Children's Home run by Evolve Therapeutic Residential Services Limited in Kent

Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 1 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Registered provider: Evolve Therapeutic Residential Services 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 was registered with Ofsted in October 2024. A private provider owns and manages this home. It provides care for up to four children who have difficulties in managing their emotions and behaviour.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager of the home registered in April 2026.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 2 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/04/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 3 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Summary of findings

Children’s progress has been inconsistent, and shortfalls in leadership and management have made it difficult to measure progress that has been made. Recording systems used do not maintain clear records.

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Summary of findings

High turnover in management and staffing teams, alongside incomplete induction and training, has led to inconsistency in care, routines and boundaries for children.

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Summary of findings

The new registered manager and new responsible individual have plans in place to make improvements in the home and speak positively about improving outcomes for children. However, these systems have not yet been in place long enough to evidence any sustained change.

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improvement to be good

Children’s progress is limited. All the children have challenges with accessing education. While some steps have been taken to challenge lack of education for children, this has not been effective. One child has made some progress and is now enrolled in and attending school. However, their attendance has recently declined.

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improvement to be good

Children’s day-to-day lives lack structure, which is amplified by the absence of education. Although staff have identified that children’s engagement in activities is limited, there has been little action to engage children in sufficient activities. One child said: ‘There’s nothing to do here, I can’t cope with staying in the house all day every day.’

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improvement to be good

Since the last full inspection, two children have moved on from the home very quickly after their moves in. Managers share that the initial information received in relation to the children’s needs was not accurate, and that learning has been taken regarding the home admissions processes. However, this has not yet been implemented into practice.

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improvement to be good

Routines and boundaries in the home are not clear or consistent. Staff find it difficult to help the children’s behaviour when they are distressed. Staff’s approaches are inconsistent and, therefore, rules in the home are not clearly defined. Staff and external professionals share similar views around this, causing confusion, frustration and instability for children.

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improvement to be good

One child is nearing moving on to semi-independent living. However, support regarding this has not been progressed in a timely way and has not been consistent. A plan for support has been identified by the registered manager. However, there has been little support to implement this with staff, meaning that this child’s progress has been delayed. Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 4 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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improvement to be good

Staff speak positively about the children and demonstrate a desire to act in their best interests. Staff have warm and supportive interactions with children. Staff hold regular discussions with children to support them in areas of their care. However, these discussions are not consistently planned. This limits how meaningful they are and makes it difficult to measure their impact or effectiveness.

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improvement to be good

Staff help children to spend time with their families and provide family members with updates regarding children’s wellbeing. This helps to promote relationships between children and those who are important to them.

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improvement to be good

The house is presented as clean and has a homely feel. There are some repairs needed however to one child’s room, which the manager is dealing with. There is also personal information about children visible in communal and other accessible areas. This doesn’t afford children with privacy, dignity and respect.

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improvement to be good

Allegations are not always appropriately managed. There have been missed opportunities to explore allegations with children and to report incidents to the local authority designated officer for consideration.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not keep clear records of incidents and allegations. Staff cannot always locate records. This has made it difficult to identify actions taken in response to these incidents, and to establish whether all incidents are being reported to Ofsted. This limits the effectiveness of regulatory oversight of the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff response to children being missing from home is inconsistent. On most occasions when children are missing from home, staff work in line with the children’s individual plans. On one occasion, when a child left the home late at night and was deemed to be at increased risk of harm, there was an unnecessary delay in reporting the child missing from home by staff. On another occasion, staff did not report a child missing from home. This was later identified by the registered manager and steps were taken to reinforce expectations with staff. Return home interviews are not routinely followed up or encouraged by staff. On occasion, staff have completed internal return home conversations. However, these appear to lack professional curiosity, and the purpose of them is unclear.

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improvement to be good

Staff lack professional curiosity around exploitation and have not asked questions when children’s behaviours have suggested they may be at risk of exploitation. One incident led to staff putting a child at risk of harm by not being curious about a package the child was helped to collect. Following the incident, appropriate actions were taken and notification to the local authority was triggered, as well as increased monitoring of the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 5 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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improvement to be good

Physical intervention is used as a last resort by staff and always with the least restrictive restraint possible. Records are clear in relation to physical interventions and highlight adequate follow-up discussions with children and staff.

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improvement to be good

The manager’s response to complaints is inconsistently effective. One complaint was not progressed due to the member of staff involved resigning. Another concern raised by a staff member lacks a management response or any follow up with the child. In contrast, the most recent complaint was appropriately followed up, with direct engagement with the child and resolution achieved with the neighbour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have not shown an ability to implement learning within the home. Since the last full inspection, very little progress has been made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There is a newly developed staff team, including a new manager and responsible individual. The differing expectations of quality across previous and current management teams has led to inconsistencies in record-keeping and practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

High staff turnover has led to an over reliance on agency workers, creating inconsistencies for staff and children. At times there have not been sufficient levels of staff suitably trained to meet the needs of the children in the home. There have been missed opportunities to learn from staff who have left the service, with exit interviews undertaken being limited. While this does appear to have improved with the arrival of the new registered manager and responsible individual, it is too soon for this to have a sustained positive effect on the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The oversight of leaders and managers has been ineffective. They have not yet implemented systems to ensure that they can track the progress of children, or to ensure that they have necessary oversight of the home. As a result, children’s progress has been limited and necessary improvements in practice have not been made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have failed to ensure that children receive care in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Most staff have not received adequate training in the therapeutic approach included in the statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff are not thoroughly inducted and do not receive adequate training when starting work in the home. This does appear to have improved under the new manager. However, a lack of effective training and guidance for staff has resulted in practice that has not supported children to make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff supervision is not happening consistently, with some newer staff members advising that they have not had supervision at all since they have begun working in the home. This is not in line with the expectations around supervision frequency, which is outlined in the home’s statement of purpose. Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 6 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have high aspirations and say that they have started to develop strategies and tools to develop the home. However, these are not yet being used in practice and, therefore, have not been tested or proved to have a positive effect on the quality of care provided to the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 7 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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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 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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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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 has sufficient staff to provide care for 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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and 29 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 8 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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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)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that all staff are trained in accordance with the model of care specified in the home’s statement of purpose.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect; and

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Requirement Due date

sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular—

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Requirement Due date

provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about current or ongoing abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the home is located;

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Requirement Due date

provide for records to be kept of an allegation of abuse or neglect, and the action taken in response. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(d)) 14 May 2026

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended 14 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 9 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(e)(i))

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development; and

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (1)(a) (4)(a)(b)) 14 May 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; and

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Requirement Due date

securely in the children’s home during the period when the child to whom the case records relate is accommodated there. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)) 14 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 10 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager should ensure that information and plans relating to the child’s history and care are up to date and kept on the child’s file.

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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

treat each child with dignity and respect;

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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

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(iii)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home environment is well maintained and promotes children’s dignity and privacy. 29 May 2026

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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: 2802269 11 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Evolve Therapeutic Residential Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Kreston Reeves Llp, Innovation House, Innovation Way, Discovery Park, Sandwich, Kent CT13 9FF

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Inspectors

Sheniz Hudaverdi, Social Care Inspector Kerry Howarth, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2802269 12 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspectors

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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