progress in many aspects of their lives. Another child has lived in the home for a few months, and staff are supporting them to develop their independence skills. The child who moved out of the home passed their driving test, has maintained a full-time job and is now living independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has achieved 100% attendance at school. The child expressed that they are unhappy at the school because they would like to attend a mainstream provision. Staff are liaising with professionals to explore options. Another child is preparing for their GCSE exams. Staff have sourced a tutor who visits twice per week to help the child with their learning and exam preparation. Staff encourage the child to engage with the tutor, but they struggle with this. However, they do complete online work independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff meet the cultural needs of children in a way that is sensitive and responsive to their identity and family history. Staff take one child to have their hair done at a shop that specialises in specific hair textures. This helps promote the child’s self-esteem and sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of children spending quality time with their family. Staff work proactively with parents and ensure that meaningful and safe family time takes place, which promotes children’s identity and emotional wellbeing. Staff support children’s friendships by inviting their friends to the home for tea and allowing them to have sleepovers at their friend’s houses.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move out of the home, staff provide emotional and practical support to them and share their views and wishes with professionals. Staff welcome children into the home sensitively, meeting with them and inviting them to the home to prepare them for their move in. Staff consult with children about the prospect of new children moving into the home, and consideration is given to their collective needs. Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 4 Staff are struggling to consistently engage one child in their daily routine. They are spending extended periods isolated in their bedroom, and this has impacted their ability to build relationships with staff. The child’s bedroom is untidy and poorly presented. Staff have ordered new furniture for the child, but it has not been assembled. Managers and staff have devised strategies to support the child. However, they have not been fully implemented.

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

Staff respond appropriately to risks and concerns about children’s safety. For example, when a child went missing, staff took prompt and effective action. They spoke with the child, their family members and relevant professionals, and undertook searches to support the child’s safe return. The staff were professionally curious when trying to ascertain the child’s whereabouts on their return. In response to incidents involving another child, staff use well-developed and effective strategies to reduce risk and support the child.

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

Children are supported to learn from incidents and to manage their feelings safely. Staff talk to the children about risk in order to educate them on topics such as healthy relationships, going missing from care and substance misuse. Referrals have been made to ensure specialist support is available for one child to enhance their understanding of these risks. Staff’s proactive approach and collaborative relationships with professionals help to further protect children.

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

The manager and staff understand the risks the internet may pose for children. The home has strategies in place to keep children safe, while ensuring that children are supported to partake in age-appropriate online activities. Staff support children to develop online safety and independence skills.

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

Staff are confident about the procedures for responding to safeguarding concerns. Where there have been concerns relating to staff, leaders have taken them seriously and investigated. Leaders and managers liaise with relevant professionals and agencies to ensure that concerns are handled quickly. Children are supported to understand actions taken by leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to ensuring that the children receive good care and support. He knows the children well, has positive relationships with them and works hard to ensure that each child receives individualised care. The manager is a strong advocate for the children. When other professionals are perceived to fall short of their duties towards the children, the manager escalates his concerns influencing positive change.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides a supportive environment for staff through effective supervision, training and team meetings. Supervisions take place regularly and there is a strong focus on staff wellbeing, safeguarding and the overall care and progress for children. Team Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 5 meetings and reflective practice sessions provide staff with a supportive and safe environment to share their views and identify key learning from incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the home’s strengths and areas of development and can identify clear areas of focus to improve the care and support for children. He understands the progress children make and talks about them with pride. The manager and staff have high aspirations for children and are committed to preparing them for their futures.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Comprehensive quality of care reviews are completed by the manager. These include feedback from parents and professionals. However, the manager does not seek feedback from children about their experiences and the quality of care they receive from staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professional feedback is complimentary about the manager and staff. They believe that children have made good progress from their starting points due to the care and support from staff. One social worker said, ‘All the staff at the home are amazing with my child; they understand and meet their needs, and my child tells me that she loves it at the home.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 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 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

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably;

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Requirement Due date

make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that children have consistent routine and boundaries that enable them to participate in the daily life of the home and their education.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person should ensure that children are helped to maintain a clean and tidy bedroom and that they are provided with adequate furniture to store their personal belongings. 15 June 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 7 (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(vi)(ix) (2)(b)(vii)(ix)(c)(i)(ii))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the quality of care review includes the views and feedback from children and professionals about the home and the care provided. (‘Guide to Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2).

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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: SC403234 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Phoenix Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Support Hub, Unit 5, Chinon Court, Lower Moor Way, Tiverton, Devon EX16 6SS

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Inspectors:

Carly Parry, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Darren Wickens, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC403234 9 regulates and inspects 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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