Children's Home run by Glan-Life Children’s Services Ltd in Herefordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 1 Registered provider: Glan-Life Children’s Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to 2 children with social and emotional difficulties. The home was registered with Ofsted in April 2025.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The current manager was registered in February 2026.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 16 September 2025

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/09/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 3

p.2

Summary of findings

Children benefit from living in a nurturing and well-managed home where they feel safe, listened to and supported. Staff understand children’s needs, behaviours and associated risks, and use clear routines, boundaries and individualised support plans to provide consistent, attuned care. Children are making progress and have developed trusting relationships with managers and staff, who advocate effectively on their behalf.

p.3

Summary of findings

Professionals and parents provided positive feedback about communication, behaviour management and the progress children have made. Children and staff are supported by a calm, conscientious manager who has a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and the areas requiring further development.

p.3

Summary of findings

Since the previous inspection, there have been no new admissions to the home. At the time of this visit, 2 children were living in the home, and one child spoke with the inspector.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming, suitably furnished and comfortable, mirroring a family home. Children’s bedrooms reflect their interests and personalities, and this means that children have a strong sense of belonging.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive excellent care from a motivated and committed staff team. Staff know children well and are attuned to each child’s needs. Relationships between staff and children are warm and affectionate. Staff are continually curious and are supported by the manager to reflect on how they can continue to help children grow in all areas of their development. This helps children to build and maintain trusting relationships and feel relaxed in their home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff have been focused on children’s engagement with education. As a result, there have been improvements with children’s engagement and learning. One child who struggled to engage with education has been supported to explore a number of education provisions and is now accessing one of them, which is supporting them to work towards their aspirations. The manager’s and staff’s partnership work with professionals has supported the child to develop a more positive attitude to engaging with education.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are managed well, and staff provide reassurance and encouragement to support children when they are reluctant to attend medical appointments. Managers and staff work effectively with external agencies to ensure children’s health needs are met. The manager has also advocated well for children to access specialist services that promote both their physical and emotional wellbeing. This Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 4 has contributed to one child accessing art therapy to support them to begin to understand and manage their emotions . As a result, this child is being supported to develop healthier coping strategies and access help to express their feelings in a safe and supported way.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to access a wide range of in-house and community-based activities, and children are encouraged to develop their own interests and hobbies. One child is supported with their interest in bicycles, which includes both riding them and taking them apart to rebuild. Another child said that staff had encouraged them to return to horse riding, an activity they had previously stepped away from but now enjoy taking part in regularly. Taking part in this varied range of activities has enabled children to build confidence, develop new skills and experience new opportunities, some of which they now enjoy engaging in on a regular basis.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with their family members and other people who are important to them. Their social workers have confirmed that children are involved in decisions made about these arrangements, which ensures that their wishes and feelings shape how contact is planned. This approach helps children feel listened to and strengthens their relationships with significant people in their lives.

p.4

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

Managers and staff have a thorough understanding of children’s needs, behaviours and potential risks. Children’s risk assessments are comprehensive and kept up to date. Detailed support plans, which are regularly reviewed, provide staff with clear guidance and strategies to support children effectively. The manager’s oversight is robust and ensures that staff consistently have up-to-date information and guidance to inform their practice.

p.4

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

There have been no significant safeguarding or missing-from-home incidents. However, staff are clear about their responsibilities to protect children. Staff spoke about the actions they would take if a child went missing or if they were concerned about a child’s safety. One child said that they feel safe living at the home and understood why staff followed them when they left the home without permission. Staff responses are consistent with the missing-from-home protocols and are focused on keeping children safe.

p.4

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

Children benefit from a committed and nurturing manager and staff team, who ensure they receive clear and consistent expectations, routines and boundaries. As a result, children know what is expected of them and feel safe and supported in their home. Because children feel safe and secure, they are confident to raise concerns about issues they are unhappy about. One complaint has been raised by a child; they received an appropriate and timely response from managers, with concerns shared with the relevant professionals. The home’s management of this complaint helps children feel listened to and increases their sense of safety within their home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 5 There has been one incident when a brief physical restraint was used by staff. This was used as a last resort to keep the child, others and property safe. There was good management oversight of the incident, which evaluated the relevance and effectiveness

p.4

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

of its use. Records included the required staff debriefs, the child’s voice and their views about the incident.

p.5

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

The registered manager responds appropriately when allegations are made about the conduct of staff. Appropriate action is taken to promote children’s safety, including timely information-sharing with other professionals and ensuring that all relevant protocols are followed so that safe practices are consistently maintained.

p.5

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

In respect of the premises, managers and staff demonstrate a clear understanding of their responsibilities in maintaining a safe environment, and the home was found to be well maintained and free from hazards, overall. However, one aspect of the fire risk assessment had not been adhered to, raising a concern about practice that prevents the potential risk of fire from being consistently mitigated. This area was addressed and cleared during the inspection.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a calm and conscientious manager who understands her role. She has a clear vision for the home and has high expectations for both children and staff. She is supported by an experienced responsible individual.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has built positive relationships with the children and is consistently present in the home. This increases her ability to ensure that children receive care that is tailored to their individual needs and enables both the manager and staff to advocate effectively on children’s behalf. She promotes nurturing care and reflective practice and is focused on her team using learning to implement strategies that contribute to positive change in children’s lives.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff said they enjoyed working in the home and described supportive relationships within the team. They reported feeling supported by managers and said that their views and opinions are taken into consideration in respect of developments in the home. As a result, staff feel valued and continue to develop their practice to provide informed, attuned care that meets children’s individual needs and supports their progress.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has developed comprehensive monitoring systems to review the quality of care that children receive. Managers complete regular audits to scrutinise the performance of the home and children’s outcomes. The manager has used information obtained through oversight to introduce further tracking and monitoring systems, which are currently being embedded. In addition, managers make effective use of the home’s development plans to support continuous improvement of the service. The home’s regulation 45 report was found to contribute to the review of the quality of care; however, the report submitted to Ofsted does not contain all the required information. Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 6 Feedback from social workers and parents is extremely positive in terms of communication and the progress that children have made since living at the home. Professionals are complimentary about the home’s management of behaviours

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

connected to children’s complex needs. One social worker was very positive about the care their child receives and commented that managers and staff had supported the local authority to gain a better understanding of their child’s needs. Another social worker commented on the relaxed, family feel of the home and the close relationships staff share with their child, stating that it is clear that staff are proud of the progress the child has made. As a result of these shared, positive relationships, professionals have confidence in the home’s ability to meet children’s needs and support their continued progress. Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 7

p.6

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.

p.7

Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

p.7

Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home. (Regulation 25 (1)(a))

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that the fire safety arrangements set out in the home’s fire risk assessment are implemented and maintained to ensure the home is free from avoidable fire risks. 25 September

p.7

Recommendation

 The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. Reviews should be underpinned by the quality standards as described in regulations 5 to 14. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

p.7

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: 2827631 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Glan-Life Children’s Services Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Bulls Yard, Glanmeheli, Ceri, Y Drenewydd SY16 4LN

p.8

Inspector

Sharon Douglas, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2827631 9 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9