Children's Home run by Keystone Staffordshire Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 1 Registered provider: Keystone Staffordshire 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 home registered on the 10 April 2024 and is owned by a private provider. It provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children were living in the home at the time of the inspection and were spoken with.

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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

Date of last inspection: 30 September 2025

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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: 2773571 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/09/2025 Full Good 24/06/2025 Full Inadequate 28/08/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 3

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Summary of findings

Children benefit from stable, nurturing and individualised care from a consistent staff team, whose members understand their needs. Staff provide structure, clear routines and good one-to-one support, helping children understand their feelings, behaviours and risks. Children make progress from their individual starting points, including improved stability, engaging in education and developing independence. Their health, wellbeing and family relationships are supported, with staff advocating and challenging other professionals when needed. Staff seek and listen to children’s views. Safeguarding concerns are appropriately managed, and learning helps to develop practice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a warm, welcoming and personalised home where their interests and preferences are recognised. Staff make sure that children develop a sense of belonging and that the home is a place where they are valued and supported.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children through transitions into the home. For example, when one child joined the home, staff supported introductory visits and helped them to build a positive relationship with the child already living at the home. This helped both children to settle and led to a positive relationship between them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand each child’s learning needs and adapt how they communicate with them. This helps children understand information relevant to them, express their views and participate in decisions about their care. Staff advocated for one child to secure a suitable college placement. When the child was not offered a place at their preferred college, staff supported to appeal the decision. They challenge barriers that prevent children from achieving their goals and receiving the services they need.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children attend education on a part-time timetable, staff provide additional support for them both in school and in the community. This helps children to remain connected to school life and have the same opportunities as their peers. Staff attend school to support the child to participate in activities such as swimming lessons and excursions, which has helped them develop confidence, maintain peer relationships and experience a sense of inclusion.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support one child to develop independence skills in preparation for moving to supported lodgings. This includes learning how to manage a budget, prepare their own meals and complete household chores. Staff provide support and guidance while allowing the child to practise these skills at a pace that is right for them. This helps the child to develop the practical skills and confidence needed for greater independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff make sure that the children’s needs are supported in all areas of their life. This includes their health needs and wellbeing needs, with specialist services accessed when Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 4 required. Staff also support the children to maintain family relationships, ensuring that they remain connected to people who are important to them.

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

The children benefit from stable care provided by a consistent staff team. Staff provide clear routines and structure, helping the children to know what to expect each day. Staff also work at the children’s pace and spend one-to-one time with them to help them understand their feelings, behaviours and risks. This consistency and individualised support provide stability and reassurance, while helping the children to develop greater understanding of themselves and make safer choices.

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

Children’s presenting risks have reduced from their starting points and they are more settled in the home. One child shared that they like living in the home and do not go missing, indicating that they trust staff to keep them safe.

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

Staff understand the children’s histories and how these experiences have influenced their presenting behaviours. The members of the staff team have monthly sessions with a clinical psychologist to reflect on practice, consider the meaning behind behaviour, and adapt their responses in line with the therapeutic approach, which supports them to provide individualised care.

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

Safeguarding processes are followed when concerns are raised. Children receive feedback to help them understand the outcome of safeguarding concerns, and restorative work is undertaken, where appropriate, to support understanding and positive relationships.

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

The impact of the care and safeguarding support provided is reflected in the children being more settled and their risks reducing. This is supported by the children’s positive views of living in the home and observations of warm and positive interactions between the children and staff. Children’s parents and professionals are positive about the care staff provide and recognise how this impacts on the progress their children make.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the children’s individual needs, risks, learning styles and future aspirations. They make decisions that support stability and consistency, including not offering care to additional children so staff can focus on the care of the children already living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The ethos of the home is reflected in the child-centred care provided by staff, with a clear focus on supporting children to make progress. Staff and the manager demonstrate a strong understanding of each child’s individual needs and respond in a flexible and proactive way to achieve positive outcomes. For example, the manager arranged for the home’s clinical staff to attend school to provide specialist advice and guidance to education professionals, increasing their understanding of the child’s needs and identifying strategies to support the child’s learning and emotional wellbeing. The Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 5 approach helped the child remain in education and demonstrates their commitment to providing individualised support that promotes positive outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager promotes a culture of reflection and continuous improvement by ensuring staff have opportunities to review practice and consider how support can be strengthened for children. Monthly team meetings with the clinical psychologist provide oversight and specialist guidance, enabling the manager and staff team to evaluate the effectiveness of current approaches and identify the changes needed to improve outcomes for children. The clinical psychologist confirmed that the members of the team are flexible and able to adjust their approach in response to each child’s individual needs, demonstrating a responsive and therapeutic approach to care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager maintains effective oversight of the quality of care through regular observation of practice, review of direct work with children and oversight of their care plans. This enables the manager to understand children’s lived experiences, identify strengths within the home and recognise areas where practice can continue to develop. The manager uses this information to respond to children’s changing needs. For example, when it was identified that one child would be moving to support lodgings, a transition plan was developed that considered the child’s individual needs, strengths and aspirations. The child was actively involved in shaping the plan, helping identify their goals and the support they needed to prepare for this transition. This ensured the plan was meaningful to the child and reflected their aspirations for the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report that the manager is approachable, supportive and encourages open communication. The manager maintains this by being available to staff, listening to their views, responding to concerns and providing guidance when needed. As a result, staff feel valued and supported to provide care that is nurturing and consistent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and parents praised the manager and staff for communicating effectively and advocating for the children’s needs. In relation to one child, a professional said that staff and managers ‘are very responsive’ to the child’s needs and ‘continually hold their welfare at the centre of their practice.’ This demonstrates that the children are well represented and that those working with them understand their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

No recommendations or requirements were raised at this inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 6

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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: 2773571 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keystone Staffordshire Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 24 Brookside Business Park, Stone, Staffordshire ST15 0RZ

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Inspector

Reshma Kodampur, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2773571 8 regulates 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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