Children's Home run by Keys Child Care Limited in West Sussex

Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 1 Registered provider: Keys Child Care Ltd

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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 is a privately owned children's home that is registered to care for 4 children up to the age of 18 years. There were 3 children living at the home at the time of the inspection. The inspectors spoke to all children as part of the inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since November 2024.

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Information about this children's home

The registered manager was absent at the time of the inspection.

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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: 2692062 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/07/2025 Full Good 30/07/2024 Full Good 18/12/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 3

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Summary of findings

Staff form strong, trusting relationships with children. Staff advocate for children and this is a key strength of staff practice. When children move out of the home, staff maintain contact with them, which helps children during periods of change.

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Summary of findings

Safeguarding processes in the home are robust. Children receive targeted help and support from a wide range of specialist services to increase their safety.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers are actively involved in the children's lives and have created a supportive culture for staff working in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living at the home make progress from their starting points. Staff know the children well and invest time in them. Professionals say that children make significant progress emotionally and socially while living at the home. One child's social worker said that staff did 'incredibly well at building meaningful relationships' with the child and the child had consistent staff who they felt comfortable with.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work in line with the home's therapeutic ethos, which forms the basis for trusting relationships. Staff, leaders and managers are good advocates for children. Leaders and managers consistently challenge responsible authorities when children move on to unsuitable living arrangements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move on from the home, staff ensure that this is a planned and calm experience. Leaders and managers support children while they wait for suitable, alternative living arrangements. This minimises disruption for children and provides stability and continuity of care during times of uncertainty. Staff maintain contact with children who have left the home, where appropriate, and communicate with new carers to ensure gradual and child-centred endings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in a range of activities they enjoy. These include biking riding, fishing and golfing. One child has been supported to maintain connections at a faith-based group and attend a summer camp. Children had the opportunity to go on holiday with staff in the summer.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children are not in full-time education, they are supported to access the in-house alternative provision. This acts as a 'stepping stone' for reintegration into mainstream education. Staff are sensitive to children's needs when their engagement in education is inconsistent, particularly when they are new to the home and still settling in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to keep in touch with family and friends, when this is safe and in their best interests. Relatives say that they have been warmly welcomed to the home Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 4 and staff work with children and loved ones to strengthen relationships. However, some relatives said that communication from the home could be improved and that they would appreciate more routine and timely updates.

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

Staff understand the risks to children in their care and act promptly when there are safeguarding concerns. Risk assessments and care plans are reviewed and updated regularly and provide clear guidance for staff to follow.

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

Children living at the home benefit from the provider's model of care, which includes intervention from a multi-disciplinary team. Art and play therapists visit the home regularly and work with children and the staff team. The interventions are reviewed regularly. Staff have also been instrumental in ensuring that a multi-agency safety plan for one child is being followed consistently. This has resulted in a reduction of incidents for the child.

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

Incidents of children going missing from the home are low. When children do go missing, this is managed well. Staff follow clear and effective procedures to ensure children's swift return. They work closely with external professionals, including social workers and police to understand the reasons behind the children's behaviour. Restorative conversations after missing events have led to a reduction in missing episodes for one child.

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

Staff have meaningful discussions with children to help them feel safe and supported, and they use what children share to shape the care they provide. This approach encourages children to contribute to decisions about their lives and strengthens their confidence in being heard.

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

Staff understand children's experiences and respond in line with the home's therapeutic approach. However, boundaries are not consistently understood or implemented by staff about what is safe and acceptable for each child. Verbal abuse towards staff from children is not consistently challenged and, from observation and feedback from staff, this impacts on staff's confidence when managing the children's behaviours.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager was absent during this inspection, and a new deputy manager has been appointed since the last inspection. Leaders and managers are actively involved in children's lives, and children were observed to regularly seek out the deputy manager during the inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has recently experienced a difficult period, with children taking time to settle and several new members of staff starting to work at the home. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the registered manager and deputy have both been absent from the home at the same time, which has created further instability. Despite this, staff reported feeling well supported by leaders and managers and morale in the home is good. Staff Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 5 spoke positively about reasonable adjustments put in place to help them manage competing demands of work and study.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Admission processes for children joining the home are extensive and thorough. Before children move into the home, comprehensive assessments of the children's needs and risks are completed by leaders and managers. Additional staff training is organised by leaders and managers in response to children's emerging needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly and are used effectively as a forum for reflection, learning and discussion around staff practice and children's needs. Managers appropriately challenge staff to complete relevant training and qualifications. These approaches contribute positively to the development of staff practice, which improves outcomes for children. A new template for recording team meetings is being introduced, which will ensure that actions are captured, making it easier for leaders and managers to monitor and review progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from regular supervision, which enables them to reflect on their practice. However, records of supervision are inconsistent, with some lacking focus on children's experiences, individual needs and feedback.

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What does the children's home need to do to improve?

Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that expectations of standards of behaviour are high for all staff and children in the home. These standards should be clear and unambiguous. Children should be supported to develop understanding and empathy towards each other. Positive behaviour and relationships should be reinforced, praised and encouraged; poor behaviour should be challenged and discussed. The development of safe, stable and secure relationships with staff in the home should be central to the ethos of the home and support the development of secure attachments that, where appropriate, persist over time. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 39, paragraph 8.11)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that a timely and accurate record is made of the content of supervision sessions for adults. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.4)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they have a key role in seeking to develop the home's effective working relationships with each other relevant persons for each child, including with parents, where appropriate. These working relationships will also be key to success in delivering the care planning standard (regulation 14). ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 52, paragraph 10.3)

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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: 2692062 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Keys Child Care Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen B63 4AH

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Children's home details

Responsible individual: Michelle Callard

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Inspectors

Tina Woolley, Social Care Inspector Gemma Bullen, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2692062 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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