Children's Home run by Westmont College Limited in Redbridge

Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 1 Registered provider: Westmont College Limited

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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. It provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in August 2024. The manager was registered in March 2026 and is working towards the relevant qualification.

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Information about this children’s home

Since the last inspection, one child, who had lived at the home for over a year, left and moved to a new home.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home.

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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 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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/08/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 19/06/2024 Full Good 30/01/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 3

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Summary of findings

Children receive consistent care from the staff at this home, who know them well and with whom they develop trusting relationships. Staff understand children’s needs, listen to their views and work with professionals to promote children’s safety and wellbeing. Children develop good routines, engage in tuition and maintain important relationships with family and friends. Safeguarding practice is effective, and staff use reflective practice to improve how they respond to children’s needs and risks. However, improvements to the physical environment would make the home more homely for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is relaxed and at ease in the home. Staff work proactively with professionals to develop a good understanding of children’s needs, dislikes and likes and the strategies that best support them. As a result, children form trusting relationships with staff. The child is comfortable in staff’s presence and speaks openly about their experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Neither child living at the home since the last inspection has had a school placement. The registered manager advocates for suitable education. Home tuition is in place as an interim measure. Staff encourage children to engage with their tutor while long-term plans are discussed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child living at the home to establish a healthy daily routine, including good self-care, bedtimes and the appropriate use of their electronic device. The child living at the home gets up early and is ready to start their day. Staff talk to the child about what they would like to do, so they have input in their daily plans. Activities over the summer have included swimming and cycling at the velodrome, as well as bus trips out in the local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are confident about expressing their views, which are reflected in their plans. Staff listen carefully to children about situations they find difficult and use this information to adapt the support they provide. Both children have lived on their own at the home, and because they have had no school placement, opportunities for them to spend time with other children have been limited.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to spend time with people who are important to them. Family members are made to feel welcome when they visit the home. With support from staff, one child built important family relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, safe and well maintained. However, some areas look tired and the child’s bedrooms lacks a personal touch. The garden requires attention to help to create better usable space and a more homely and welcoming environment for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 4

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

Staff understand the child’s emotional needs and vulnerabilities. They talk to the child about how to manage difficult situations and set boundaries and a predictable routine to help keep the child safe. Staff review strategies with specialist support services, such as child and adolescent mental health services, to ensure that support reflects the child’s changing needs and promotes their safety.

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

The child living at the home benefits from a high staff-to-child ratio and close supervision. This is provided by a core staff team, whose members know the child well. Staff receive training in de-escalation and safe holding techniques and use physical intervention only as a last resort. Records clearly identify the events leading up to incidents, the action taken by staff and the support provided to the child afterwards. Reflective debriefs help staff evaluate their practice and identify opportunities to reduce the likelihood of future incidents. Staff work as a team and understand the approaches that are most effective for the child.

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

Staff respond appropriately to safeguarding concerns and share information promptly with placing authorities and other safeguarding professionals. Risks for children who are at risk of exploitation are discussed in regular multi-agency meetings.

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

The registered manager works collaboratively with other professionals to plan how to keep children safe. They have an established relationship with the police. Staff understand the procedure to follow if a child goes missing from the home, and they keep the child’s network informed if there is an incident. The child currently living in the home does not go missing, and the number of incidents of concern has reduced.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are led by a registered manager, who has established a stable and consistent staff team. They understand that trusting relationships and consistency are essential to helping children settle and make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager maintains effective oversight of children’s care. They regularly review practice to identify opportunities for improvement. They encourage reflective practice and ensure that children’s plans evolve as their needs change. Children are supported to contribute to decisions about their care and future plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about the support that the registered manager provides. They engage in regular, meaningful supervision and participate in team meetings. Improved induction arrangements are in place that has helped staff development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is reflective, evaluative and includes learning following incidents, allegations and complaints. She responds positively to the independent visitor’s recommendations and shares these with the staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 5 The registered manager has not been involved in the recruitment of staff. This to date has been completed by the director, who is also the responsible individual. Although safer recruitment procedures are followed, the rationale for employing staff is not clearly evidenced. Without their direct involvement, workforce development, which will include the recruitment of a new deputy manager and reviewing leadership responsibilities in the team, is hindered.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

While staff have a foundation of knowledge through initial training, leaders recognise the need for ongoing professional development to ensure that the whole team is fully equipped to respond to children’s varied strengths and challenges. Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children live in a welcoming and homely environment. This specifically relates to ensuring children have an opportunity to personalise their bedrooms and that the garden area is a fully usable space for children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, in particular training to support staff to meet the particular needs of children they are caring for and to support staff with their professional development. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should ensure clear decisions are recorded around staff suitability for appointment to support worker and other positions. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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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: 2722575 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Westmont College Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Westmont College, 28–42 Clements Road, Ilford, Essex IG1 1BA

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Inspector

Matilda Clode, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2722575 8 regulates and inspects 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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