Children's Home run by Unique Care Homes Support Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 1 Registered provider: Unique Care Homes Support Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private organisation. It provides care for up to 6 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2025.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 24 February 2026

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/02/2026 Full Outstanding 19/02/2025 Full Good 27/09/2023 Full Outstanding 06/02/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 3

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Summary of findings

Although children make progress from their starting points, the identified shortfalls have reduced the overall quality of care provided. Shortfalls in the safety of the children and the management of the home have resulted in an overall judgement of requires improvement to be good.

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Summary of findings

Most children have lived in the home for a significant period, fostering a strong sense of belonging. Staff actively promote the value of education, helping all children make substantial progress in their school attendance.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved into the home. Six children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. All the children were seen, and 5 children shared their views with the inspectors.

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improvement to be good

While children can identify staff as trusted adults whom they enjoy spending time with, the overall quality of care remains inconsistent. Staff responses to children who are upset or anxious are sometimes reactive and ineffective, which has led to further incidents. Furthermore, records do not always show that staff use trauma-informed approaches or demonstrate the professional curiosity needed to understand the root causes of these incidents. Consequently, opportunities to prevent recurrence are missed. Because leaders and managers do not consistently evaluate the impact of these interactions, staff are not routinely supported to reflect on or improve their approach to challenging situations.

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improvement to be good

One child who has a significant health condition has experienced meaningful health improvements while living at the home. However, the child’s plans do not clearly detail how this condition is managed. Leaders and managers have not always ensured that staff have received the required training promptly to offer the skills and knowledge needed to support the child. Although specialist training has now taken place, the delay in equipping staff with the necessary skills and knowledge had the potential to mean that staff were unable to meet the child’s particular health needs at the time.

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improvement to be good

Several areas of the home require refurbishment and improved cleanliness. Children are supported in personalising their bedrooms. However, one bedroom contains a broken wardrobe with sharp edges exposed, one bathroom floor needs replacing and multiple communal areas require deep cleaning. The children’s games room is cluttered with equipment and unusable for the children. The children enjoyed the use of a large swimming pool over the summer. However, the spacious garden lacks play equipment. Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 4 These environmental shortfalls detract from the staff’s overall efforts to create a warm and homely environment. Staff hold regular, well-attended informal meetings where children are encouraged to discuss topics that matter to them and help make decisions about their home. Staff use these opportunities to educate children about national news in an age-appropriate

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improvement to be good

Staff recognise that structure and routine are vital to children’s success in education. Several children endure long commutes to school. Staff ensure the children are well prepared, while carefully balancing their need for rest with a busy social life. This supportive approach has enabled all of the children to maintain excellent attendance.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide the children with a rich variety of activities and experiences that foster joy and personal growth. This year, every child enjoyed a memorable holiday, with trips ranging from theme park holidays to scenic walking tours in Wales. Staff adapt experiences to individual children’s interests, such as arranging a special visit to the Horse Guards barracks in London and sourcing local clubs. These new opportunities have enhanced the children’s confidence and sense of self-worth.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the value of children’s relationships with their families. They provide supportive, sensitive care that responds to the needs of both the children and their families. This commitment extends to offering guidance that helps families better understand their children’s unique needs, ensuring that family time is not only maintained but, in some cases, successfully increased. One parent said, ‘Staff are brilliant. I feel heard, and the staff are [name of child]’s second family.’

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers have not ensured the safety of the building. During the inspection, a fire door was propped open, and a gas tank was left in the children’s games room. This potentially places children and others at risk in the event of a fire.

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improvement to be good

Some communal areas are locked, restricting children’s access without a clear safety rationale for this. Overnight, staff rely on monitoring equipment to alert them if a child leaves their room. However, these practices are not regularly reviewed to ensure they remain necessary and proportionate.

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improvement to be good

The children have complex needs and receive support from a variety of different agencies. When safety concerns arise, managers act quickly to protect children. However, they do not consistently share these concerns with the children’s social workers. As a result, social workers are not given the opportunity to help plan and manage these risks.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always follow medication dispensing policies. On one occasion when a medication error occurred, staff demonstrated a lack of curiosity and oversight. They did Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 5 not investigate the cause or assess its potential impact on the child. This meant a delay in seeking medical advice for the child. Staff also did not report the incident to senior managers. Once aware, managers took appropriate action.

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improvement to be good

Some children occasionally hurt themselves to communicate distress. While leaders and managers have established some clear risk management plans to guide staff, staff do not always follow these. For example, despite a child’s risk assessment requiring room searches and the removal of unsafe materials, staff did not conduct a search after an incident, to remove items previously used for self-harm. This oversight led to a subsequent incident the following day, which required an emergency ambulance response to the home.

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improvement to be good

Children rarely go missing from the home, and staff respond quickly and appropriately if they do. However, leaders and managers do not consistently demonstrate that they request that the child’s placing authority carries out an independent return home interview. This means that opportunities to understand risks and how to keep children safer are potentially missed.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand how children struggle with their emotions and how this influences their behaviour. Staff successfully use de-escalation methods to help calm and redirect children who are struggling. Consequently, in the vast majority of situations, the staff are able to use these low-level strategies to stop situations from escalating. This, in turn, prevents the need for restrictive physical intervention.

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improvement to be good

Staff rarely implement formal consequences because they focus heavily on positive reinforcement, resulting in a far higher number of recorded positive moments than consequences. When consequences are used, these are relevant, restorative and help children to understand the impact of their actions. Staff actively guide the children to reflect on how their behaviour affects others and how they can make better choices in the future.

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

The suitably experienced manager is working toward an appropriate qualification.

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

Leaders and managers have not maintained consistently effective oversight of the home. On occasion, this has compromised their strategic decision-making. For example, when staff took a child on an overnight trip, leaders and managers showed a lack of curiosity as to how this would be managed, including decisions made regarding sleeping arrangements. Furthermore, they did not obtain the required permission from, or share the relevant risk assessment with, the child’s social worker.

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

Some risk assessments for children lack clear guidance for staff, and they are not always updated quickly to include new and emerging concerns. The lack of clear and up-to-date guidance means that staff may struggle to approach children with the required understanding and sensitivity. Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 6 Leaders and managers do not always make sure that staff document important conversations with children, nor do they consistently check whether tasks assigned to help children reflect on challenges have been completed. This runs the risk of critical information being lost and children missing out on essential support.

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

The manager has completed a quality of care review, which evaluates the children’s care effectively and demonstrates their progress. However, they have not independently gathered feedback from children, families or external professionals. This is a missed opportunity to gain a fuller understanding of the service’s strengths and areas for development.

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

Leaders and managers have not developed appropriate systems to ensure that staff complete their allocated training on time. Most staff members hold the required level 3 qualification, and staff have access to a wide range of training for their ongoing development. However, there was delay in providing some training relating to a particular health need for one child, and some staff’s core refresher courses are now overdue.

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

The children’s guide provides helpful information regarding daily routines in the home. However, it does not include the necessary contact details for children wishing to raise a complaint.

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

Professionals describe staff and managers to be organised, forward thinking, open to challenge and as people who work well in difficult situations. Staff benefit from regular supervision sessions that cover discussions about children and staff wellbeing. Staff feel highly supported by managers; this helps to create a confident environment where they can openly discuss challenges and collaboratively find solutions. Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 7

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b)(c)) 29 September 2026

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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; 13 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 8 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

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

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(c)(ii))

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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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and 27 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 9 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)(c)(f)(g)(ii)(h))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s guide helps children to understand who to raise complaints with in line with the home’s complaints procedure. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.22)  The registered person should ensure that the use of monitoring equipment is regularly reviewed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.16)  The registered person should ensure that on each occasion when a child returns after being missing from home, staff request that the responsible local authority provides an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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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: 1027158 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Unique Care Homes Support Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 4AH

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Inspectors

Lexi Mitchell, Social Care Inspector Jamie Cousins, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1027158 11 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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