Children's Home run by Invested Childcare Ltd in Durham

Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 1 Registered provider: Invested Childcare 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

This home is operated by a private provider. It provides care for up to 4 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, there were 4 children living in the home and all were spoken with during the inspection.

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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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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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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: 14 October 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: 1276421 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/10/2025 Full Good 28/11/2024 Full Good 07/11/2023 Full Good 11/01/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 3

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Summary of findings

The home provides a nurturing and supportive environment for children. Children develop trusting relationships with staff and feel emotionally safe and stable. Staff provide children with consistent and personalised care. There is a strong safeguarding culture in the home and staff take appropriate action when children are at risk of harm. Leaders and managers are tenacious in supporting children to achieve positive outcomes and place children at the centre of their practice. The manager challenges other's practice when needed and consistently drives improvement in the quality of care that children receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress as a result of staff's nurturing and relational approach. Staff speak about children with warmth and help them to develop emotional safety. Staff's approach encourages children to share their feelings and build trusting relationships with staff. Children like living in the home and say that they can go to staff for help. These positive relationships give children a strong sense of stability.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend education. Staff consider each child's previous learning experiences and focus on helping them to feel comfortable in their education setting. This approach has led to improved attendance for some children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's health needs are promptly responded to. Staff provide first aid when children hurt themselves or have accidents and seek medical attention when required. The manager works consistently with a clinical professional to support children's emotional wellbeing. Children access services that help them to address trauma, and they engage well with this support. One child said, 'Staff have helped my mental health improve.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a wide range of activities. They also enjoy holidays abroad with staff and spend time with their friends participating in shared activities. Staff support children to enjoy important milestones. For example, one staff member dressed formally in a suit and tie to transport a child to their prom, helping the occasion be special and memorable.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to develop the practical skills they will need in adulthood. They support children with budgeting and travelling, and one child has made particularly good progress in developing these skills. This progress has increased the child's confidence and helped to prepare them to move on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff manage moves into and out of the home well and tailor arrangements to each child. They listen to children's views about their likes and dislikes. Staff give children opportunities to meet other children before they move in and discuss the move with them. When one child moved to live with their family, staff put an extensive support plan Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 4 in place. They stayed in touch and visited the child, helping to provide continuity of care and emotional support during this significant change.

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

Children feel safe living in the home. One child said that staff make them feel safe because they are there to support them. Staff follow children's individual risk assessments and safety plans and update these after incidents to ensure that they reflect emerging risks. This gives children consistent protection and helps them to feel secure.

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

Staff understand risks, such as exploitation, and take action to reduce these. They conduct checks on unknown and concerning properties when necessary to safeguard children and share concerns with relevant professionals. When children are absent or not where expected, staff make welfare calls, complete visual checks when possible and report children missing from home if necessary. They also contact children's friends and family members and actively search for children. This persistent approach reduces risks and improves children's safety.

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

Staff are sensitive in their support of children when they may harm themselves. Staff are curious about children's feelings. Incidents of self-harm are rare and have reduced. Children know that they can seek support from staff and are developing positive coping strategies to manage distress.

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

Leaders and managers appropriately investigate any allegations and suspicions of harm. They share the relevant information with professionals, including police, social workers and the local authority designated officer. Children can discuss their worries with someone independent of the investigation. Leaders and managers share investigation outcomes with children and help them to rebuild relationships affected by incidents.

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

The manager notifies the regulator about serious incidents. However, notifications are not always made within the required timescales.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers demonstrate an exceptional commitment to children's safety and wellbeing. Managers and staff build highly effective working relationships with external professionals. They actively contribute to safeguarding partnership meetings and share information effectively. This strong partnership working has resulted in interventions that have enhanced children's safety, including the closure of a business suspected of causing harm to children. Professionals describe managers and staff as persistent and invested in children, with one professional describing the staff team's professional curiosity as 'second to none'.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager consistently puts children's needs first. She is confident in professionally challenging decisions when she believes they are not in children's best interests and escalates concerns appropriately. She works constructively with others to overcome any Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 5 challenges and is creative in identifying solutions to these. Her leadership creates a culture that gives staff confidence to speak up and advocate on children's behalf.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff work exceptionally well together and demonstrates a clear understanding of their roles, responsibilities and areas for ongoing development. Staff report feeling valued and well supported and say that the manager is readily available whenever guidance or assistance is needed. The manager leads by example, maintaining a strong presence in the home and remaining actively involved in children's day-to-day care. She sets high aspirations for both children and staff and motivates the staff to help children achieve consistently positive outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has an exceptional understanding of the home's strengths and areas for development. She uses this knowledge to drive continuous improvement in children's care. She maintains strong oversight of practice and scrutinises incidents and events closely. She identifies emerging patterns and uses these to deepen staff's understanding of children's behaviours and needs. This enables staff to respond to children with greater consistency, confidence and insight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular and reflective supervision sessions that support continuous practice development. The manager uses supervision sessions to recognise effective practice, explore children's needs and address any areas requiring improvement. The manager knows staff well and matches their skills to children's individual needs. Staff are committed, enthusiastic and child focused. Low staff turnover leads to children having consistent care and supports the development of trusting relationships. This helps children to feel secure and valued and have a strong sense of belonging in the home. Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have a system in place so that all serious events are notified with 24 hours to the appropriate people, including if the event arises at the weekend or on a public holiday. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 63, paragraph 14.13)

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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: 1276421 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Invested Childcare Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Acklam Hall, Hall Gardens, Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire TS5 7BJ

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Inspector

Laura Roberts, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1276421 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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Inspector

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