Children's Home run by Cornerways Homes in Bedford

Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 1 Registered provider: Cornerways Homes Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run home provides care for one child with emotional and social difficulties. There was one child living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2026.

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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: 2775570 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/05/2025 Full Good 10/02/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 3

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Summary of findings

The child receives thoughtful and therapeutic support from staff and has access to a therapeutic service. The staff respond therapeutically to the child. Staff have worked to engage the child and provide them with opportunities to make decisions about their care when they have been subject to legal restrictions. Staff advocate for the child persistently when there have been delays in responses from other agencies. Overall, the child receives good-quality care with effective responses to managing certain risks.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, 3 children have lived at the home. Two children have moved on. At the time of the inspection, the child living at the home was missing from home, so their views could not be gained as part of the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A child who previously lived at the home was subject to legal restrictions under a court order. This child was successfully supported in reducing restrictions. Consequently, they were able to move to a sister home with other children and to access mainstream education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager is a strong advocate for the child in addressing shortfalls in the provision of services. Professional feedback identified that the manager and staff advocate well for the child and ensure that the child’s voice is heard. When there have been difficulties with a child accessing education, the manager has purposefully planned activities to support the child’s learning and education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is helped to manage strong emotions. Staff successfully use therapeutic ways to address behaviours that challenge and as a result there have been few incidents of physical intervention. A therapeutic approach supports the manager and staff to engage thoughtfully with the child. On occasions, consultations include the child. A therapist meets with the child on a weekly basis to develop their own plan to help them keep safe. However, the manager does not have a coordinated approach to using the information form the therapist and child meetings to inform their care approaches.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming and the child’s artwork is displayed on the walls. The child’s bedroom is decorated and personalised to their tastes. The child enjoys typical childhood experiences. Staff take part in various activities and trips with the child, such as attending local clubs. Staff have encouraged the child to spend time with their friends at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help prepare the child for independent living, through key-work sessions and practical activities such as cooking and shopping. Staff empower the child to make age- appropriate decisions about their health, supporting the child in taking the steps that they have identified are needed to lead a healthy lifestyle. Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 4

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

The manager has developed clear risk management plans, which are updated on a regular basis. As a result, the child is kept safe. Staff are aware and mindful of the possible risks and take effective and swift action when concerns are identified. Staff responses to safeguarding incidents are child centred. They involve the child in decision- making and consider their wishes and feelings. Even when the child has been subject to legal measures restricting their freedom, the child is cared for in a way that empowers them to make decisions about their care. The manager and staff have been sensitive in their approach to supervising the child.

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

Risk assessments support the child to have greater freedom. A stepped approach of supervision by staff has carefully supported the child to take greater responsibility and participate in activities outside the home. The manager has evaluated risk assessments and identified where these need to be most effective in keeping the child safe. On occasions, risk management plans have not included all relevant incidents or been fully followed by staff. However, these instances are in the minority and have not caused the child harm.

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

The staff have worked well with the child to develop an understanding of their social network. This information has been used effectively to assist staff in being better able to respond to the child when they go missing. This has been shared with other agencies to guide and direct their responses.

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

The responses from staff when a child has gone missing from the home are varied. Staff have not always followed the protocol, which has meant that appropriate action has not always been taken.

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

The manager directs staff to carry out key-work sessions with the child to address issues such as substance misuse and healthy relationships. These sessions take place on a regular basis. However, staff fail to show enough professional curiosity in their discussions with the child. Key-work sessions could be better planned to respond to emerging safeguarding concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works hard and is highly committed to providing the best possible care for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is good management oversight. The manager is aware of the home’s strengths and what can be done to further improve care for the child. Management oversight of practice is evident across records. Systems are in place to track staff training, supervision and the progress of new staff. Consequently, these essential activities are kept up to date. Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 5 Staff receive regular supervision sessions. These do not have an analytical approach to addressing practice, focusing on areas for development or considering how practice could be improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home went through a difficult and unsettled period which had a negative impact on the staff and the manager. Senior leaders addressed concerns swiftly and provided additional support and oversight. Therefore, there was no impact on the child. The staff feel supported and spoke of there being good staff morale. There have been continuing challenges with retention of staff. Additional staffing pressures have arisen through providing a female-only staff team to address the wishes of a child. The staffing issues have been mitigated well by the manager and senior leaders by sharing staff resources from other sister homes rather than using agency staff. Therefore, the impact on the child has been reduced, as there is continuity of staffing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Allegations made against staff are carefully investigated by the manager and reported to the relevant authorities to ensure independent scrutiny. When necessary, appropriate action has been taken to address staff practice. Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm;

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Requirement Due date

that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(e)) 31 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 7 In particular, ensure risk assessments are fully updated, that staff adhere to risk management plans, follow missing-from-care protocols, understand their responsibilities and show awareness of all known risks relating to the child.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home works in close partnership with all those who play a role in protecting and caring for the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 10, paragraph 2.3)  The registered person should ensure that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: 2775570 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cornerways Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 34 Bancroft, Hitchin, Hertfordshire SG5 1LA

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Inspector

Daniel Sancto, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2775570 9 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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Inspector

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