Children's Home run by Oldham Children’s Social Care in Oldham

Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 1 Registered provider: Oldham Children’s Social Care

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home offers care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home. One child was spoken to.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in May 2025.

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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 or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Since the home was registered, two children have moved in. The manager failed to consider gaps in the skills and knowledge of staff and the risks for one child. As a result, these risks have not been well managed, and the child has been left at risk.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff understand the importance of education. The manager has challenged professionals effectively when assessments have been delayed. As a result, the education and healthcare assessment for one child is progressing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff spend time with children to seek their views and talk to them about their day-to- day lives. Children can talk to staff about any worries they have. However, staff do not always fully explore risks with children and educate them about keeping themselves safe in the community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are supported and encouraged to develop hobbies and interests. One child enjoys playing badminton, engaging in arts and crafts, and preparing and making meals in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The home is warm, welcoming, and well maintained. It feels homely and child friendly. Children are encouraged to invite their friends to their home. Children’s bedrooms are personalised to their tastes.

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

Plans to keep children safe are not effective. As a result, staff responses to children who are at risk of sexual and criminal exploitation are poor.

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

Children are encouraged to spend time in the community with their friends. However, the rules and expectations for children going out on their own are not clear, and the level of risk is not fully considered. The manager and staff do not find out from children what their plans are before they go out. Additionally, staff have allowed young children to use public transport alone without considering the risks. As a result, children are not kept safe.

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

When allegations are made against staff, the manager follows the allegation process. They report the allegation to the local authority designated officer and ensure that information is shared promptly with other professionals.

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

There has been several concerning missing from home incidents. At the time of the inspection, one child persistently goes missing and on one occasion was missing for an extended period of time. While there has been a very recent reduction it is too early to evaluate whether this is evidence of a sustained reduction due to effective staff intervention. Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 3 On occasions staff have not consistently follow plans to safeguard children when they are missing from home. They do not proactively search for children when they are not in contact with them, when other professionals or friends have sighted them, or when they are missing. This reduces opportunities for children to be located and brought safely home at the earliest opportunity. One child’s missing-from-home incidents have increased in duration, leaving them at increased risk of harm.

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

Children are physically held by staff as a last resort. There has been one incident in which a child needed to be held. The manager reviewed the incident and identified gaps in records. They then spent time talking through the incident with the staff and the child to ensure that the hold was proportionate and appropriate.

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

When children sustain injuries, staff check their welfare and offer first aid. The managers and staff use body maps and keep clear records of the injuries. However, on one occasion, the manager and staff identified that the child needed to be seen at hospital for their injuries. The child declined, and they have still not been seen by medical professionals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The management and oversight of the home are not effective. The manager has not ensured that the staff have the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding to meet the children’s needs. Training undertaken by staff is not implemented in practice. As a result, staff lack an understanding of the risks that children face or what action they need to take to safeguard them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff have regular supervision. They say they feel supported and enjoy their roles. Supervision is an opportunity to reflect on practice; there are discussions about staff learning and development. Team meetings and team away days are well attended. There is a clear agenda for meetings, and these are focused on the children. Incidents are discussed and reviewed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Consultations with partner agencies is a strength. There is a firm commitment from the manager and team to working with partner agencies to enhance the support for children. The registered manager has positive working relationships with professionals involved with children and shares information appropriately. This helps to ensure that relevant people are notified early of emerging concerns as they arise.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Systems in place to monitor the quality of care provided are not effective. The manager does not have sufficient oversight of serious incidents. They do not identify shortfalls in staff practice or fully consider risks for children. The manager has not identified emerging concerns for children when reviewing incidents of children being missing from the home. This means patterns of escalating risks and opportunities to implement additional safeguards for children to reduce risk are missed. This is a missed opportunity to improve staff practice. As a result, children have been left at risk. Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 4 Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 5

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(b)(e))

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Requirement Due date

The manager ensure that staff understand what to do when children go missing from home. This includes searching known places and addresses. 29 August 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 6 The manager must ensure that clear safety plans are in place for children accessing the community independently and that these plans fully consider the risks identified in the child’s care plan.

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that when children are injured and it is identified that they require medical attention, they are seen by a medical professional.

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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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to 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

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and 29 August 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 7 feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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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)(c)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that when considering moving a child into the home, the staff have the necessary skills to meet the child’s needs and keep them safe.

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that staff receive training, specifically in relation to exploitation and substance misuse, to help staff meet the needs of children moving into or living in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that they have critical oversight of all incidents and be able to identify gaps in staff practice.

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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: 2833552 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Oldham Children’s Social Care

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Metropolitan House, Hobson Street, Oldham OL1 1HD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicholas Whitbread

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Inspectors

Sarah Probert, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Shauna Morley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2833552 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.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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