Children's Home run by Treetops Children’s Homes in Derby

Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 1 Registered provider: Treetops Children’s Homes Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living at the home, and they contributed their views to the inspection. During this inspection period, one child moved into the home, and no children moved out.

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Information about this children’s home

The acting manager has not yet applied to register with Ofsted.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/10/2025 Full Good 21/10/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/10/2023 Full Good 11/10/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 3

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Summary of findings

Children are making good progress from their individual starting points when they first move into the home. Staff and children have positive relationships, which are central to the progress that children make. There has been no registered manager at the home since April 2026. The acting manager has not applied to register with Ofsted due to proposed changes to the management structure. Although leaders and managers have identified areas for improvement, it is unclear who is accountable for implementing these actions. However, children’s care and safety remain good.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from positive and nurturing relationships with staff. They say they feel listened to, supported and safe. Staff understand children’s individual needs and respond appropriately. They ensure that children’s wishes and feelings are sought and used to inform their care. When children’s wishes cannot be acted on, staff help them to understand the reasons for these decisions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children with their education and help them to achieve their aspirations. One child has completed their GCSEs and secured a place at college. Staff also support children to explore future career options and help them identify the steps needed to achieve their goals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to develop independence skills that are appropriate to their age and abilities. This includes support with driving lessons, cooking, budgeting, personal care, employment and managing appointments. One child has been supported to secure part- time employment. In preparation for moving on from the home, staff ensure that children’s memories of their time living in the home are preserved. This includes creating photo memory books. Staff understand the importance of ensuring that children experience positive endings and are preparing thoughtful and personalised leaving presents for those moving on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to maintain meaningful relationships with the people who are important to them. Staff supported one child to attend a family wedding while they were subject to a court order restricting their liberty.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children with a varied programme of shared and individual activities that reflect their interests. Staff recognise children’s achievements and celebrate their progress. Staff have arranged for 2 children to go on holiday abroad, based on their individual preferences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s bedrooms are personalised and reflect their identities and preferences. Communal areas are mostly clean and tidy and are well furnished to reflect a family home environment. However, some areas require attention. Mould is present in the Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 4 bathroom, the garden has not been consistently maintained, and one child has had no blinds or curtains for 2 weeks. This has been acknowledged by leaders and managers, and there are plans in place to address this issue.

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

Staff have a good understanding of children’s needs, risks and vulnerabilities and respond to them appropriately in line with individualised plans. Children can identify staff members they would speak to if they have any worries. They know how to make complaints and feel confident about raising concerns with staff.

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

Risk assessments are individualised and are regularly updated following significant incidents. However, they do not currently follow a consistent format, which could cause confusion for staff. Leaders and managers have identified this issue and have plans in place to address it. For children who have known risks online, staff ensure that regular mobile phone checks are carried out.

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

Effective support was provided to one child to enable their deprivation of liberty order to be discharged. Staff consistently reviewed the child’s progress and implemented a reduction plan in consultation with the local authority. There has been a significant reduction in self-harm and missing-from-home incidents for this child, despite them having increased levels of independence. No children have been missing from home during this inspection period.

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

Restraints are used infrequently and only as a last resort to ensure children’s safety. However, neither the child nor the staff member involved in the intervention is consistently spoken to within the required timescales. Additionally, several incidents lack oversight from a manager or responsible individual. This reduces independent scrutiny of incidents and could result in shortfalls in practice being overlooked.

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

Staff respond sensitively and empathetically to children during times of distress. They support children to develop emotional regulation skills and take effective action when children engage in self-harming behaviour. This includes ensuring that appropriate advice and medical attention are sought when needed. One child’s personal toiletries are managed by staff to reduce risk. However, other items that could pose a risk to the child remain accessible in the shared bathroom. The manager has acknowledged this risk; however, actions to reduce it are not yet embedded.

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

The current management arrangements are unstable. When the registered manager ceased to operate in the home, Ofsted was not notified. The current acting manager has not applied to register with Ofsted within regulatory timescales due to further proposed changes to the management of the home. This does not promote consistency of care or stability for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 5 Leaders and managers have identified several areas for improvement; however, the plans to address these are not robust. There is a lack of accountability in the leadership team, resulting in some identified actions not being completed or reviewed. During the absence of a registered manager, the responsible individual has not maintained sufficient oversight of improvement plans.

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

Staff report that challenges in the management structure have affected their experience of working in the home. Leaders and managers have not consistently provided staff with professional supervision or appraisals, which has, at times, left staff feeling unsupported. However, staff morale is improving. Staff feel supported by the current management team, including senior members of staff. Leaders and managers recognise that morale in the team has been low and have made efforts to support staff wellbeing.

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

Several incident reports lack management oversight. This limits scrutiny of the care provided to children and may result in missed opportunities to improve practice. Where management oversight is evident in records, it is thorough and evaluative.

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

A few key documents have not been regularly updated, including the statement of purpose and the children’s guide. One professional commented that the outdated statement or purpose resulted in a delay in communicating with the home.

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

Monitoring and review systems are not being used effectively. A quality of care review report has not been produced since April 2025. Consequently, there has been limited assessment of the effectiveness of children’s care. This reduces leaders’ and managers’ understanding of children’s experiences and outcomes, as well as their ability to identify areas for improvement. Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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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)(a)(b)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

the leadership and management structure is clear to managers and staff in order to improve accountability;

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Requirement Due date

the appointed manager applies to register with Ofsted;

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Requirement Due date

the allocation of tasks within the leadership and management structure is clear and that the completion of tasks is regularly reviewed; 23 September 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 7 staff have access to consistent supervision and that any shortfalls in practice are addressed in a timely manner to improve the quality of care provided to children;

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Requirement Due date

the statement of purpose and children’s guide are regularly reviewed and updated. The statement of purpose must be shared with Ofsted following review;

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Requirement Due date

consistent management oversight of incidents is completed in a timely manner and includes an evaluation of the quality of care provided to children;

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Requirement Due date

monitoring and review systems are robust and used effectively.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(vii)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

maintenance issues in the home are addressed in a timely manner. This includes ensuring that the bathroom is free from mould;

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Requirement Due date

all children’s bedrooms have window coverings to promote good sleep hygiene while taking into account any self-harm risks; 7 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 8 items that are identified as presenting a risk for children are not accessible to them.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 7 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months. 7 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 9 In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must give notice in writing to HMCI, as soon as it is reasonably practicable to do so, if any of the following events take place or are expected by the registered person to take place—

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Requirement Due date

a person other than the registered person carries on or manages the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

person ceases to carry on or manage the home. (Regulation 49 (a)(b)) 7 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 10

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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: 2660783 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Treetops Children’s Homes

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 71 to 75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9JQ

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Inspectors

Siobhan Holmes, Social Care Inspector Tazim Akhtar, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2660783 12 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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