Keys Supported Accommodation - North East & Central

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 1 Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central

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Registered provider: Keys Supported Accommodation Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

A private provider operates this supported accommodation service. The service can accommodate up to 7 children in a shared or group living premises that are limited to accommodating only looked-after children and care leavers.

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provider

At the time of the inspection, the service provided support for 6 children aged 16 and 17 years.

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provider

Ofsted registered this service in March 2024. A new nominated individual was appointed in July 2024. The registered service manager left the service in December 2024 and was replaced in January 2025. That manager left the service in January 2026. The current manager has submitted an application to registered with Ofsted.

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provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 29 June 2026 and started that day. The inspectors were on site from 1 to 3 July 2026.

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Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will be within approximately 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Gaps in management oversight have resulted in some children being exposed to unassessed risks that negatively affect their experiences and progress. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 2 Leaders and managers do not act quickly to address maintenance issues. This means that children’s accommodation is not always welcoming or homely.

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Summary of findings

Children said that they have developed some positive relationships with staff. They recognise that staff want them to achieve their full potential and move towards independence and adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s progress is mixed. They receive a warm welcome from the caring staff team when they move into the home. A structured induction helps children to settle in and know what services they can expect to receive. However, for some children, their admissions are not consistently safe. This is because risk assessments to consider the compatibility of children to live together are not always completed before children move in. For one child, the rationale given by leaders and managers regarding the suitability of their placement was inappropriate and unacceptable.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children enjoy living at their accommodation and take pride in their personalised rooms. While the accommodation is welcoming and homely, some repairs have gone by unnoticed, despite staff carrying out weekly health and safety checks. One child’s room needs essential maintenance and repair work, and this has not been carried out. Children are not routinely provided with a lockable storage for their valuables. Holes in the lounge and office walls caused by door handles have not been repaired. The lounge fire door does not reliably close, posing a fire hazard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children have positive relationships with the staff. The staff take time to get to know and understand the children. Staff show genuine care for the children and provide a reliable point of contact. However, although the child-friendly support plans involve the children, they do not consistently reflect all of the children’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff support children to register and attend appointments with relevant health services. Discussions about children’s health do not consistently taken place, and where they have happened, these are not sustained. This makes it unclear what progress has been made in areas such as sexual health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are not in a regular education or employment routine. Staff support children to try different things by assisting with college interviews, completing training courses and helping them to overcome barriers to learning and employment. However, children’s engagement is mixed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children can identify adults who they can talk to or raise their concerns with. However, not all children feel listened to when they have raised a concern about their accommodation.

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How well children are helped and protected

Although children say that they feel safe where they live, the inconsistent safeguarding practices do not effectively protect all children. Consultation with the Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 3 relevant local authorities about children moving into the accommodation is not routine practice. This is a missed opportunity for leaders and managers to ensure all children’s safety.

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How well children are helped and protected

At the time of this inspection, children’s individual risk assessments did not consistently include all of their risks, such as the emerging risk of financial exploitation. Similarly, leaders, managers and staff were not familiar with the bail conditions for one child. This does not assure that staff have a full understanding of how to keep children and others safe.

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How well children are helped and protected

Some children have completed work around healthy relationships, online safety and knife crime. However, staff do not promptly follow through on essential follow-up work with children to reduce known risks to their safety and wellbeing. This does not help children to develop healthy boundaries and protect themselves from unsafe situations as they move towards adulthood.

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How well children are helped and protected

Although staff understand the allegations management process, the role and identity of the designated safeguarding lead (DSL) are not recognised. Consequently, the nominated individual has not been the first point of call. This could delay significant information being shared with the correct person quickly and, if left uncorrected, may delay a prompt safeguarding response.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children received a well-coordinated response when they go missing. Poor management oversight of return home interviews means that it is not clear if children have been offered them on every occasion. This does not confirm that children have spoken with someone independent to discuss why they went missing and identify any harm or risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

At the time of the inspection, the lack of rigorous management oversight has resulted in some children being exposed to unassessed risks, and there are some gaps in practice. This is despite the infrastructure in place to support leaders and managers to run the service effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The service is not consistently operating in line with its statement of purpose. For example, there is no shared understanding of the therapeutic model of practice that is referred to in the document. Information about the management of timely repairs is not consistently applied in practice, and not all children have been supported to ensure they have the appropriate facilities to store their belongings.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not consistently challenge local authorities with sufficient haste to ensure that children receive the services they need. For example, a health assessment requested by the service for a child in April 2024 has still not been received, and there is no confirmation that the request has been escalated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Not all of the documents used in the service are accurate. For example, the assessment of the location describes the property as a ground floor flat, but it is a Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 4 terraced house. It does not include the emerging risks of cannabis in the location. The agenda items in some supervision records do not consistently match the information set out in the agenda. This specifically relates to the supervision discussions with staff about professional boundaries. These shortfalls emphasise the monitoring gaps and failure to correct the errors.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Decisions by leaders and managers to significantly reduce the number of properties within the service help them to have better control and oversight. The acting manager and staff say they feel well supported by their managers. They benefit from mandatory and specific training, reflective supervision and team meetings, providing ongoing opportunities to discuss the children’s progress, share information and direct team practice. Positive feedback from professionals about the quality of communication and involvement with the service reflects their satisfaction with the provider.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers accept that service improvements are required so that children are safer and have consistently positive outcomes and experiences. As a result of this understanding, leaders and managers have already started to address the shortfalls. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 5

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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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the ‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’. The registered person 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 supported accommodation undertaking that puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

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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 supported accommodation undertaking in a way that is consistent with the ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the undertaking’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(a)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must operate in line with the organisations statement and purpose, improve the monitoring and review systems across the service to ensure that children are compatibly and safely placed, and improve the quality of records. 28 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used as supported accommodation—

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Requirement Due date

are suitable for the purposes of supported accommodation and are accessible, safe, secure and well-maintained

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Requirement Due date

comply with all relevant statutory provisions dealing with health and safety or fire safety matters. (Regulation 6 (1)(b)(vi)(x))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that any health and safety and maintenance issues raised by children are quickly acted on. 28 August 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 6 The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

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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

ensure that the location of the premises used as supported accommodation is suitable for the category or categories of supported accommodation provided, by—

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Requirement Due date

reviewing the appropriateness and suitability of the location of each of the premises used as supported accommodation (“a location assessment”), and in doing so, consulting and taking into account the views of each relevant person;

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the location risk assessment is accurate and that any changes in the location are promptly updated. (Regulation 6 (1)(2)(a)(i)) 28 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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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

keep the child’s support under review, taking into consideration the plans for support, and relevant plans, to ensure that the child’s needs continue to be met and that the child is kept safe.

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Requirement Due date

in the event that the registered person or a member of staff considers that an accommodating authority or a relevant person is failing to provide the support set out in a child’s relevant plans, make representations, or, as the case may be, enable staff to make representations, to the accommodating authority or relevant person with a view to ensuring that the child’s needs are met. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(c)(h)) 28 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The protection standard is that children are enabled to feel safe and that their needs are met.

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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

are protected from harm; 28 August 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 7 are enabled to keep themselves safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or any other harm, and act to reduce such risk.

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Requirement Due date

work collaboratively with children to help them understand how to keep safe, by offering guidance and support on how to minimise any potential risk of harm. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(f)(ii)(iii))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children’s views, wishes and feelings are considered with regard to their personal space. This specifically relates to children raising issues about their bedrooms. (‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’, page 30)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 8

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Keys Supported Accommodation Ltd

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Inspectors

Jacqueline Malcolm, Social Care Inspector Vikki Thwaites, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Keys Supported Accommodation – North East & Central 9 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 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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