Children's Home run by Central and Southern Homes Limited in Devon

Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 1 Registered provider: Central and Southern Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides long-term care for up to 2 children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Since the last full inspection, one child has moved out of the home, and one child has moved in. At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2026.

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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 outstanding

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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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/06/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 11/03/2025 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 3

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Summary of findings

Children make progress across many areas of their lives, supported by staff who help them to develop resilience, positive relationships and effective coping strategies. Despite recent incidents that have affected emotional wellbeing, staff intervention has helped to minimise the impact on children. Children benefit from strong, stable relationships with staff and a nurturing home environment.

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Summary of findings

Education is prioritised. Staff and managers successfully advocate for appropriate school placements and support children to remain engaged in learning. Positive partnerships with families help children to maintain important relationships, while staff also promote independence and provide effective preparation for transitions to supported accommodation.

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Summary of findings

The registered manager and responsible individual have driven significant improvements in the home, raising standards of care through strong leadership, high expectations and a clear focus on staff development.

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Summary of findings

The registered manager has a strong understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. Their commitment, alongside that of senior leaders, has contributed to sustained and meaningful improvements for children over the past year.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector spent time with both children who live in the home. They were observed to have positive relationships with staff, who know them well. One child commented that they like living in the home but that it has recently become more difficult due to an increase in incidents.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress while living in the home. Although progress is not always linear, children are supported to develop the skills they need to succeed in multiple areas of their lives. Staff help children to develop coping strategies and positive communication skills, which support their relationships with others. Children are supported to repair and rebuild relationships following challenges. Recent incidents in the home have affected children’s overall emotional wellbeing. However, staff intervention has helped to minimise the impact on children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is a key focus in the home. Staff have supported one child to maintain their place at their long-term school despite long travel distances and additional challenges. The manager has appropriately challenged external education professionals when the provision for children has been poor. This challenge has resulted in one child successfully securing an educational placement that they may otherwise not have received. Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 4 Children have strong and positive relationships with staff. Despite staffing changes, these relationships have been maintained. This has contributed to children’s sense of safety and belonging. The display of photos of the children throughout the home further reinforces this. Leaders and managers have renewed their focus on improving the home environment, including ensuring that items are quickly repaired or replaced following incidents, has further strengthened children’s sense of inclusion.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have positive relationships with children’s family members. One parent noted that communication is effective and that important information about their child is shared with them. Staff support, facilitate and encourage family time, helping to ensure that children maintain regular contact with the people who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop their independence. When children move on from the home to supported accommodation, staff ensure that they are ready for this transition. The registered manager’s strong understanding of supported accommodation and the expectations placed on children in these settings has significantly enhanced the quality of support provided.

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

Staff understand and respond appropriately to risks. When new risks emerge or existing risks increase, staff take prompt action to address them. Leaders and managers escalate concerns to external agencies effectively and put appropriate safety measures in place to support children. They also continue to strengthen staff’s knowledge in specific areas of safeguarding by seeking advice from specialists and by providing additional training and guidance.

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

Leaders and managers take allegations made by children seriously. Allegations are appropriately investigated and considered within the wider safeguarding context. Staff understand whistleblowing procedures and when it is appropriate to use them, which helps to strengthen the home’s safeguarding culture.

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

Boundaries for children are implemented consistently in most cases. This was an area of challenge for some staff members who have since left the home. Staff state that they can sometimes find it difficult to implement boundaries when working with children on a one-to-one basis because of concerns that doing so may escalate behaviour. Managers are aware of this and are taking steps to build staff’s confidence.

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

Physical intervention is used in the home only as a last resort. Incidents are detailed, well recorded and have clear management oversight. Children and staff are spoken to following incidents; however, conversations with staff are not always conducted in a timely manner. The manager promptly shares learning from incidents with the staff team, and this learning is further reinforced through team meetings and supervision sessions.

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

Staff respond appropriately when children go missing from the home. Staff follow children’s missing-from-home plans and contact their friends, family members and wider Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 5 social network to try and locate them. When children return to the home, important conversations are held with them. Leaders and managers respond to emerging risks arising from missing-from-home incidents by reviewing and adapting children’s plans to help prevent future occurrences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager and the responsible individual have been driving significant change in the home. Their focus on improving staff practice has resulted in a notable improvement in the quality of care provided to children. The registered manager has high expectations for children’s progress and holds staff to account if they do not support children effectively to achieve their goals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Some staff members have found the change in leadership challenging. As a result, several staff members have left the home, which has presented challenges for children and the provider. However, the staff who remain are committed to providing children with the best possible care and report feeling well supported. Staff have been provided with additional targeted support to help them better understand safeguarding processes and when action is required. They have applied this learning successfully in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Strong advocacy from the registered manager and senior leaders has been key in securing support for children. When responses from external agencies have fallen short, they have provided persistent challenge to ensure that children receive the right support. Staff now hold meaningful conversations with children to understand their views, wishes and feelings. They also support children to learn, develop and build an understanding of how to reduce certain risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager’s dedication to upskilling and improving the practice of the team is apparent across all aspects of the home. The registered manager has an excellent understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development and has clear plans in place to address these. Overall, the work and dedication demonstrated by the registered manager and senior leaders over the past year have resulted in significant improvements for the children living in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(xi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff act pre-emptively during incidents to protect children, including those who are not directly involved but may be physically and emotionally impacted by them.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that children are not permitted to enter one another’s bedrooms or cause damage to their peers’ belongings. 13 September 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that records of restraint are maintained in a way that enables the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint, identify effective practice and respond promptly to any issues or emerging trends of concern. The monitoring of emerging trends should then provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure that it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59) Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 7

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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: 2799237 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Central and Southern Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 29 Thorneycroft Lane, Downhead Park, Milton Keynes MK15 9BB

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Natalie Pink-Hines

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Inspector

Helen Cushnie, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2799237 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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