Children's Home run by Keys Care Limited in Sandwell

Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 1 SC374268 Registered provider: Keys Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and is part of a large national organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to 3 children, who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home. Both children were seen and spoken to by an inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a registered manager in post, who is suitably qualified and experienced.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspection started on 16 June 2026. An inspector returned on 22 July 2026 to gather additional evidence in line with Ofsted inspections and visits: deferring, pausing and gathering additional evidence policy.

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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: SC374268 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/07/2025 Full Good 18/12/2024 Full Good 20/03/2024 Full Outstanding 21/03/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 3

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Summary of findings

Children are making good progress from their starting points. Children enjoy living in the home and have positive relationships with the adults who care for them.

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Summary of findings

Children’s needs and vulnerabilities are well understood and they are effectively safeguarded. Staff demonstrate a strong understanding of how to provide safe and appropriate care, and they build warm and trusting relationships with children.

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Summary of findings

The manager and staff are dedicated to the children they care for. The manager is hands on and leads by example. The manager provides effective support and leadership to staff, resulting in a stable and confident team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know children well and provide them with nurturing and consistent care. One child who lives in the home said that they feel well cared for and kept safe. Another child, who has left the home, said, ‘They find a way of making it feel like home, and I felt like I belonged.’ As a result, children are happy at this home and make good progress from their starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to build and maintain positive relationships with people who are important to them. They communicate with family members, help arrange visits and support children effectively to have safe and positive time with friends and family. This helps children maintain important aspects of their identity and a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff work well with education professionals to find ways to overcome barriers to children attending and achieving at school. Because of this, there has been an improvement in children’s school attendance and engagement with their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported effectively to maintain good physical and emotional health. Staff ensure children attend routine appointments and access specialist support and therapeutic input as required. Staff speak to children regularly to promote healthy lifestyles and positive choices. This helps children to be healthy and thrive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in activities that they enjoy, and staff understand and support their interests. One child said, ‘They always take you out and do good activities, like Air Hop and bowling.’ Children are actively involved in decisions about their care. Staff have regular discussions with children and consult them about their day-to-day lives and important decisions. This helps children feel listened to and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, the home provides a warm, homely and welcoming environment for children. Children’s rooms are personalised, and there are photographs on display around the Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 4 home to help children to feel a sense of belonging. However, there are areas of the home that are tired and worn. Refurbishment work is planned and while there has been some delay to this work starting, work has now started on the garden area.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved into the home, and one child has moved out. Moves into the home are well planned. Careful consideration is given to children’s individual needs and whether staff have the skills and experience needed to safely care for each child. The child who moved out of the home moved at short notice due to a significant increase in risk and staff no longer being able to keep them safe. However, this child has continued to maintain contact with staff at the home, indicating the strength of the relationships they established while living here.

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

Staff are skilled at building strong and trusting relationships with children. These relationships are key to helping children feel safe, and to them becoming safer over time. Staff clearly understand children’s individual needs and vulnerabilities. They speak to children regularly about risks outside of the home and how to keep themselves safe. This supports children to form a better understanding of why there are certain boundaries in place and to make informed choices. One child said, ‘It’s a therapeutic home and they really care.’

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

Children’s risk assessments are individualised, regularly updated and provide clear guidance to staff. Staff have a strong understanding of their roles and responsibilities in keeping children safe. Managers and staff clearly understand the signs of exploitation, and they apply this knowledge to protect children. When children go missing, staff take effective and appropriate action to locate children and help them return home safely.

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

However, for one child, opportunities to manage vulnerabilities relating to internet use have been missed. Managers and staff failed to seek early intervention from the child’s support network and professionals. This led to the child and others being at potential risk of harm and criminalisation. The manager has acknowledged the need for reflection and learning from this incident to support staff development.

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

When children need support with risk-taking behaviour, such as drug or alcohol misuse, they are helped and encouraged to access specialist help. Staff have meaningful discussions with children to help them understand the risks and consequences of those choices in a non-judgemental way. This helps children to feel safe and, consequently, there has been a reduction in incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is child focused and provides strong and effective leadership. Staff describe her as being a ‘hands-on’ manager. She leads by example and sets clear Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 5 expectations through her own practice. She is a positive role model for her team. Her commitment to the children and active involvement in their daily lives helps children to develop trusting and positive relationships and promotes their sense of belonging.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff value the support they receive from the visible and approachable manager and leaders. They say that this promotes their personal and professional development and contributes to a stable and skilled team. This helps staff to provide children with continuity of care from a staff team they know well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision and team meetings are held regularly and provide a valuable forum for staff to reflect on practice. Staff feel that their views are valued and they can share learning that prioritises the needs and progress of children. The manager uses these meetings to reinforce learning and expectations and ensure that staff are well informed. A recent team meeting included discussion on contextual safeguarding. One member of staff said, ‘Children are always at the centre of everything we do.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have appropriate training and can demonstrate how these skills have helped them to support the children in their care. Management oversight is strong and reflective. Learning is taken from incidents and used to improve practice and the quality of care that children receive. However, for 2 significant incidents, managers did not clearly identify shortfalls in staff practice or ensure that learning from these was implemented robustly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers use safer recruitment processes to be confident that appropriate adults work with the children. The manager engages effectively with external professionals to promote the best outcomes for children. She challenges decisions when it is in the best interests of the child and escalates concerns appropriately. Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 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 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

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

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii)

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the children’s home is maintained to a good standard and repairs are completed without unnecessary delay. 18 September 2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that where a child makes a choice that would place them or another person at significant risk of harm, staff assist them to understand the risks and manage their risk-taking behaviour to keep themselves and others safe. This includes seeking appropriate support from professionals and others to reduce the risk. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.7)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that management reviews of incidents consistently identify lessons learned and that any learning is proactively implemented Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 7 to sustain good practice. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: SC374268 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/o Pinsent Masons Llp, The Soloist Building, 1 Lanyon Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland BT1 3LP

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Inspector

Nus Bibi, Social Care Inspector Janet Jauregui, Regional Inspection Manager Inspection report for children’s home: SC374268 9 and inspects 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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