Domum Care Supported Accommodation

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 1 Domum Care Supported Accommodation

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

Domum Care Supported Accommodation registered on 26 July 2024. The registered service manager registered at the same time.

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provider

This supported accommodation service provides ring-fenced shared accommodation for up to 6 children in one property, with one floating support staff member. A block- purchase agreement is in place with a London local authority. At the time of the inspection, no children were living at the accommodation.

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Inspection dates: 13 to 15 July 2026

The inspection was announced on 13 July 2026 and started on that day. The inspector was on site on 15 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

The leaders and managers are finding their feet in relation to what is expected from operating as a provider of supported accommodation.

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Summary of findings

The shortfalls in the service resulted in 8 requirements. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 2 Staff form positive relationships with children and there have been no significant incidents. However, the leaders and managers must make improvements to make the service fully compliant.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

In the last 12 months, 2 children have lived with this supported accommodation provider. One child, who is now adult, continues to live in the service.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

When children arrive, they do not have access to all the information they should have about the service. The children’s guide is well written and welcoming. However, it does not help children to know how they can make a complaint about the service or independently access advocacy services. The guide provides no information about the use of surveillance, although there are 12 cameras, including 9 inside the house.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff form positive relationships with children. A young adult talked positively about his experiences now and while he was a child. He said, ‘They are very good people. They help me with any problems.’ He also talked positively about other young people who now live in the supported accommodation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

The children have access to support sessions, and they appreciate the advice and guidance provided by the staff, for example to access education and help with immigration matters. However, staff do not complete support plans with all children, and one child did not have a plan. This was despite their complex health needs, including support with the management of medication. Another child’s support plan was general and descriptive. The plan failed to identify any specific goals that the child is supported to achieve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

The floating staff member is usually at the house for 4 hours from Monday to Friday. The on-call arrangements mean that children can access support at the other times of day, at weekend and at night.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

The physical environment is free from most hazards, but the environment is not homely. There are many directive notices displayed in communal areas. Not all areas of the home are kept clean. For example, some surfaces in the kitchen are sticky with accumulated dirt. Rubbish is intertwined with a bundle of dry grass in the garden.

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How well children are helped and protected

There have been no reported safeguarding incidents. The positive relationships between children and staff underpin children’s safety.

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How well children are helped and protected

No child has been reported missing. Although there are no written safety plans, staff know what to do should a child go missing from their home.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff’s understanding of child exploitation is limited, and staff do not have a concept of county lines. The staff complete some safeguarding training, including online Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 3 safety. Nonetheless, the range of topics are limited and do not include radicalisation, female genital mutilation or the vulnerabilities of children who experience trauma in their lives. Staff do not receive training on supporting children who are unaccompanied, despite working closely with children who are separated from parents or guardians.

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How well children are helped and protected

The staff recruitment policy includes various checks to ensure that staff are suitable to work with children. However, no overseas checks were completed for one staff member, who had lived abroad

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How well children are helped and protected

The locality risk assessment demonstrates that the area remains suitable. A neighbour provided positive feedback about living close to the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders’ and managers’ understanding of what is required to operate as a supported accommodation provider is limited. By relying on local authority pathway plans and not requiring staff to develop individual support plans, the registered service manager misses key opportunities to target support for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The service does not keep a children’s register, which means admissions and discharges are difficult to monitor. The statement of purpose is incomplete. The category of registration is not included, and the registered manager is not clear about the category that this supported accommodation service is registered for. Other required information, for example about complaints, child protection policies, medication, the use of cameras and the number of children, is not included in the statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered service manager supervises the nominated individual, who in turn, provides regular supervision to the support worker. There are no arrangements in place for the registered service manager to receive supervision or have their performance appraised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The opportunities for professional development of staff are limited. Discissions about professional development are not part of supervision meetings or the annual appraisal.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The leaders and managers do not monitor the service well enough to identify weaknesses and then to address them promptly. They do not complete the required quality support review within the required time frame. This reduces Ofsted’s oversight of the quality of support children receive and the feedback they offer the provider. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 4

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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(s) 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;

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Requirement Due date

implement recruitment practices that ensure staff are suitable to work with children and to keep them safe from harm;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place for the supervision, training and development of staff.

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Requirement Due date

This is an overarching requirement that includes weaknesses in the statement of purpose, in staff recruitment, training and supervision, and in the overall leadership and management. 12 October 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

ensure that children are encouraged and enabled to take a lead role in determining the support they receive and to 12 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 5 participate in and influence how the supported accommodation operates;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that plans for support are based on initial referral information, are meaningful and are created in full consultation with the child, taking account of relevant plans for the child;

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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

ensure a plan for support is in place to support the child to develop the resilience and skills required to transition out of supported accommodation when the child is ready to live more independently;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that children are supported to understand and manage the impact of any experience of abuse or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

Before a child arrives or upon a child’s arrival, ensure that the child is given a written guide, in an accessible format, containing information about—

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Requirement Due date

the support and accommodation provided by the supported accommodation undertaking;

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Requirement Due date

what advocacy support or services are available, how the child may access that support or those services, and any entitlement the child may have to independent advocacy;

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Requirement Due date

how to make a complaint or representation in relation to the support and accommodation provided and how any such complaint or representation will be dealt with;

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Requirement Due date

what services and facilities are available that take account of children’s needs arising as a result of cultural differences or disability;

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Requirement Due date

and which the registered person must keep under review, seeking children’s comments before revising the written guide.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 7 (2)(J)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)) 12 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 6 The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development,

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience, and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 18 (4)(a)(b)(c)) 12 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain a system for monitoring and improving the quality of support provided by the supported accommodation undertaking by completing a review (“a quality of support review”) at least once every six months, which must take into account—

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Requirement Due date

the views of children, including any feedback and complaints received;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from individual children on the impact the supported accommodation has had on the child’s life, especially regarding how well prepared the child felt for transition into supported accommodation and how well prepared the child feels for transition out of supported accommodation;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from each child’s accommodating authority, staff and any relevant persons;

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Requirement Due date

any relevant research and developments in relation to the way in which the needs of children are best met.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of support review, the registered person must produce a written report setting out the actions the registered person intends to take as a result of that quality of support review.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide a copy of the review report to the CIECSS within 28 days beginning with the day on which the report is completed, and make a copy of it available on request to each child’s accommodating authority.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 32 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2) (3)) 12 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment. 12 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used as supported accommodation—

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Requirement Due date

offer a comfortable, positive and nurturing environment, while respecting children’s need for privacy;

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Requirement Due date

are adequately maintained so as to provide a welcoming and homely environment within both individual and shared living spaces;

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Requirement Due date

only use devices for monitoring or surveillance in communal areas and then only if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purposes of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children,

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Requirement Due date

each child’s accommodating authority consents to the monitoring or surveillance,

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Requirement Due date

children are informed in advance of the intention to carry out monitoring or surveillance, and

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to each child’s need for privacy.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 6 (1) (2)(b)(vi)(vii)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the following matters in respect of the supported accommodation undertaking—

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Requirement Due date

the category or categories of supported accommodation it offers;

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Requirement Due date

the characteristics of the children for whom it is intended the supported accommodation undertaking will provide accommodation and support, including the age range, number and sex of the children;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the accommodation it provides, including how the accommodation meets the accommodation standard (see regulation 6), how the accommodation might be adapted to meet the individual needs of children it accommodates and the security arrangements in place; 12 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 8 the arrangements for and policies on protecting and promoting the mental and physical health needs of children, including medication handling, recording and safekeeping;

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Requirement Due date

details of who to contact if a person has a complaint and how that person can access the complaints procedure (see regulation 31);

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Requirement Due date

details of how a person involved in the support or protection of a child can access the supported accommodation undertaking’s child protection policies.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep records of other information relating to the supported accommodation undertaking set out in Schedule 3.

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Requirement Due date

maintain the records in Schedule 3, which may be kept in electronic form;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are accessible to children, the CIECSS and each accommodating authority;

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Requirement Due date

retain the records for at least 15 years from the date of the last entry.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)) 12 October 2026

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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: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 9

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Rachel Owusu Achaw

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Supported accommodation provider details

Email address: tahir.mirza@domumcareltd.com

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Inspector

Seka Graovac, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Domum Care Supported Accommodation 10 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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