Children's Home run by Continuum Support - Care Services Limited in Cheshire West and Chester

Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 1 Registered provider: Continuum Support Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may have social or emotional challenges.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living here at the time of this inspection. The inspector spoke with both children together.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2024.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/06/2024 Full Good 01/08/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 3

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improvement to be good

Children enjoy living in this home and have lots of fun with each other and with staff. Children say that staff listen to them. However, children’s well-being and progress are limited by poor management of the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to attend health appointments as required, and they speak to children about keeping healthy. However, managers and staff failed to enquire or challenge when one child’s health review was not scheduled as expected.

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improvement to be good

Staff and managers do not support children to understand their cultural heritage. When children do not have a positive view of their own culture, no work is done to help children begin to consider this part of their identity.

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improvement to be good

When children in adolescence are curious about sex, staff answer their questions as they arise. However, there is no proactive work to help children to better understand sex and healthy relationships. This does not provide children with the tools they need to navigate relationships.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to visit family members and encourage children to spend time with people who are important to them. They speak to children about where they are going and who they are going to be with. This helps to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff and managers work well with children’s schools. Staff support children with their education and aspirations. Both children are in school full time and are achieving well.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide children with a variety of activities, together and individually. Children have recently enjoyed a seaside holiday in Wales and have been attending a summer programme locally. One child said that living here ‘is fun and everyone is nice.’

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improvement to be good

The home environment is kept to a good standard. The lounge walls have been freshly painted, and there are photos of the children displayed around the home. The children have a chalkboard in the kitchen where their drawings are on show.

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improvement to be good

Staff have developed trusting relationships with children and are able to help children become calm when they become distressed. This helps children to feel safe. As a result, children are settled in the home and their risks remain low. Staff have not had to hold children to keep them safe, and children have not gone missing from this home.

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improvement to be good

Professionals say that staff communicate well with them and contribute appropriately to children’s meetings. However, there have been times when a child has spoken about not Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 4 wanting to live, and another when the same child alleged that a member of staff hurt them. Neither of these concerns were shared with the professionals who work with the child. The regulator was also not informed of the allegation, which does not enable sufficient oversight of children’s safety.

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improvement to be good

When a child raised concerns about the way a member of staff interacted with them, staff responded appropriately. However, the on-call manager who spoke with staff provided poor guidance. This meant that the member of staff remained working with the child, at times alone. When the registered manager reviewed the concern, he failed to identify that safeguarding protocols had not been followed. This meant that safeguarding professionals were not informed of the concern, and nobody independent spoke to the child about their views of what happened.

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improvement to be good

Children’s files are not well kept. A lot of paperwork is stored on the manager’s computer instead of in children’s files. This does not allow staff to access up-to-date records. It also does not provide children with an accurate understanding of their time in the home should they wish to view their files at a later date. Risk assessments are not always accurate and do not support staff to respond appropriately to known risks.

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

The registered manager is experienced and is working on the qualification required to support him in developing stronger leadership skills. Staff say that he is ‘a lovely man’ and that they feel valued and well supported.

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

The manager genuinely cares for the children and is passionate about improving their outcomes. However, leaders and managers have not maintained sufficient oversight of safeguarding concerns and practice in the home. There is no consistent learning or conversation about safeguarding in team meetings or staff supervision. This does not ensure that all staff and managers know safeguarding protocols.

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

The registered manager has not ensured that staff receive regular supervision or annual appraisals as outlined in the home’s statement of purpose. Staff have not all been trained in the therapeutic model that children’s care is based around, and they have not received any training in this period that is specific to children’s needs.

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

The manager uses internal and external monitoring to support him in maintaining oversight of the home. However, actions identified from internal audits are not completed in a timely way. External monitoring reports are frequently not shared with the regulator. This limits external oversight. The registered manager has also not shared updated versions of the home’s statement of purpose with the regulator.

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

The manager has a risk assessment in place to consider risks to children in the local area. However, this does not include any consultations with other safeguarding professionals who can give more detailed knowledge about different areas of safety for children. This was raised at the last inspection but has not been completed. Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 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, 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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff and supporting managers know and follow all safeguarding protocols. Information about children’s well-being and safeguarding concerns must always be shared with relevant professionals. Risk assessments for children must be accurate. 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 6 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

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

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received;

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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)(a)(b)(c)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that they are leading the home in a way that supports staff to care for the children effectively. Staff must be provided with opportunities for development that meet the identified needs of children. The registered person must provide effective oversight to ensure that children’s needs are fully met, and they must implement required changes identified by independent oversight. 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 7 The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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 understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that targeted work is completed with children to help them understand sex and healthy relationships. 21 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that they escalate concerns when children’s statutory appointments are not completed. 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 8 The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that children have the opportunity to learn more about their heritage. 21 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that allegations made by children are responded to in full, including consultation with external professionals. 21 October 2025

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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.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision.

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (1) (3)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff supervision and appraisals are completed within timescales outlined in the statement of purpose. This includes the supervision and appraisal of the registered manager. HMCI must be notified of updates and revisions to the statement of purpose. 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 9 The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that children’s files are kept up to date and all key documents are available. Documents and forms recorded by the home must be fully completed and must include staff signatures. Information must be easily accessible, and children’s files must provide children with a full and clear understanding of their experiences of living in this home. 21 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard).

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Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1) (2))

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Requirement Due date

The provider must ensure that they consult with relevant persons and include their views when reviewing the location of the premises.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 21 October 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to—

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the independent person who completed the visit sends in their report to Ofsted within 28 days of the visit. 21 October 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 10

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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: 2714558 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sinclair Accounting Co Ltd, 300 St. Marys Road, Garston, Liverpool L19 0NQ

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Inspector

Aislinn Cooper, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2714558 12 regulates 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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