Children's Home run by Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited in Rotherham

Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 1 Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since 25 July 2025. The manager in post has not yet applied to register with Ofsted.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

p.1

Enforcement action since last inspection:

This home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 13 and 14 May 2025. Shortfalls were identified in the leadership and management of the home, which affected the quality of care provided to the children living there.

p.1

Enforcement action since last inspection:

A monitoring visit was carried out on 7 July 2025. The provider had made limited progress against their own action plan, so it was agreed to issue a compliance notice relating to regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/05/2025 Full Inadequate 21/10/2024 Full Good 08/08/2023 Full Good 24/08/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Progress has been made in providing stability for children. The manager and staff promote healthy routines in the home. This includes good sleep patterns, healthy eating and improved personal hygiene.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There has been a reduction in the times that the children struggle to manage their emotions, particularly during the night. The change of staff’s working arrangements and their greater understanding of children’s needs have helped the children remain calmer. Relationships with the staff are improving, and children are much more settled.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a good sense of their own identity. Staff support children to see their families, managing well when changes have been made by the placing authorities.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have mixed experiences of attending education. One child successfully passed their maths and English exams and is looking forward to starting college in the autumn term. This is huge progress and a big milestone for the child, given their previous experiences. The other child continues to struggle with attending school, despite the school and staff working hard to try to encourage and promote this.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to maintain a good standard of health. Staff help children to understand the importance of attending their appointments, particularly those who are reluctant to attend their appointments.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There has been an improvement in the quantity and the quality of planned discussions with children. Staff record these conversations in a child-friendly manner using the home’s therapeutic approach. The records are written with warmth and empathy. Management oversight has improved, and shortfalls in staff’s practice are addressed when needed.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a good experience of moving out of the home, and plans are child focused. Where appropriate, people who are important to the child are involved in the planning and preparation, which makes it a positive experience for the child moving out.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is currently undergoing a redecoration programme, which the children have been involved in. This includes new furniture being ordered, with staff focused on achieving a homely feel for the home.

p.3

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

Since the change in the management team, there has been a marked improvement in staff’s understanding of their responsibilities in keeping children safe. Staff have a greater understanding of the children’s needs and risks. The manager and deputy Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 4 manager have developed a ‘lead by example’ culture, which provides staff with the opportunity to watch and learn good practice.

p.3

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

Children’s risk assessments are updated regularly. These help staff to respond promptly to an identified risk. There have been two anomalies identified in the risk assessments, but these have had no impact on the children.

p.4

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

Children no longer regularly go missing from the home. However, if they do go missing, there are clear risk assessments, which staff find easy to follow. Staff work closely with relatives and the police to secure a swift return home. The manager continues to ensure that children are given the opportunity to speak to someone independent.

p.4

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

On occasions, children have displayed self-harming behaviours. Staff now have a greater understanding of recognising the early signs that a child may be distressed. This means that children receive a supportive response from staff. Furthermore, staff share information with each other when they hand over information at the start or end of their work hours.

p.4

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

Children are supported to take age-appropriate risks in a measured way. Significant progress has been made with one child who previously had no access to a mobile phone or time alone in the community. The child is now successfully managing owning a mobile phone and having time out alone, with staff monitoring closely to ensure their safety.

p.4

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

Since the last inspection, there has been no occasion when staff have had to physically intervene to keep children and others safe. If staff need to use consequences, these are natural and not of a punitive nature.

p.4

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

Staff and children speak to managers following any occasion when children have been in crisis. These discussions are used as a reflection and learning opportunity for staff.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home currently has no registered manager following the resignation of the previous manager. A new manager has taken up the post and is in the process of registering with Ofsted. The manager is a strong and effective advocate for the children, and when changes are needed to children’s safety plans or care plans, he is confident to speak up to address this with the placing authority.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is reflective and is respected by staff. When speaking about the manager, one parent said, ‘He is incredible. He is laid back but firm with boundaries. He never judges me or my child, and I have a good relationship with him.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staffing arrangements have been an ongoing issue for an extended period of time. However, there is an ongoing recruitment drive to recruit the right staff to work at the home. Currently, there are enough staff to care for the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 5 Staff receive regular supervision sessions. Staff said that the new manager and deputy manager are supportive and provide encouragement. Staff said that the management team listens, and they care. Furthermore, staff have received training to provide them with the skills to meet the children’s needs.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s monitoring and auditing systems are effective. These new systems allow the manager to ensure that staff provide a consistently high quality of care to the children. The manager and staff team are committed to continuing their journey of learning and development to improve outcomes for children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers had met all the steps within the compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 6

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. They should also ensure that risk assessments are kept up to date. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered manager should ensure that the home’s statement of purpose is kept under review. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)

p.6

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: 2593651 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Keys Group, Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen B63 4AH

p.7

Inspector

Angela Ross, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2593651 8 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

p.7

Inspector

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.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8