Children's Home run by Springfield Road Children’s Homes Ltd in East Sussex

Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 1 SC412296 Registered provider: Springfield Road Children’s Homes Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and run by a private organisation. It provides care for up to 4 children who may have social, emotional and mental health difficulties. There were 4 children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2025.

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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

Date of last inspection: 10 December 2025

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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: SC412296 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/12/2025 Full Good 11/12/2024 Full Good 12/03/2024 Full Good 28/09/2022 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 3

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Summary of findings

Children experience warm, nurturing and family-centred care where relationships are at the heart of their lives. Staff go to considerable lengths to help children build and sustain family relationships, friendships and wider networks that give them a strong sense of belonging, identity and security. This relationship-based approach helps children to feel valued, connected and supported to make positive progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience a warm, welcoming and family-orientated environment where they feel valued, cared for and listened to. Children say they are happy living in the home and develop trusting and meaningful relationships with staff who know them well and who are genuinely invested in their wellbeing. Staff understand children’s individual experiences, behaviours and emotional needs and provide nurturing and consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to maintain the relationships that matter to them, including with family members, friends and other significant people. Staff go to considerable lengths to promote these relationships, including supporting family reunification where appropriate and helping children sustain important connections when returning home is not possible. Staff show commitment to helping children maintain relationships with their brothers and sisters and support children to develop and maintain friendships safely. These relationships provide children with a strong sense of belonging and continuity, including beyond their time at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to develop a positive sense of identity and are supported to understand and value their family, social and cultural backgrounds. They are encouraged to express their views and have a genuine influence on their day-to-day lives, including decisions about activities, meals and the running of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to engage positively with education and make progress in their learning. Creative and individualised approaches help children access learning both inside and outside the home. Children develop the confidence and skills they need to take their next steps in education and training.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive effective support to promote their physical and emotional health. Children are supported to access specialist assessments where appropriate, helping them to develop a better understanding of their own needs and to secure support that will benefit them both now and in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Professionals provide highly positive feedback about the quality of care children receive and the strength of partnership working. One social worker described the home as Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 4 ‘much more like a family home than a traditional residential setting’, highlighting the warm, nurturing environment and staff’s genuine commitment to children. Another described a child’s transition into the home as very positive, saying that staff quickly built trust, worked closely with his family and helped him to feel welcome and secure. This professional feedback reflects the positive experiences and progress seen for children during this inspection.

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

Children are helped and protected by staff who know them well and understand their individual vulnerabilities and risks. Staff recognise and respond to emerging concerns at an early stage, helping to prevent risks from escalating. Children benefit from a strong safeguarding culture in which their safety and wellbeing are central to practice. Staff respond proactively when children go missing from the home and work effectively with external agencies to identify, manage and reduce risks.

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

Children benefit from consistent and individualised approaches to managing behaviour and risk. Clear and proportionate strategies provide a safe, stable and predictable environment while helping children to develop safer ways of managing relationships and spending time in the community. Staff work creatively with professionals to reduce risk without unnecessarily restricting children’s important relationships and friendships.

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

Staff respond effectively to incidents, including when children go missing from home, and use learning from these to strengthen risk assessments and care planning. Debriefs with children and staff support reflection, while safeguarding information is shared promptly with relevant professionals. The proactive welfare check-in system is valued by children and provides reassurance and support when they are in the community, contributing to a reduction in missing-from-home episodes and wider safeguarding risks.

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

Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities, including how to raise concerns through whistleblowing procedures. Safer recruitment processes help to ensure that suitable adults are employed to care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders provide effective, child-focused leadership. During a particularly challenging period for the home, leaders and staff have demonstrated resilience, professionalism and a shared commitment to ensuring that children continue to receive good-quality care. They have maintained stability and consistency for children while supporting staff and responding thoughtfully to the changing needs of the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders demonstrate reflective and effective practice, using learning to strengthen the care provided to children. They provide effective oversight of children’s plans, risks and progress and use this to evaluate the effectiveness of care and make timely changes when needed. Leaders use professional challenge effectively to promote children’s best Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 5 interests and ensure that their needs are safely met. They work well with local authorities and partner agencies, with external professionals consistently expressing confidence in the quality of care provided.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The workforce is exceptionally stable, with no staff changes during the inspection period. Many staff have worked at the home for a considerable number of years. Staff report feeling valued, supported and well led. This stability provides children with continuity and consistency and contributes to the strong relationships they experience with staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision that provides opportunities for reflection, support and discussion about practice. However, records show that supervision does not consistently consider the experiences and progress of all children living in the home. This is mitigated by regular team meetings, which provide opportunities for staff to discuss and consider the needs and progress of each child in detail.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s records contain relevant information and are well organised. However, the home’s extensive handwritten and paper-based recording system does not enable information to be accessed and reviewed as efficiently as an electronic system would. Leaders should consider how an electronic recording system could strengthen accessibility, oversight and the long-term management of records.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders have clear ambitions for the future development and direction of the home. The review of the quality of care provides an overview of the service but does not fully meet regulatory requirements. It does not include the views of children, families, staff and external professionals or evaluate how learning from independent monitoring has informed improvement. As a result, leaders are not making full use of the evidence available to them to evaluate the quality of care and identify further improvements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Overall, leaders have successfully maintained the quality and stability of care for children through a period of significant challenge. They have remained focused on children’s needs, supported a stable and committed staff team and maintained good- quality care. Their resilience, reflective leadership and shared commitment have ensured that children continue to experience consistent, nurturing care and make positive progress. Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the regulation 45 review process delivers a more robust and comprehensive evaluation of the quality of care provided. In particular, reports should incorporate direct feedback from children, families, staff and external professionals, alongside a clear evaluation of how independent monitoring feedback has driven service improvements. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.2)  The registered person should consider implementing an electronic recording system to strengthen accessibility, oversight and the long-term management of records. A digital platform would enable case information to be accessed, monitored and reviewed far more efficiently as documentation grows, ensuring that records are preserved securely for children accessing them in the future. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.1)

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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: SC412296 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Springfield Road Children’s Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5 Cornfield Terrace, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN21 4NN

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Inspector

Jenny-ellen Scotland, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC412296 8 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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