Children's Home run by Homes 2 Inspire Limited in West Northamptonshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 1 Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private company. It provides care for up to 2 children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since November 2025 and is registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home. Both children contributed to the inspection.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/04/2025 Full Good 12/06/2024 Full Good 18/07/2023 Full Good 30/08/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 3

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Summary of findings

Children receive good-quality, individualised care from staff who know them well and understand their needs. As a result, children make progress from their starting points and benefit from trusting relationships with staff. Consistent routines and effective support promote children’s educational achievement, emotional wellbeing and preparation for adulthood.

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Summary of findings

Staff respond appropriately to safeguarding concerns and take prompt action to keep children safe. The registered manager maintains effective oversight of safeguarding practice and the overall quality of care. However, staff do not receive regular, reflective supervision, and records do not contain all required information.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from individualised care that reflects their assessed needs and supports their progress. Staff provide care that is tailored to each child and have detailed plans that guide them in meeting children’s needs on a day-to-day basis. Staff know the children well and use care plans effectively to provide consistent support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged and supported to maintain positive relationships with their families and with other people who are important to them. These arrangements help children sustain meaningful connections and promote their sense of identity and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively seek children’s views, wishes and feelings, taking these into account when making decisions about their care. Children are listened to and given opportunities to contribute to plans and decisions that affect their lives. This helps children to feel valued and promotes their participation in the care they receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Moves into and on from the home are well planned. When a new child moves into the home, the child in placement is involved in the process. This helps to alleviate any worries or anxieties the child may have. Children moving on from the home receive well- planned support. For example, one child benefited from a structured transition to semi- independent accommodation, which helped them to develop their independence skills ahead of the move. Staff have continued to maintain a professional relationship with the child following their transition on from the home, including attending their birthday celebration. This continued involvement demonstrates that children’s relationships with staff remain meaningful even after they leave the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work effectively to promote children’s education. For example, a child’s social worker praised the support provided by the staff team that enabled one child to return to education and remain in a mainstream school, despite previous gaps in their learning. A Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 4 headteacher also highlighted the positive partnership working between the home and school, praising the home’s commitment to helping the child return to education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Direct work with children is a particular strength of the home. Key-work sessions are planned in advance, they are interactive and tailored to children’s age, needs and experience. Staff use a range of creative and engaging resources to help children develop their understanding of important topics, including online safety. Following incidents, staff provide children with opportunities to talk about events in a supportive manner that does not blame or shame them. Staff have helped one child recognise and understand their emotions. This work, together with predictable routines and consistent support, has contributed to a significant reduction in behaviours that previously caused concern.

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

Children benefit from effective care, help and protection. Children’s safety and wellbeing are consistently at the centre of staff’s practice. Individual risk management plans are regularly updated and shared to ensure that staff are fully familiar with the risks children face and the strategies in place to keep them safe.

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

Staff take prompt and appropriate action when children go missing from home. This is in line with individual missing-from-home protocols, ensuring that return home interviews are requested and carried out. Staff speak with children to explore their reasons for going missing and identify how they can be better supported to reduce the risk of future missing-from-home incidents. This proactive approach helps children to feel well supported while promoting their safety and wellbeing.

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

Staff develop trusting relationships with children and maintain appropriate contact with individuals who are part of their friendship networks. As a result, children and their friends feel confident in contacting the staff when support is needed. This has enabled them to respond quickly and effectively to challenging situations, ensuring that children receive the support they need without delay.

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

Staff demonstrate professional curiosity and seek to understand the reasons for children’s behaviour. Through conversations with children and effective partnership working with external agencies, staff gain a better understanding of children’s experiences. However, on one occasion, an early opportunity to identify a safeguarding concern was not used effectively. When further information emerged, staff acted immediately to safeguard the child. Following the manager’s review of the incident, they shared the learning from this with the team. This helped them to understand the shortfall and strengthen practice moving forwards.

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

The manager has reviewed the location risk assessment at regular intervals. However, the manager has not consulted relevant individuals about the appropriateness of the location of the home and any risks associated with the area. Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 5 When children make complaints or allegations, these are taken seriously and responded to in line with policy without delay. Children are included in the process, and managers make sure that children know what is happening. Following investigations, staff work sensitively with the child to ensure that they feel listened to and supported. This helps children to feel valued, involved in decisions that affect them and confident that their views matter.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is experienced and qualified. She has a clear understanding of the team’s strengths and areas for development. The manager is committed to driving improvements in children’s lives. She is visible in the home, knows the children well and has warm relationships with the children. She supports the staff in helping children to make meaningful progress and achieve positive outcomes in all areas of their lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children benefit from a stable and motivated staff team. Staff said that they feel valued, respected and well supported by the manager and team. As a result, a strong core staff team remains. New staff members benefit from a detailed, robust induction plan. This is further strengthened through the delivery of bespoke training, equipping staff with the relevant skills and knowledge to provide bespoke care to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers routinely monitor the quality of the care provided to children. They make positive use of the home’s internal and external monitoring activities to support the continued development of the home. Managers seek feedback from external professionals, whose responses are positive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager maintains effective oversight of safeguarding incidents. These are reviewed to identify patterns and themes, with learning used to strengthen children’s safety plans. Actions arising from incidents are completed promptly, and concerns are appropriately escalated, supporting the review of children’s plans. Regular discussions with children provide opportunities for them to express their views and contribute to decisions about their safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular opportunities to come together and reflect on their practice through team meetings. These discussions support staff to consider how they can further meet the children’s individual needs and improve the support they provide. However, reflective discussions relating to safeguarding and children’s needs are not consistently embedded in all supervision sessions. Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 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 registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)(c)) 3 November 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should consult with and take into account the views of each relevant individual, identify any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and implement appropriate strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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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: 1275228 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Black Country House, Rounds Green Road, Oldbury B69 2DG

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kathryn Scoltock

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Inspector

Jibin Vakanil, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1275228 8 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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