Children's Home run by Sherlock Healthcare Services Ltd in Solihull

Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 1 Registered provider: Sherlock Healthcare Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This home is operated by a private organisation. The home provides care for up to 7 children who have social and emotional difficulties. Four children were living at the home at the time of this inspection, and all of them spoke with the inspector. A dedicated manager leads the team 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/06/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/05/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/10/2023 Full Good 07/02/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 3

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers ensure that children experience carefully planned moves into the home, including in emergency situations. All children have made progress from their starting points. Positive relationships help children to feel settled, develop a sense of belonging and make progress. Managers and staff have developed a strong safeguarding culture, underpinned by reflective practice, ongoing learning and effective risk management arrangements. Leaders and managers have strengthened oversight and monitoring arrangements within the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children have moved into the home, and 2 children moved out.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have developed trusting and meaningful relationships because managers and staff know them well and invest time in them. Staff and managers create a warm, nurturing family environment where children feel reassured and supported. Children confidently seek out managers and staff for reassurance and guidance. These positive relationships help children to feel settled, develop a sense of belonging and make progress. All children were complimentary of the support and care they received from staff and managers. One child said, the manager has helped them to manage their emotions better.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff are committed to promoting children's educational achievement. Children are learning and making good progress. Children who do not attend school are supported with a variety of home-based learning and activities while managers advocate for suitable educational provisions for them. One child who has not attended education or engaged in learning for a significant period told the inspector they enjoyed home learning, they are making progress, and they are enthusiastic to return to an educational provision.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's health needs, including their mental health needs, are identified and addressed. Specialist help is made available according to the individual needs of children. Managers and staff develop effective relationships with external agencies to promote children's health and wellbeing. Children also benefit from support from the home's clinical team to ensure that their emotional health and wellbeing needs are appropriately supported. Consequently, children receive coordinated support that promotes their overall health and wellbeing, leading to progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and managers ensure that children experience carefully planned moves into the home, including in emergency situations. Managers gather information from a range of professionals and consult with children already living in the home to help inform placement decisions. Leaders do not always conduct sufficient analysis of children's Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 4 compatibility, known risks and vulnerabilities when assessing whether children can safely live together. This reduces the effectiveness of placement planning and risk management arrangements.

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

Managers and staff have developed a strong safeguarding culture, underpinned by reflective practice, ongoing learning and effective risk management arrangements. Staff are provided with clear guidance on how to safely support children. They understand children's strengths and vulnerabilities. This supports them to respond to children's risks, thereby reducing actual or potential harm to children.

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

Staff consistently use a therapeutic approach to promote positive behaviour. This has contributed to a reduction in incidents and helps children to understand risk and manage their emotions safely. On the rare occasions when children are distressed, restraint is used. The intervention is used as a last resort. Managers ensure that all incidents are thoroughly reviewed and that children and staff are given opportunities to reflect. This supports learning, improves practice and helps children develop safer coping strategies.

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

When children are missing from home, staff follow the missing-from-home protocols and take prompt action to locate them. Managers and staff work effectively with other professionals and agencies to help reduce risks. This ensures that children are protected from harm, risks are minimised and swift action supports their safe return.

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

When children raise complaints, staff and managers respond promptly, ensuring that children are listened to and kept informed throughout the process. Complaints are managed in a child-centred way, supporting children to feel heard, respected and valued. This practice promotes trust in staff and encourages children to express their views and concerns openly.

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

When children raise concerns about staff practice, managers investigate and seek to ensure that children are listened to and supported. However, on one occasion, managers delayed reporting concerns to the local authority designated officer and Ofsted. Although there was no negative impact on the child, timely consultation would have ensured external oversight at the earliest opportunity. Leaders have recognised this shortfall and the importance of sharing information. They completed a reflective review to identify learning and strengthen safeguarding practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have strengthened oversight and monitoring arrangements. An established clear culture of reflection, learning and continuous improvement contributes to improvements in the quality of care and safeguarding arrangements for children. Managers are well supported by a wider network of professionals, who work collaboratively to strengthen practice. This joined-up approach promotes effective Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 5 decision-making and reflective practice, supports staff development and helps to ensure that children receive consistent, well-coordinated care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and deputy manager provide strong and aspirational leadership. They lead a committed and cohesive staff team, setting high expectations for children and staff. This clear vision creates a positive culture within the home, where children are supported to thrive and staff are motivated to deliver high-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and senior leaders have implemented a range of monitoring and review systems, which are effective in helping them to understand the strengths and areas for development within the home. These systems support continuous improvement and enable leaders to take timely action to address any shortfalls. As a result, the home is developing and improving in a structured and consistent way.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about the support they receive from managers and senior leaders. They feel valued, well guided and confident in their roles. This contributes to a stable workforce and consistent care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals are very positive about the progress children are making. They recognise the important role that both management oversight and staff support play in achieving positive outcomes for children. Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 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 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.

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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

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the provider ensuring that when children are moving into the home, their needs and lived experiences are carefully considered and assessed alongside children already living in the home. This also includes the provider ensuring that measures to mitigate risks are clearly outlined and implemented to ensure that all children are safe and their needs will be sufficiently met. 2 August 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff report any allegation of abuse immediately to a senior manager within the home. Any allegation of harm or abuse must be addressed in line with the home's child protection policy. This specifically relates to the provider ensuring that allegations are reported to the local authority designated safeguarding officer and to Ofsted without delay. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 44, paragraph 9.17) Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 7

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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: 2630680 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Sherlock Healthcare Services Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Suite LP38724, 20-22 Wenlock Road, London N1 7GU

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Inspector

Nateisha Cardoza-Evans, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2630680 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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