Inspire Community Services Limited

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 1 Inspire Community Services Limited Registered provider: Inspire Community Services Limited

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

provider

This supported accommodation service is operated by a private provider in the northwest of England.

p.1

provider

They can accommodate up to 63 individuals in total. This includes one shared or group-living premises that is limited to accommodating looked-after children or care leavers; this premises can accommodate up to nine children. Thirteen shared or group-living premises that are not limited to accommodating looked-after children or care leavers; these premises can accommodate up to 54 children.

p.1

provider

At the time of the inspection, 39 looked-after children aged 16 or 17 were being accommodated.

p.1

provider

The service manager applied to register with Ofsted in March 2025.

p.1

Inspection dates:

The inspection was announced on 28 July 2025 and started that day. The inspectors were on site on 30 and 31 July 2025.

p.1

Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will be within approximately 18 months.

p.1

Summary of findings

Leaders and managers do not always ensure that all children are safe. Plans for children are not consistently developed in a way that ensures that they are meaningful or protective. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 2 Leaders and manager do not always ensure that there are well-coordinated responses to children who are missing from home.

p.1

Summary of findings

Leaders and managers do not always notify Ofsted of significant incidents about safeguarding and allegations against staff.

p.2

Summary of findings

Children are positive about their experiences and progress. Staff help children to develop the skills needed to prepare for adult life.

p.2

Summary of findings

Most children are in education, employment or training.

p.2

Summary of findings

Staff are positive about the leadership and management of the organisation.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers do not ensure that all children receive the support that they need to stay safe and make progress. However, some children are well supported. Staff do not fully utilise in-house resources to support children with gaining independent living skills.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers do not always support children to take age-appropriate risks, as part of their journey towards independence. For example, in some homes, staff lock sharp kitchen knives away, and children must ask if they can use them. Also, staff contact children with excessive regularity when they are out in the community and give children their money in three weekly instalments when they move into their home. These actions do not help children to gain the independent living skills that they need in life.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers ensure that children move into their new homes in a planned way. Children visit the home and meet staff and other children before moving in. Leaders and managers ensure that children usually move on from the home in a planned way. These processes support children to make transitions effective.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Children say they are happy in their accommodation. They are positive about the support they receive from staff. One child said, ‘Staff have helped me with laundry, shopping and cooking’ and ‘how to bake a cake’. Another child was positive about the move in and said, ‘Staff helped them settle in.’

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers ensure that children understand their rights and know how to make a complaint. They investigate complaints in line with their procedures. Staff support children well when they make a complaint. They explain the complaints process and the outcome to the child. This process helps children to feel heard and respected.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers ensure that most children access education, employment or training. They encourage children to access employment and training and help them overcome barriers. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 3 Most children are happy, settled and making progress. Leaders and managers are ambitious for children. They attend celebration events when children make progress. One child won an award for their work on a local project.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers seek children’s views about the quality of the support that they receive from the service. They capture children’s views through house meetings and create opportunities for children to meet with leaders and managers. This helps children to feel valued and influences the way that the service operates. For example, children give advice about the content for the young person’s guide.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers do not always protect children who go missing from home. They do not consistently ensure that there is a well-coordinated response by notifying the police or the local authority’s emergency duty team, for example. This means that that the risk of harm to children is not always quickly identified and acted on. For example, one child left the home at night and staff did not take steps to verify that they had arrived at the address they said they were going to. Furthermore, staff do not ensure that all children who go missing from home are offered an independent interview when they return. They miss the opportunity to understand children’s experiences and prevent reoccurrence.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Staff do not ensure that children’s plans are up to date and meaningful. As a result, children’s plans do not provide staff with strategies to reduce the risk of harm for children. One child had suicidal ideation and the control measures in the plan did not address this risk. For another child, who had been missing for several weeks, risk plans were not updated and there were no clear actions in place to support them.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers act appropriately to safeguard children when they become aware of allegations of staff misconduct. They share information with the local authority designated officer and carry out investigations, as appropriate. This helps maintain a safe workforce and protects children.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers ensure that children’s homes are safe, well-maintained and homely. Children say that they enjoy living in their homes and they can individualise their rooms. This provides them with a secure environment and one where they feel valued.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers help to ensure that children register with primary healthcare services. They assist children to access other services, including mental health and drug services. They ensure that children receive physical and emotional well-being support.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Staff understand the specific needs of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. They support children’s ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds and help them to achieve social integration. They also help them with learning English and use interpreters and translation services to support communication. This helps children feel welcomed and able to settle in their new environment. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 4 Staff from other agencies are positive about the support that children receive from staff. They value the communication with staff and the service’s child-centred approach. One social worker said, ‘They provide an environment that does it’s best to replicate a home setting, with caring and supportive staff who encourage engagement with young people.’

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not always notify Ofsted when serious incidents occur. They fail to notify Ofsted when children have been missing from home for a long time or when they become aware of allegations of staff misconduct. This limits the regulator’s ability to verify that the provider has acted to safeguard children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not have effective oversight of the service. They do not ensure that managers audit children’s files and subsequently do not identify weaknesses in children’s plans. They have identified this as an area for improvement.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers generally ensure that children they admit into the service are appropriate for supported accommodation and ready to make progress. They usually undertake effective assessments of children’s support needs and vulnerabilities. Leaders and managers carefully consider the needs of children already living in the accommodation before admitting a new child to the home. Some children have support needs that need more careful consideration.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff are positive about leaders and managers and the support they receive from them. One member of staff said that the company now provides a ‘more young person-centred approach’. Leaders and managers ensure that staff receive regular structured supervision, which focuses on the children and their practice. Staff are positive about the supervision that they receive. One member of staff said, ‘Regular supervision and team meetings create an open environment where staff are encouraged to raise concerns, share ideas and reflect on best practices.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers ensure that staff are well trained and continue to develop their skills to support children. Staff are positive about the quality of the training they receive. One member of staff said that it helped them to have ‘the knowledge and skills to work with children’.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers ensure that regular leadership and team meetings take place. Staff are positive about team meetings and the opportunity to discuss the children collectively. Leaders and managers have increased the number of management staff, which helps to increase managerial oversight.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders, managers and staff have aspirations for children. They have a warm and caring approach and speak in a positive way about children. They treat children with dignity and respect. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 5

p.4

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the ‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The protection standard is that children are enabled to feel safe and that their needs are met.

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

Requirement Due date

prepare and implement child protection policies;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that the effectiveness of child protection policies is kept under review and ensure that, where appropriate, those policies are revised;

p.5

Requirement Due date

work collaboratively with children to help them understand how to keep safe, by offering guidance and support on how to minimise any potential risk of harm;

p.5

Requirement Due date

work collaboratively with other professionals and agencies, and share information where relevant to keep children safe. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b)(c)(f)(iii)(iv))

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that children’s plans include clear strategies for supporting each child to manage vulnerabilities and make progress. 14 September 2025

p.5

Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires, and leads a culture in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking that 14 September 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 6 puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

lead and manage the supported accommodation undertaking in a way that is consistent with the ethos, and delivers the outcomes set out in the undertaking’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(a))

p.6

Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that plans for support are based on initial referral information, are meaningful and are created in full consultation with the child, taking account of relevant plans for the child;

p.6

Requirement Due date

keep the child’s support under review, taking into consideration the plans for support, and relevant plans, to ensure that the child’s needs continue to be met and that the child is kept safe;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure a plan for support is in place to support the child to develop the resilience and skills required to transition out of supported accommodation when the child is ready to live more independently. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(b)(c)(k)) 14 September 2025

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy setting out—

p.6

Requirement Due date

the steps taken, and to be taken, to prevent children accommodated by the supported accommodation undertaking from going missing, and

p.6

Requirement Due date

the procedures to be followed, and the roles and responsibilities of persons working for the supported accommodation undertaking, in relation to a child who is, or has previously been, missing. (Regulation 21 (1)(a)(b))

p.6

Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that children are offered an independent return home interview and make representations to placing authorities if this is not offered. 14 September 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 7 The registered person must notify the CIECSS and any relevant person without delay if—

p.6

Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation;

p.7

Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child and the registered person considers that incident to be serious;

p.7

Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the supported accommodation undertaking or a person working for it;

p.7

Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry— (i) is instigated, or (ii) concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry);

p.7

Requirement Due date

there is an incident involving the use of a measure of restraint of a child;

p.7

Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 27 (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)) 14 September 2025

p.7

Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 8

p.7

Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Inspire Community Services Limited

p.8

Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: Unit 3, Craig Court, Standish Street, St. Helens, Merseyside WA10 1GJ

p.8

Inspectors

Amanda Cooper, Social Care Inspector Steve James, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Inspire Community Services Limited 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.

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