Children's Home run by Compass Children‟s Homes Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 1 Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to 4 children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The has been no registered manager since March 2026.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

At the full inspection in April 2026, compliance notices were served under regulation 13, the leadership and management standard, and regulation 12, the help and protection standard. At a monitoring visit on 12 May 2026, the compliance notice under regulation 13 was found to be met. The compliance notice under regulation 12 was raised as a requirement. No further enforcement action was taken. Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/04/2026 Full Inadequate 16/09/2025 Full Good 28/08/2024 Full Good 26/09/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 3

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Summary of findings

Children are not yet receiving good enough help and protection, but there are no serious or widespread failures that leave them either being harmed or at risk of harm. There have been improvements in the experiences and progress of children, however, concerns remain in relation to safeguarding and managerial oversight. Children say that they are happy living in the home. Incidents for children have significantly reduced and as a result, children are safer and more settled. Children are supported and encouraged in their education and are developing age-appropriate independence skills. Staff have not always followed children’s relevant plans, and they have not always raised safeguarding concerns in a timely way. Leaders and managers have not always taken prompt action or made timely referrals to the local authority designated officer (LADO). Maintenance in the home is not carried out in a timely way.

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improvement to be good

At the time of the inspection, there were 3 children living in the home. Since the last full inspection, no children have moved in and one child has moved out. All 3 children contributed to this inspection.

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improvement to be good

There have been improvements to the home environment. A new kitchen is being fitted. Children said that they were involved in picking the kitchen and choosing the colour scheme. Several rooms have been redecorated and there are plans to continue to develop the environment.

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improvement to be good

While there have been improvements to some areas of the home, maintenance and repair tasks have not been completed in a timely way. One child did not have a working toilet in their en-suite bathroom for over a week. This was temporarily fixed but at the time of the inspection was broken again. In addition, the shower in this child’s bathroom has been broken since April 2026. This means that the child does not have any working facilities in their bathroom. Other maintenance issues, including fire doors not operating correctly and window fixtures being broken, have not been rectified. Leaders and managers have chased these issues up with the wider organisation, however, this has not been effective.

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improvement to be good

Children are settled in the home. One child has been living in the home for 4 years. Children enjoy spending time with each other. The atmosphere in the home is calm. Children spend a lot of time in the communal areas of the home. They receive attention and nurture from the staff and enjoy spending time with them.

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improvement to be good

Children have been supported to build their independence skills in a planned and structured way. One child has increased their time in the community. They are now able to safely manage their money. They also have access to the internet and a smartphone. Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 4 Another child has also increased their time in the community and has developed age- appropriate friendships. Helping children become part of the community increases their sense of belonging.

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improvement to be good

Two children have completed their secondary school education and have plans for further education. One child is not accessing the mainstream school where they are enrolled. There is significant support for the child to attend, and proactive multi-agency working.

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improvement to be good

There have been numerous allegations against staff and investigations completed into staff practice concerns. Several referrals to the LADO were not made in a timely way. Some were not made at all, and some were not made before leaders and managers had started investigating concerns. Some investigations were poorly completed. One investigation showed significant inconsistencies in staff statements. These inconsistencies were not identified before the investigation was concluded, and no further action was taken.

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improvement to be good

On another occasion, a member of staff did not raise a safeguarding concern with leaders and managers for 10 days. This was not identified by leaders and managers and therefore not addressed with the relevant member of staff to improve their safeguarding practice.

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improvement to be good

Most self-harm incidents have been managed and supported appropriately. One self- harm incident for a child was not handled in line with company expectations. The recording of this incident is not clear, and it was recorded on the wrong form. This form did not prompt a management review of the incident. Despite the child saying that they had self-harmed, staff did not check their bedroom to ensure that they did not still have the item that they had harmed with. The item that had been used to self-harm remained in the child’s room, and the child subsequently self-harmed with it again the following day. Staff did remove it after the second incident.

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improvement to be good

There has been an increase in the quality of children’s relevant plans and risk assessments. Overall, these are up to date and easy for staff to understand.

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improvement to be good

Risks for all children have reduced. There has been a sustained reduction in risk for one child. This has contributed to them having a plan to move to supported accommodation. Since the last full inspection, no children have been missing from the home and there have been no incidents of misuse of illegal substances or alcohol.

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improvement to be good

External professional feedback is largely positive. When they have provided feedback to the staff about areas to improve on, the staff have taken this advice on board. Professionals are pleased with the progress that children are making in relation to their independence skills and their social skills. Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager was dismissed from the organisation in March 2026. There is an interim manager in post.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers had not identified all the shortfalls raised at this inspection. Leaders and managers delayed decision-making in relation to LADO referrals and notifications to Ofsted while awaiting further advice from senior leaders. One allegation in relation to staff practice was not notified to Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers were not clear on the organisation’s approach to ensuring that contractors working in the home are doing so in a safe way. The interim manager was unclear whether contractors had been given important safety information before working in the home. As a result, at the time of the inspection, contractors had left sharp and dangerous items unattended in the home. For the children living in the home, this is a significant risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

While there had been some challenge to the wider organisation in relation to maintenance issues, leaders and managers have not been effective at ensuring that issues were rectified promptly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The interim manager knows the children well. They were able to talk confidently about each child’s plans and achievements. Leaders and managers work closely with the home’s therapeutic practitioner to review the progress that each child is making, and to develop plans to support children further.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff benefit from regular reflective supervision, with a focus on staff development, sharing policies and procedures and exploring safeguarding scenarios. Staff are supported to work in a consistent way, with regular team meetings and group therapeutic reflective sessions. Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 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

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 premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health;

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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)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(d)(e)) 7 September 2026

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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 children’s home that— 7 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 7 helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 7 September 2026

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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: 2660064 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Compass Community Ltd, 3 Rayns Way, Syston, Leicester LE7 1PF

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Inspector

Andrea Bounden, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2660064 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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