Children's Home run by Meadows Care Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 1 Registered provider: Meadows Care 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

This home is registered to provide care for up to 4 children with complex emotional and social needs due to past trauma. There are 2 children currently living in the home and the inspector spoke with both children.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since August 2025. She is qualified and experienced. The responsible individual has been in post since 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 outstanding

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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: 1228090 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/07/2025 Full Good 05/11/2024 Full Good 26/07/2023 Full Good 12/12/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 3

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Summary of findings

The managers, clinical team and staff are skilled and knowledgeable. They consistently prioritise the wellbeing and safety of the children in their care planning and decision- making. The views of the children are paramount in all aspects of the care and support afforded to children. Children receive individualised care. As a result, they are making significant progress in various aspects of their lives such as education, independent skills, emotional regulation and keeping safe. The managers’ oversight and leadership of the home is excellent. They work in partnership with partner agencies and make timely appropriate responses to safeguarding concerns.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff work in collaboration with the clinical team. Their practice is therapeutically led and focuses on understanding children’s lived experiences, trauma and building positive relationships with them. They are consistent in spending quality time with the children, even when children are faced with complex and challenging situations. This reinforces to the children that staff see them, value them, understand them and have the patience, resilience and compassion to not give up on them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Consequently, all children are making good progress from their starting point. For example, staff have supported one child to re-engage with their learning and teachers are pleased with the child’s progress. The child now has aspirations for the future. Another child was supported to gain meaningful independence skills that have helped the child to settle in their new home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The managers, staff and the therapy team work in partnership with social workers and with children where possible before children move into the home. Professional curiosity is used before children move in. There is careful consideration of staff skills, location of the home, children already living at the home and whether the new child’s needs can be safely met. Staff strive to give children opportunities to visit the home where possible or through virtual tours. The children’s guide is shared with children, which outlines the support staff provide.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When the children move into the home, staff involve them in their care planning and discuss best ways to engage with them to build meaningful connections. The children feel empowered, and feel that they have some level of control over decisions made about their lives. One of the children took learning from this and is using this, with support from staff, to complete a guide for his new teachers to enable them to know more about him and how best to support him. The child said that because of this, he is now feeling less anxious to attend his new school. Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 4 Three children have moved on from the home since the last inspection. Two of the children were moved by social workers quite quickly, one child moved into foster placement and another child moved into semi-independence placement. These decisions were made in the best interests of the children, and managers and staff ensured that the

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

children had positive experiences of moving from the home. All three children have been offered outreach therapeutic support by managers to help them settle in their new homes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The managers and staff support children to spend quality time with friends and family. One child’s face lit up as they spoke about the beautiful and special moments they recently experienced with their parent. Staff understand the importance of promoting these vital relationships, as they form part of children’s social and emotional support network.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are treated with respect and dignity, and consideration is given to their individual needs such as identity and family history, including age, disability, faith or belief, sex, gender identity, language, race and sexual orientation. For example, with consent from a child, the staff team ensured that an interpreter was present in the child’s therapy sessions. This supported the child’s emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, the managers and staff have redecorated the home. It now feels warm and welcoming and provides a lovely family environment for the children to relax and chill out after a busy day. The children are proud to show off the outcome of their hard work, as they were involved in decorating and making their bedrooms their own.

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

Safeguarding children is consistently a high priority for managers and the staff team and has continued to be managed effectively since the last inspection. Safeguarding concerns and incidents have been responded to promptly, with all required reporting completed in a timely and robust manner. Records are clearly documented, reflective and demonstrate appropriate management oversight, with proportionate safety plans implemented where necessary. The managers and staff work in close collaboration with the placing authority and relevant external professionals whenever safeguarding concerns arise. Multi-agency working is child centred, and takes into consideration the children’s wellbeing, safety and lived experience of children to make sound decisions. Through good-quality one-to-one focused work, children are supported to understand concerns, expectations and protective actions. This empowers the children to know how to keep themselves safe

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

and the reasons why some limitations are placed on their day-to-day life. The managers and staff, with support from the clinical team, maintain a strong commitment to reflective practice and organisational learning. Safeguarding incidents and near misses are reviewed carefully to identify learning points, which are shared appropriately to inform staff development and continuous improvement. This reflective Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 5 approach supports safer practice, strengthens staff confidence, and contributes to an open culture of learning, accountability and transparency. The registered manager exercises great due diligence in managing complaints and any allegations. Relevant professionals are promptly contacted, children are given a lot of reassurance and feedback is shared. The registered manager acts effectively on all recommendations from the designated officer and shares findings, recommendations and

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

action plans from any internal investigations completed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

This home is led by an inspirational leader, who embraces compassion, empathy, understanding, patience, fairness, assertiveness, an open culture and clear professional boundaries. She is equally supported by an ambitious and highly competent deputy manager. Subsequently, in the registered manager’s absence, the home continues to be consistently led and managed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Together, they role model positive relationships and parenting that filter down to their staff team. In collaboration, they relentlessly advocate for the children, which ensures that all professionals involved in the children’s care fulfil their obligations. This means that children’s holistic needs are met. All children are making measurable progress considering their starting points.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Therapeutic parenting is embedded within the manager’s and staff team’s practice. This is promoted through fortnightly reflective consultations with the clinical team, staff supervisions and appraisals and continuous training. This offers opportunities for staff to stop and consider what is working well, what is not working and what they can do differently to support the children effectively. This helps them understanding what the children are trying to communicate about their lived trauma and experiences through their behaviour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Senior managers are invested in the continued development of staff. Staff feel valued by the managers and they, in turn, invest in the children. There are clear career progression pathways within the organisation. For example, when staff attain their relevant qualifications, there are opportunities to enrol onto a future leaders’ course. This supports staff to progress to the next stage of their careers. Consequently, the home has a high staff retention. Children are receiving consistent care and support and have established positive relationships with the staff, which helps them to feel safe and secure.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has extremely good monitoring systems. She is aware of the service’s areas of strength and areas of development. External professionals say that communication is excellent, that they are kept updated about the children’s progress and that there is strong working together to ensure the best outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

No requirements or recommendations have been made at this inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 6

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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: 1228090 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Meadows Care Ltd, Egerton House, Wardle Road, Rochdale OL12 9EN

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Inspector

Rumbi Mangoma, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1228090 8 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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