Children's Home run by Attivo Care Ltd in Halton

Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 1 Registered provider: Attivo Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home currently does not have a registered manager. An interim manager is in post, who intends to register with Ofsted.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The registered provider has recently appointed a responsible individual, who also serves as a director of the company.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 21 January 2025

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/01/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 24/09/2024 Full Inadequate 03/10/2023 Full Good 08/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children were present and spoke with the inspectors during the inspection.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has successfully moved on from the home with a well-planned transition and is now serving in the Armed Forces. Staff have remained in contact and visited the child since their departure. Staff speak proudly of the child’s progress.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has recently moved into the home. The move was well planned by managers, with input from key professionals. This careful preparation means that identified risks are managed effectively and staff are equipped to meet the child’s needs. The views, risks and behaviours of the child who was already living in the home were considered before the new child moved in. This good-quality planning facilitated a positive move for the child, who says that they feel happy and settled.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of positive peer relationships and actively help children to develop meaningful connections with one another. They create opportunities for children to engage in shared activities, encouraging teamwork, mutual respect and understanding. Staff intervene sensitively when challenges arise, helping children resolve conflicts constructively. Through consistent guidance and encouragement, children build confidence in their relationships.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care plans are clear, and staff use child-friendly language to ensure that children understand the information about them. As a result, children feel involved in their care and understand their own goals.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a welcoming, homely and well-decorated home. There are photos of children and their adventures displayed throughout the home. Children’s bedrooms are personalised according to their tastes. They are well furnished to enable them to feel comfortable and have a sense of belonging.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Positive relationships between staff and children are built through genuine warmth and shared moments of laughter. Children enjoy spending time with staff and express feeling valued and supported. Staff take pride in celebrating children’s achievements, reinforcing their confidence and sense of belonging in the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Key-work sessions are frequent and purposeful, providing children with the opportunity to express their views, wishes and feelings. Staff listen to children and respond to their requests. Staff demonstrate a clear understanding of children’s identities, including their religious needs. Staff support one child’s attendance at the local mosque. This inclusive approach helps children feel respected and understood. Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 4 Both children receive support in their education and attend full time. Staff build effective partnerships with educational professionals to ensure that children meet their full academic potential. Open communication ensures that any challenges are well managed between the staff and school.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress from their starting points due to the care that they receive from staff. Staff tailor the care that they provide to meet children’s individual needs. Feedback from professionals about the quality of care provided by managers and staff and the progress that children make is positive.

p.4

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

Staff and managers demonstrate a good understanding of risks and safeguarding and how to manage them inside and outside the home. Staff focus on the relationships that they have with the children to help them keep them safe. As a result, incidents are rare.

p.4

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

Children rarely go missing. Staff follow clear protocols when children do go missing from the home. Managers and staff take immediate action to find children and make sure that they are safe. Staff welcome children back with warmth and care. These actions have a positive impact.

p.4

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

Risk assessments are child friendly and easy to understand, clearly outlining potential risks to children along with effective strategies to reduce them. Staff demonstrate a strong awareness of each child’s unique risks and are well equipped to de-escalate incidents and respond swiftly to emerging concerns.

p.4

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

A holistic approach is taken to address serious concerns when required. Instances of challenging and concerning views have been appropriately responded to. Leaders and managers understand which external agencies can provide bespoke support for children and staff. Where necessary, concerns have been escalated using comprehensive records. Managers maintain full oversight of such records, including direct discussions with the child about the concerns and any necessary changes implemented to support their development.

p.4

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

Safeguarding checks on children’s mobile phones are not consistently recorded, and children have not provided consent for these checks. As a result, children do not receive a clear and consistent understanding of the purpose and importance of these measures in keeping them safe.

p.4

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

Consequences are occasionally used to manage children’s behaviour. The manager does not review the effectiveness of these consequences. As a result, some measures are used without clear impact, limiting opportunities to adapt responses to children’s needs.

p.4

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

Since the last inspection, there has been significant staff turnover, including changes of manager. This has naturally affected one child. Leaders acknowledge that they have Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 5 worked through a challenging period in the home. Staff have shown commitment and desire to support children through this difficult time and are now hopeful about the direction that leaders and managers are taking. Stability and continuity of staffing are required to support both children in feeling secure and settled.

p.4

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

Staff say that the managers and leaders support and invest in them, and they feel valued. Regular team meetings offer staff an opportunity to raise any concerns. Staff say that they can talk openly and honestly with the management team to ensure that the children receive effective and safe care.

p.5

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

Supervision sessions take place within set time frames and provide a reflective account of staff conversations, practices and feelings. Staff appraisal targets are both child focused, to improve children’s experiences, and performance driven, to strengthen staff’s skills in their roles.

p.5

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

Staff receive mandatory training in areas such as first aid, safeguarding and physical restraint. However, not all staff have been trained in areas specific to children’s individual needs. This does not support staff’s understanding of the children who are living at the home.

p.5

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

The manager’s oversight of incidents is compromised due to inconsistent effectiveness of their monitoring and review systems. There have been missed opportunities to address shortfalls in recording and improve the care that children receive.

p.5

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

The statement of purpose and workforce development plan do not accurately describe the operation of the home. Ofsted has not always been notified of changes made to the statement of purpose. This limits the regulator’s oversight of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 6

p.5

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.

p.6

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—

p.6

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

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; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c))

p.6

Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that they have oversight of all care provided to children. Any shortfalls in staff practice must be identified and addressed. All staff, including bank staff, must receive training on all topics that are relevant to the children’s needs. In particular, the registered person must ensure that there is consistent and stable staffing in the home to help children feel secure and settled.

p.6

Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 7 July 2025

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1.

p.6

Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and 7 July 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 7 notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (1) (3)(a)(b))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the statement of purpose is updated when changes occur, and the workforce development plan should reflect current staffing.

p.7

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all incidents of discipline are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair. The registered person must ensure that consequences are reviewed for their effectiveness. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 48, paragraph 9.36)  The registered person should ensure that staff help children to be aware of and manage their safety both inside and outside the home, just as any good parent would. Staff should help children understand how to protect themselves, feel protected and be protected from significant harm; this applies to children’s understanding of why mobile phone checks are carried out. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.9)

p.7

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: 2680573 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Attivo Care Limited

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Office 1, 41 to 43 Liverpool Road, Manchester M44 5BQ

p.8

Inspectors

Sally Mitchell, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Cheryl Field, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2680573 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.8

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9