Children's home run by Pathways Care Group Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 1 Registered provider: Pathways Care 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 operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to four children with social and emotional needs.

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Information about this children’s home

There are two registered managers in post. One registered manager is covering the service’s permanent registered manager, who is currently on maternity leave. Both managers are appropriately experienced and qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. The inspector spoke at length to all three of the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/07/2024 Full Good 01/08/2023 Full Good 06/09/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/06/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Since the last assurance visit, one child has successfully moved out of the home and another has moved in and settled well. Two children have continued to live at the home since the last Ofsted inspection and are making significant progress from their starting points across most areas of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager provides strong leadership and supports staff to implement approaches that promote each child’s emotional health, safety and well-being. The manager and staff demonstrate an excellent understanding of each child’s individual needs and the challenges they face, which may affect the children’s progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The manager and staff have worked diligently to build positive relationships with each child, as well as with their families and friends. They model respectful and nurturing relationships and deliver sensitive, individualised care. Where necessary, they seek specialist support from partner agencies. Social workers are highly positive about the nurturing and well-planned care provided by staff. This collaborative, multi-agency approach ensures that children’s needs are consistently prioritised, keeping them safe and supporting the excellent progress they continue to make.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

For example, the registered manager’s sustained partnership working and relationship building enabled one child to successfully return to live with their family ahead of the birth of a new sibling. Feedback from the child’s family to the inspector was overwhelmingly positive, praising the manager’s role in facilitating this move. Staff supported the child to make significant progress, transitioning from a deprivation of liberty order and two-to-one staffing, to one-to-one support, and eventually enjoying free time and increasing unsupervised contact with family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The strong relationships between staff and children enable meaningful work that supports emotional development. Staff help children to reflect on and begin to understand their feelings and behaviours in a way that is responsive to their individual needs. As a result, children are increasingly able to express their views, make informed decisions, and contribute to all aspects of their care. For example, one child shared concerns about the impact of their medication. Staff facilitated a health review, which led to a reduction and eventual cessation of the medication. The child is now medication free and reports feeling positive about the change.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff continue to promote the importance of education. The registered manager ensures access to appropriate education provision and works in partnership with alternative providers when necessary. Staff provide transport to schools located at a distance and support children to develop confidence in using public transport or travelling independently. As a result, children who have previously disengaged from education are now re-engaging. Three children have made significant progress, successfully attending Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 4 interviews and securing full-time college placements that support their transition to adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager continues to develop the home’s environment in consultation with children and staff. The house is well organised, clean and tidy. Children’s bedrooms are personalised in line with their preferences. Areas of the home have been redecorated and damage in the garden has been repaired. However, some communal areas still lack a homely feel. For example, the front sitting room contains two clocks but no pictures, and the kitchen displays health and safety notices and house rules. The registered manager responded promptly to the inspector’s feedback and removed some of the signage during the inspection.

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

The registered manager has established a strong safeguarding culture within the home. Staff are vigilant to potential safeguarding concerns and report issues immediately, enabling the registered manager to take swift and effective action to protect children and staff. Information is shared transparently and effectively with external professionals, ensuring a coordinated and responsive approach to safeguarding.

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

Incidents involving children have significantly reduced and are now rare. Since the last assurance visit, there have been no incidents requiring physical intervention and only one natural consequence has been applied. The registered manager has led reflective discussions with the staff team, exploring theories and strategies and modelling best practice. This has strengthened staff relationships with children and enhanced consistency and confidence in staff’s parenting approach.

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

Staff successfully balance enabling children to take age-appropriate risks with maintaining their safety. When incidents do occur, they are well managed because staff take time to understand the underlying causes. This approach has contributed to children becoming increasingly settled in the home.

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

Staff educate children about risks by working in partnership with external agencies and using a range of resources to explore topics such as substance misuse, going missing from care, and the consequences of offending behaviour. For example, the registered manager and staff supported a child through court proceedings. The child is now fully engaged with youth offending services and is participating in training, including first aid and knife-crime awareness courses.

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

Children are regularly involved in meetings, discussions and planning, helping them to understand risks and develop strategies to keep themselves safe. This inclusive approach has enhanced children’s sense of safety and security and equipped them to make informed decisions. As a result, children’s involvement in incidents and risk-taking behaviours has reduced both in the home and in the wider community. They are enjoying increased free time and positive engagement with family and friends. Children are participating in activities and holidays with staff and peers, using public transport independently. One child is currently completing their third week in a local authority independence flat as part of their Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 5 preparation for adulthood. Children respond positively to being trusted and understand the consequences of unsafe decisions through regular, open discussions with staff.

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

Staff have a clear understanding of how to respond if a child goes missing from care. Since the last assurance visit, there has been only one such incident involving one child. This was managed effectively. The registered manager acted proactively, using his connections with the police to gather intelligence and locate the child. He and a staff member conducted a search and ensured the safe return not only of the child in their care but also of a group of missing children also missing. Following the child’s return, staff supported them to reflect on the incident and understand the associated risks. There have been no further missing-from- care incidents since March 2025.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager continues to drive improvement across the service. He is child- focused and committed to supporting the staff team to develop skills that empower children to achieve positive outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff speak highly of the registered manager. Staff receive regular, reflective supervision and annual appraisal meetings that formally review their practice and development. Staff value the progression pathways and career opportunities the registered manager has created, as well as the additional training they have received or that is planned. The leaders in the newly formed senior leadership team are working cohesively and have attended a range of specialist training, including enhanced supervision training and an eight-week level 4 trauma-informed practice course.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff recognise the registered manager’s role in helping them build strong relationships with children and develop confidence in their trauma-informed therapeutic practice. This has contributed to a secure and nurturing environment and a positive culture within the home. It has also helped to establish a stable and committed staff team that feels valued and proud to be part of the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is a strong advocate for the children. He works in partnership with other professionals and parents to ensure that children are safe, happy and reaching their full potential. He is confident in challenging other professionals when he believes that decisions are not in the best interests of the children, or when responsibilities are not being fulfilled. For example, he has questioned whether a partner agency was discriminating against a child due to their care status, and has challenged an education provider for its lack of resilience and understanding in supporting a child in his care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Team meetings are informative and child-focused. Staff use these sessions to reflect on incidents and consider alternative approaches. This leads to carefully planned and purposeful conversations and key-work sessions with children. Staff are clear about the progress children have made and the areas that still require attention. For example, one child is being supported to develop healthier sleep patterns and increase their engagement with education. Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 6 The registered manager has a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. He uses a range of internal and external systems to monitor the quality of care and capture the views and experiences of children. Oversight of staff practice is robust and leads to challenge, discussion and shared learning. Children’s views are gathered by an operations manager external to the home, giving them greater opportunity to raise concerns

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is actively involved in wider organisational development. This enables him to bring new ideas, practices and pilot initiatives into the home. For example, he is contributing to the ongoing implementation of the ‘language that cares’ approach across the organisation. He is also mentoring a new manager in another home and delivering training to staff teams across children’s residential services. Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 7

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of their children. The children’s home should provide a homely, domestic environment. Children’s homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations (alarms, food hygiene, etc.); however, in doing so, homes should seek as far possible to maintain a domestic rather than institutional impression. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: 2633127 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pathways Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Pathways Care Group, Minton Place, Victoria Street, Windsor SL4 1EG

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Demi Wellings and Joseph Libetta

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Inspector

Dawn Bennett, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2633127 9 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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Inspector

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