Children's Home run by 1848 Ltd in Somerset

Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 1 Registered provider: 1848 Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is one of 3 children’s homes operated by a small private provider. It has been registered with Ofsted since 5 October 2022 and provides care for up to 2 children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children were living at the home at the time of this inspection. Both children contributed to the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since January 2026 and has 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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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious failures that mean children and young people are not protected and their welfare is not safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/06/2025 Full Good 07/08/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 19/04/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 3

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Summary of findings

Serious safeguarding failures and weak management oversight have compromised children’s safety, experiences and progress. Failure to recognise and address emerging concerns led to serious consequences for children living at the home. Risk management and safeguarding arrangements have not consistently protected children from harm.

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Summary of findings

Children benefit from positive relationships with some staff, and they are supported to engage in education and activities. However, these strengths are outweighed by serious weaknesses in safeguarding practice, oversight and leadership. Although leaders have taken action to address the concerns, it is too early to determine the impact of these changes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Shortcomings in safeguarding practice have had a detrimental impact on children’s experiences and progress. Opportunities to recognise concerns, provide effective support and take timely action have been missed, resulting in one child’s needs not being appropriately addressed at an earlier stage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Weaknesses in the management of risk have hindered children’s ability to make and sustain progress. These shortfalls limited staff’s ability to respond promptly and effectively when concerns emerged, limiting opportunities to promote positive outcomes and safeguard children’s welfare.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children benefit from regular discussions about their wellbeing, education, identity, relationships and online safety. However, these discussions are not always recorded, limiting managers’ ability to evaluate and monitor the effectiveness of the support and the impact it has on children’s day-to-day experiences and progress. Despite these concerns, children have positive relationships with some staff and can identify trusted staff they can approach for support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are encouraged to attend education, engage in activities, pursue their interests and express their individuality. Staff help children to feel valued and accepted, and some children have made progress from their starting points. However, these strengths are outweighed by the serious concerns identified. Consequently, children have not consistently benefited from safe, effective and well-coordinated care that promotes their welfare and progress.

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

Children have not been consistently protected from harm. Staff and managers did not act swiftly enough when indicators of deteriorating welfare emerged. As a result, concerns escalated to the point where police protection powers were used, and one child Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 4 was removed from the home for their own safety. This also resulted in another child having to move from the home, causing unnecessary disruption to their care and stability.

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

Children with known vulnerabilities were not consistently safeguarded through effective planning and oversight. One child was able to leave the home during the night on more than one occasion, despite staff being aware of the risks. In addition, staff did not consider all available information during a missing-from-home incident. This reduced staff’s ability to respond effectively and safeguard the child.

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

Safeguarding arrangements have not been sufficiently robust. Managers have not adequately assessed the risks associated with medication storage. This resulted in one child accessing medication prescribed to another child and being placed at risk of harm. Although managers acted promptly following the incident, it highlights weaknesses in risk assessment and safeguarding oversight.

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

Children are subject to a number of restrictive measures in the home, including door alarms, sensors, window restrictors and locked areas. Managers have not consistently demonstrated that these measures are necessary and proportionate or fully considered the impact on other children. Consequently, children do not consistently experience a home environment that promotes a balanced and individualised approach to risk management.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leadership and management oversight has been ineffective in ensuring that children receive safe and effective care. Leaders have not maintained sufficient oversight of practice and relied too heavily on information provided by staff, without adequate scrutiny or verification. As a result, significant weaknesses in safeguarding, environmental monitoring and risk management were not addressed until serious incidents occurred.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not ensured that agreed plans, risk management strategies and professional boundaries are consistently followed. Persistent inconsistencies in practice demonstrate that management challenge has not been robust enough and staff have not been held to account for shortfalls in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Monitoring systems are inconsistent. Some records demonstrate effective evaluation and scrutiny, while others lack sufficient detail, analysis and follow-up action. In addition, supervision records are not always up to date and team meeting records do not consistently provide staff with sufficient information about significant risks and expected practice. This limits leaders’ ability to identify concerns and drive improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staffing arrangements have not consistently ensured that children receive safe care. On occasion, staff remained awake through the night to support a child and then continued working the following day. This does not provide assurance that staff are sufficiently rested to exercise sound judgement and safely manage risks. Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 5 Despite staff receiving relevant training, weaknesses in staff experience, confidence and professional curiosity limited their ability to identify, assess and respond to emerging risks. Consequently, opportunities to intervene at an earlier stage and protect children from harm have been missed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers were open and reflective about the weaknesses identified. They have demonstrated insight into the failings in oversight, professional curiosity and staff practice and have implemented a comprehensive improvement plan. However, these changes are in their infancy, and it is too early to determine whether they have resulted in sustained improvements for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 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 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

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;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that safeguarding arrangements are effective and that identified risks to children are assessed, monitored and addressed promptly.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must help staff to understand and follow children’s plans and risk assessments and support them to remain professionally curious when concerns arise. Additionally, 11 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 7 they must help staff to take appropriate action to reduce the likelihood of repeat incidents.

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for 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

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)(c)(d)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure effective monitoring and oversight of staff practice. Managers must identify and act on shortfalls in safeguarding practice, risk management and staff performance at the earliest opportunity. Monitoring systems must be used effectively to identify emerging concerns, evaluate the quality of care provided to children and ensure prompt action is taken when weaknesses are identified.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, the registered person must ensure that staff receive appropriate guidance, challenge and supervision to enable them 11 October 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 8 to meet children’s needs safely and in line with the home’s policies, procedures and therapeutic model of care.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance;

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all restrictions placed on children are regularly reviewed and evaluated to ensure that they remain necessary, proportionate and the least restrictive option available.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must consider the impact of restrictive practices on all children living in the home and ensure that decisions are clearly recorded and demonstrate how they promote children’s welfare and best interests. 11 October 2026

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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: 2650345 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Old Bank Building, East Street, Ilminster TA19 0AJ

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Inspector

Karen Hallam, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2650345 10 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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