Bedspace Yorkshire Region

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 1 Bedspace Yorkshire Region Registered provider: Bedspace Resource Ltd.

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

provider

This supported accommodation service is operated by a private provider. The provider can accommodate up to 21 children in self-contained units, where the accommodation is for the sole use of one child, and eight group living premises that are not limited in their use to 16- and 17-year-olds or care leavers.

p.1

provider

At the time of the inspection, 32 children, who are looked after, were being accommodated.

p.1

provider

The service provides support using three different models. The first model of support is known by the provider as ‘group living’. In these premises a small group of between two and four children are supported by at least one staff member over a 24-hour period.

p.1

provider

In the second model of support, known by the provider as ‘outreach’, children live in their own accommodation, and staff provide direct support for between five and 20 hours each week.

p.1

provider

The third model of support is known by the provider as ‘solo’. Children living under this model receive a minimum of one-to-one support from a staff member for 24 hours a day.

p.1

provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 18 August 2025 and started that day. The inspectors were on site from 20 to 22 August 2025.

p.1

Outcome

The inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 2

p.1

Summary of findings

Children’s experiences and progress vary while living with the provider. When children who are ready to live in supported accommodation move into the premises, they make good progress towards adulthood. However, when children with complex needs move into the premises, their progress is limited because staff do not have the required skills or knowledge to meet the children’s needs.

p.2

Summary of findings

Children live in good-quality accommodation that is located to enable them to access local amenities and employment or educational opportunities.

p.2

Summary of findings

Leaders, managers and staff are caring and take time to build positive and trusting relationships with the children that they support.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Children who have good independence skills and can keep themselves safe in the community make good progress and settle quickly into their new homes. However, some children move into their accommodation without the skills to keep themselves safe. For these children, their progress is limited because staff do not have the skills or resources to meet their complex needs.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Children usually move into their accommodation in a planned way. Staff and managers take the time to meet the children before their placements are agreed. They explain to children the expectations of the home and the rules and boundaries. This provides children with an opportunity to consider if they would like to move into the premises or choose alternative living arrangements.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Similarly, most children move on from the service in a planned way. They receive effective support to secure their own tenancy and, where necessary, apply for grants and benefits to ensure that they are financially secure. When agreed with placing authorities, the provider continues to support young adults until they have the skills to apply for and manage their own tenancy. As a result, children and young adults have consistency in their support arrangements.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Children have good relationships with the staff who support them. They consistently said that staff are friendly, helpful and understanding. This helps children to feel respected and that their views are valued and acted on by the staff.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are supported to make connections with their cultural communities in the areas where they live. Staff use a range of methods to ensure that they can communicate effectively with children whose first language is not English. This helps children to understand their support plans and to begin to develop their English language skills. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 3 Children are supported to engage in education, training and employment in an area that interests them. When barriers arise, staff collaborate with children and other agencies to help children engage meaningfully in alternative education, training or employment opportunities. For example, some children attend bespoke education arrangements. This helps children to understand the value of education and employment and to plan for their futures.

p.2

How well children are helped and protected

When children’s placements are agreed, leaders and managers do not thoroughly consider the impact of new children moving into group living premises. This has a negative impact on the group dynamics and has resulted in some children having a further move that could have been avoided.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Children who require specialist support for substance misuse, exploitation and criminal behaviour do not consistently receive the support that they require, despite their needs being known. This is because leaders and managers do not challenge other services effectively when they fail to provide support in line with the children’s agreed plans. For example, one child has not received support from specialist agencies for five months because they moved to another area. This limits children’s progress and increases risks to their safety.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

When new risks to children emerge, staff do not routinely support children to learn how to keep themselves safe. For example, two complaints were made by a neighbour about a child using illegal substances at the premises. Staff provided advice to the child to smoke illegal substances in the community and to cease smoking in their home. They failed to address the legality of substances or the impact of illegal substances on the child’s health and well-being.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Children live in homely and welcoming environments that are well maintained and personalised to children’s individual preferences. However, leaders and managers do not consider known risks in the immediate location. For example, one block of flats, which provides support for four children, is co-occupied by another provider who supports young people who have been released from custodial sentences. The location risk assessment does not consider this matter as a risk. This places children at a potentially increased risk of harm.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

When children do not return home as planned, staff try to locate them before reporting them as missing from home. Staff know and understand the risks to individual children when they are missing and follow the organisation’s procedures well. They demonstrate curiosity when children return and use information provided by children to better understand how to support them to become increasingly safe.

p.3

How well children are helped and protected

Children say they feel safe in their accommodation and know how to raise any concerns or complaints with the staff and managers. They said that when concerns arise, staff take prompt action to resolve these. For example, one child encountered anti-social behaviour from a neighbour. Staff worked with housing colleagues, and the matter was addressed quickly. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 4

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers carry out assessments of children’s needs before agreeing their placements. However, these assessments are not consistently thorough and have led to some children’s placements being agreed when their needs surpass the support that is available to them in the service. For some children, this has led to their placements ending suddenly, and for others, it has resulted in increased levels of supervision which exceed the supported accommodation regulations.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

When children’s needs and vulnerabilities increase, leaders and managers respond by increasing support or moving children to an alternative category of accommodation or location. This demonstrates a responsive leadership team. However, leaders and managers have failed to recognise that the service they are registered to provide and the resources they have are limited to support and not care. As a result, some children’s needs are not being met, and their progress is limited. Furthermore, leaders and managers have failed to appropriately challenge placing authorities to ensure children’s living arrangements are suitable and in the children’s best interests.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not ensure that they hold children’s formal review records or minutes from professionals’ meetings, for example strategy meeting minutes. This hinders staff’s ability to develop meaningful plans in line with children’s agreed goals and objectives. As a result, staff do not have up-to-date information. This potentially places children at an increased risk of harm.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers are reflective and eager to provide an effective service to children. They use a range of different methods to monitor the quality of the service, and they take steps to make changes when development areas are identified by their independent quality assurance team.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff consistently said that they are well supported by leaders and managers to carry out their roles. They receive regular supervision, which is reflective and provides opportunities for staff to develop their skills to support children effectively.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Recruitment and induction procedures are robust. Staff undertake a range of mandatory training courses to ensure they have a good understanding of their role and their responsibilities. When gaps in staff knowledge are identified, they are provided with additional training opportunities through the learning and development department to ensure they have the correct understanding. Equally, when changes occur within the organisation as a result of quality reviews, leaders and managers implement workshops to ensure that staff are aware of new expectations and have the skills to perform their duties. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking that 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.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place to manage referrals of children to the supported accommodation undertaking and admissions of children to premises used as supported accommodation, including, where relevant, emergency referrals and admissions. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(f)) 28 October 2025

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

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. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(f)(iii)) 28 October 2025

p.5

Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 28 October 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 6 ensure that the location of the premises used as supported accommodation is suitable for the category or categories of supported accommodation provided, by—

p.5

Requirement Due date

reviewing the appropriateness and suitability of the location of each of the premises used as supported accommodation ("a location assessment"), and in doing so, consulting and taking into account the views of each relevant person. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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

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 that processes are in place to enable children to access support from other organisations and community services, such that they are encouraged and enabled to access a range of services, including those offered by advocacy organisations and training providers;

p.6

Requirement Due date

in the event that the registered person or a member of staff considers that an accommodating authority or a relevant person is failing to provide the support set out in a child’s relevant plans, make representations, or, as the case may be, enable staff to make representations, to the accommodating authority or relevant person with a view to ensuring that the child’s needs are met. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(c)(g)(h)) 28 October 2025

p.6

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: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 7

p.6

Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Bedspace Resource Ltd.

p.7

Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: 473 Chester Road, Manchester M16 9HF

p.7

Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Debbie Barrell

p.7

Inspectors

Beth Forster, Social Care Inspector Laura Grundy, Social Care Inspector Patrick McIntosh, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Bedspace Yorkshire Region 8 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

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.8

Inspectors

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

p.8

Inspectors

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

p.8