Willow Tree Support Services

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 1 Willow Tree Support Services Registered provider: Willow Tree Support Services Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

This supported accommodation service is operated by a private provider in the south of England. They can accommodate up to 41 individuals in 7 shared premises, which are both limited and not limited to accommodating looked-after children or care leavers.

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provider

At the time of the inspection, 10 looked-after children aged 16 or 17 years were being accommodated.

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provider

The service manager registered with Ofsted in January 2025.

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provider

The nominated individual is also the director.

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provider

This full inspection was also assessing the progress of compliance notices previously issued to the provider following a monitoring visit.

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Inspection dates: 22 to 24 April 2026

The inspection was announced on 20 April 2026 and started that day. The inspectors were on site from 22 to 24 April 2026.

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Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children's experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will be within approximately 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Support for children varies greatly. Some children feel settled and supported. However, others do not benefit from adequate staff support as staff are not supported or equipped to manage some children's needs. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 2 Unplanned endings for some children have taken place following the closure of some homes where there were concerns about unauthorised visitors.

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Summary of findings

Staff spoke about feeling well supported and are now receiving regular supervision. Training for staff has improved since the monitoring visit.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers are open, reflective and cooperative. They demonstrate insight into areas requiring improvement and a willingness to act promptly on issues identified from the monitoring visit and inspection. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Several children described feeling safe and content, both in their homes and in the surrounding area. However, for some children, this has not been the case. They have lived in homes where there have been unauthorised visitors and incidents in the home and nearby vicinity, which have caused children to feel unsafe. Some children have witnessed incidents that they have found distressing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff do not always have the skills and experience to deal with incidents. Staff do not routinely take proactive steps to address children's behaviour, including managing unauthorised visitors and aggressive behaviours. Steps have been taken to address this since the monitoring visit and improvements made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Most children are suitable for supported accommodation. However, referral information is not always well considered and well understood, leading to children moving on in an unplanned way. When the service is unable to meet a child's needs, leaders and managers escalate this to the placing authority to make appropriate plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Support plans are now in place; however, they are very lengthy and not always reflective of children's needs. One staff member said that they struggled to understand the information in children's plans and therefore the support provided was not tailored or individualised.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Some staff are empathic, supportive and warm in their approach with children, which makes children feel that they matter. Some children receive inconsistent staff support and cannot identify a specific 'go-to' member of staff. Some children and professionals said that they did not always know who was working in the homes and that staff frequently moving between the homes often means that there is little consistency for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Out of 10 children, 8 are in education. For those children not in education, training or employment, they are often away or missing from the home. This means that there is little opportunity for staff to engage with them and complete meaningful individual work.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children who have recently arrived in the UK are helped to understand what is expected of them and what they should expect from others. Children are helped to access local resources and register with health, legal and banking services. However, one professional said that there were delays for a child accessing a GP appointment and felt the organisation of appointments in one specific home was weak.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Some homes are very large and not suitable for supported accommodation. They lack a warm and nurturing environment. Due to the size and layout, it is difficult for staff to monitor and oversee children and visitors, leading to increased risks. Some maintenance issues have not been addressed promptly, and fire risk assessments Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 4 have not always been reviewed. All homes were in good locations for facilities and transport links.

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How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers recruit staff safely. Appropriate monitoring systems implemented by leaders and managers ensure that all necessary information for safer recruitment is obtained and recorded. This ensures that only individuals who are safe to work with children start work with the organisation.

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How well children are helped and protected

Several significant incidents were not reported to Ofsted prior to the last visit. This limits Ofsted's ability to ensure that the provider has taken the necessary action to keep children safe. This has improved since the last visit and notifications have been made appropriately. Two members of staff have received training to support the registered service manager in making notifications.

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How well children are helped and protected

When serious incidents occur that involve allegations against staff, leaders and managers take action to ensure that children are protected. This includes suspending staff while investigations are completed. However, one incident was not reported to the local authority designated officer in a timely manner. One investigation was undertaken by an independent organisation due to a conflict of interest, and a suitable report was produced. However, a complaint about the service was not escalated to an independent person to ensure impartiality.

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How well children are helped and protected

Although a suitable IT recording system is in place, there are inconsistencies in the way that information is recorded. For example, some information is held in emails and has not been stored and recorded appropriately. The child's voice is missing from key documents, and some documents are not reviewed by the registered manager.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children's risk assessments do not consistently capture all known risks and actions. Some assessments are generic rather than tailored to the child and all are very lengthy. Staff do not always explore or follow up on information that could help them to better understand or identify emerging risks. This reduces the effectiveness of safeguarding practice and leaves children without the full protection they require.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered manager has been in post since the service was registered. The registered manager is also the nominated individual. The registered manager has not ensured full oversight and monitoring of the service due to the number of homes, children and staff. Recruitment of a replacement manager is in progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Referral and admissions processes are not always effective. Some decisions are made too quickly and do not consistently consider whether the service can meet a child's needs, manage risks sufficiently or assess whether children can live safely Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 5 with children already living in the home. This has contributed to instability, including unplanned placement endings for some children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Three deputy managers are in post, who oversee a pod of homes each. This ensures some consistency. However, one home is some distance away and has meant that the monitoring and reviewing of that home has been weak. Some other homes have experienced a high number of incidents. Consequently, the registered manager has taken steps to reduce the number of homes to ensure that a consistent service is provided for all children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered manager has not accepted any children into the service since the compliance notices were issued. The registered manager has taken a proactive approach to make improvements since the monitoring visit and has met with placing authorities on a weekly basis to review the action plan. However, they have not used the quality of support review process to evaluate and develop the service. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the 'Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including 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 supported accommodation undertaking that puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

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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 supported accommodation undertaking in a way that is consistent with the ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the undertaking's statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills appropriate for the work that they are to perform;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place to manage referrals of children to the supported accommodation undertaking and admissions of children to premises used as supported accommodation, including, where relevant, emergency referrals and admissions;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place for the supervision, training and development of staff. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(a)(c)(f)(g))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the service is operated in line with the statement of purpose and only admit children who are ready to develop further skills in preparation for adult living.

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Requirement Due date

They must ensure that they seek information about each child's circumstances, vulnerabilities and areas of need before agreeing children's placements. 1 July 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 7 The registered person must provide and implement training to ensure that staff understand the needs of children and have the skills to help children with their individual needs.

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Requirement Due date

The protection standard is that children are enabled to feel safe and that their needs are met.

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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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or any other harm, and act to reduce such risk;

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Requirement Due date

work collaboratively with other professionals and agencies, and share information where relevant to keep children safe;

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Requirement Due date

understand the relevant roles and responsibilities assigned to them by the registered person in relation to protecting children. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(f)(ii)(iv)(vi)) 1 July 2026

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Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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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 plans for support are based on initial referral information, are meaningful and are created in full consultation with the child, taking account of relevant plans for the child;

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Requirement Due date

keep the child's support under review, taking into consideration the plans for support, and relevant plans, to ensure that the child's needs continue to be met and that the child is kept safe;

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Requirement Due date

ensure a plan for support is in place to support the child to develop the resilience and skills required to transition out of supported accommodation when the child is ready to live more independently.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that an adequate level of support is available to the child to assist with the transition out of supported accommodation. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(b)(c)(k)(l)) 1 July 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 8 The registered person must notify the CIECSS and any relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child and the registered person considers that incident to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the supported accommodation undertaking or a person working for it; a child protection enquiry—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry);

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Requirement Due date

there is an incident involving the use of a measure of restraint of a child;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 27 (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)) 24 April 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain a system for monitoring and improving the quality of support provided by the supported accommodation undertaking by completing a review ("a quality of support review") at least once every six months, which must take into account—

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Requirement Due date

the views of children, including any feedback and complaints received;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from individual children on the impact the supported accommodation has had on the child's life, especially regarding how well prepared the child felt for transition into supported accommodation and how well prepared the child feels for transition out of supported accommodation;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from each child's accommodating authority, staff and any relevant persons; 1 July 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 9 any relevant research and developments in relation to the way in which the needs of children are best met.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of support review, the registered person must produce a written report setting out the actions the registered person intends to take as a result of that quality of support review.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide a copy of the review report to the CIECSS within 28 days beginning with the day on which the report is completed, and make a copy of it available on request to each child's accommodating authority. (Regulation 32 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d) (2) (3))

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Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

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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 the premises used as supported accommodation—

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Requirement Due date

provide stability and consistency of accommodation for children;

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Requirement Due date

are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child individually and all children collectively;

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Requirement Due date

are suitable for the purposes of supported accommodation and are accessible, safe, secure and well maintained;

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Requirement Due date

offer a comfortable, positive and nurturing environment, while respecting children's need for privacy;

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Requirement Due date

are adequately maintained so as to provide a welcoming and homely environment within both individual and shared living spaces;

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Requirement Due date

are designed, furnished and maintained to remove avoidable hazards which could pose a health and safety risk to children;

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Requirement Due date

comply with all relevant statutory provisions dealing with health and safety or fire safety matters. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(b)(i)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(ix)(x)) 1 July 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 10

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Recommendation

 The registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints made by or on behalf of young people. The procedure must ensure that no person who is the subject of a complaint takes any part in its consideration or investigation, except at the informal resolution stage if the registered person considers it appropriate. ('Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards', page 61)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 11

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Willow Tree Support Services Ltd

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Stanley Tapera

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Inspectors

Emily Stevens, Social Care Inspector Eileen Bultitude, Social Care Inspector Linda Bond, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Willow Tree Support Services 12 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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