Children's Home run by Horizon Care and Education Group Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 1 Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group 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

The home is owned and managed by a private organisation. It provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and may have a learning disability.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living at the home. Two of the children were spoken to.

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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: 2531921 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/07/2024 Full Good 15/08/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 31/08/2022 Full Good 07/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well presented and homely. Children say that they are happy and settled. They are complimentary about the care and support that they receive from the staff. Both children spoken to said that they are happy with their bedrooms.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children develop trusting relationships with staff, which enables them to feel safe and gives children the confidence to speak openly about any concerns or worries that they have. As a result of this, they receive timely and appropriate support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s wishes and feelings are regularly sought and acted on. Children say that staff listen to them and confirm that they are supported to make decisions about their day-to-day care. This approach contributes to children feeling confident to express their views.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with their family and friends. Staff ensure that children have positive time with people who are important to them and include them in activities when it is safe and appropriate to do so. This helps children to retain a sense of identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has been supported to move to the provider’s supported accommodation. This was a planned move, and the child was appropriately supported to relocate to an area that they were familiar with. However, leaders and managers did not ensure that an effective independence plan was in place to support the child’s preparation for this move. Consequently, the child has experienced difficulties in managing aspects of independent living.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children learn the value of education and are supported to engage with their identified educational provision. A social worker praised the staff for the encouragement provided to one child, who, as a result, has developed a more positive attitude towards learning and is now attending education more consistently. When children are not in school, there is not a clear plan of alternative education for children to follow to ensure that their learning is not disrupted.

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

The safeguarding culture in the home ensures that children’s safety and well-being are prioritised. Leaders, managers and staff quickly identify concerns relating to children’s welfare and take effective action to ensure that appropriate measures are put in place to protect children from further harm.

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

There is an effective response when children go missing. Staff actively search for children and work with safeguarding partners, including the police, to locate children and support their safe return. Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 4 Positive and supportive relationships between staff and children create an environment where children feel safe to express their feelings. Staff listen and respond without judgement. They take guidance from the provider’s therapist to implement strategies that support children to manage their emotions safely. For example, children who self-harm are supported to consider alternative, safer coping mechanisms that protect them from harm.

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

Staff build and maintain positive relationships with children, which supports their understanding of children’s individual risks and vulnerabilities. Behaviour support plans are well constructed and detailed, providing staff with clear guidance on how to respond to and manage risks effectively. When new risks emerge, children’s plans are promptly reviewed and updated to ensure that staff have access to current information to keep children safe and well supported.

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

Children are supported to access specialist services, such as the drug and alcohol support and mental health teams, in response to their individual needs. In addition, staff speak to children about their personal safety. This approach to safeguarding helps children identify harmful behaviours.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager left her role in June 2025. Since then, the provider has recruited a new manager who is currently undergoing his induction. Despite this period of change, staff speak positively about the management team and the consistent support that they have received.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are cared for by a well-established staff team that is suitably qualified and experienced. Staff are aware of each other’s strengths and use this knowledge to work effectively together, ensuring that children receive good-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that staff meet to talk about the operation of the home and the needs of the children. These meetings give staff a chance to share ideas and learn from each other.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers understand the importance of working in partnership with external agencies. They ensure that all significant events relating to the welfare of children are shared with the appropriate authorities without delay, to ensure that there is effective early partnership working.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, two children have left the home in an unplanned way. These moves were prompted by concerns relating to the safety and welfare of children in the home and in the local community. Leaders and managers have been able to demonstrate that decisions leading to children leaving the home in this manner were made after a review and assessment of the risks, which provided them with no other option to safeguard children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are clear processes in place to ensure that staff are supported to conduct their roles effectively. Staff have access to relevant courses such as safeguarding, being Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 5 safe online and missing-from-home training. In addition, staff receive regular supervision. These meetings are practice related, but leaders and managers do not support staff to reflect on their practice. This limits opportunities for self-reflection and further learning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers actively and routinely monitor the quality of care provided to children. They have a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for improvement. However, leaders and managers have not ensured that the home’s workforce development plan accurately reflects the skills and knowledge that staff have acquired through their ongoing engagement in training offered by the provider. Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that there is a clear plan of alternative education in place for children when they are not in school, or when they are not attending school on a full-time basis. 30 October

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

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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

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with 30 October Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 7 arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(b)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that, dependent on the child’s age, children have an independence plan that supports them to develop skills such as budgeting, shopping, cooking and cleaning before leaving the home.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff take part in supervision that is reflective and supports their learning and development. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should ensure that the workforce plan includes the experience and qualifications of the staff team, as well as any new training and qualifications completed while working at the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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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: 2531921 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/O Dwf Company Secretarial Services Limited, 1 Scott Place 2 Hardman Street, Manchester M3 3AA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Gemma Waddington

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Inspector

Chibuzo Otache, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2531921 9 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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