Children's Home run by New Horizons (Stockport) Limited in Tameside

Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 1 Registered provider: New Horizons (Stockport) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company runs this home. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who may have needs that relate to their disabilities and/or sensory impairment. There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector spent time with all four children during the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/07/2024 Full Good 04/04/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/05/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/11/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has moved into the home since the last inspection. Moving into the home has had a positive impact on the child. All the children are making good progress and are benefiting from the care and support they receive from the manager and staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is a large, detached house with a substantial garden. The home is welcoming and colourful. Children’s bedrooms are personalised and are full of the children’s favourite things. There are plenty of toys, books and games for the children to enjoy. Visual resources support the children’s understanding and communication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three of the children attend school. They have good attendance and are making progress. One child is not currently attending an education provision. The staff ensure that they provide structure and routine for the child, and the manager is working with other professionals to find a suitable alternative. Although the manager has escalated their concerns, they have not done so in a timely manner.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have made progress in many areas and have developed skills that will last a lifetime due to staff ensuring that the appropriate resources are available. One child is now able to eat independently at the table with others. This is a huge achievement and reduces the child’s reliance on staff support. Another child has developed their communication skills due to staff introducing symbols and sign. This reduces the child’s frustration as they are able to communicate their needs. Children have matured and have developed more socially aware behaviour. This has been important in ensuring that the children live happily together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While staff are motivated to support the children to develop their practical independence skills, they have not identified a need to support the children’s understanding of more complex life events, for example puberty and bereavement. Additionally, although children have been identified as being vulnerable due to needing support with personal care, plans do not highlight how staff will support children and reduce reliance on staff support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work hard to develop relationships with children’s families for the benefit of the children. As a result, some children’s time with family has improved. Children’s wishes are respected if they do not want to see family members, although this is revisited with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health and attend routine appointments. The manager ensures appropriate referrals to healthcare professionals are made and that staff follow the guidelines issued. As a result, any health concerns are addressed promptly. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 4 Children enjoy lots of activities, including cycling, swimming and playing in soft-play areas. Children have been supported to use public transport and to walk safely, which reduces the need for restrictive practices such as car harnesses and buggies.

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

The management team members are strong advocates for the use of positive behaviour support and ensure that the staff have the relevant skills and knowledge to support the children effectively. As a result, there has been a reduction in frequency, duration and intensity of incidents for all children. The staff rarely use physical restraint, and when intervention by staff has been required this has been appropriate and used to safeguard children.

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

There have been four medication errors since the last inspection. On each occasion, the staff ensured that they obtained medical advice for the children to ensure their well- being. The manager has followed this up appropriately with the staff involved and has made changes to reduce the risk of further errors.

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

The recording and monitoring of injuries sustained by children have improved. This means that staff have a clearer knowledge of when and where injuries have occurred and that they share and request appropriate information with the children’s school. Children who self-injure have clear protocols in place, agreed with their general practitioner on what action staff need to take and when. These practices ensure that the staff respond effectively to protect children’s well-being.

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

Any allegations made by a child or concerns raised regarding staff practice have been appropriately and thoroughly investigated. The outcome of disciplinary procedures has been in the best interests of the children and the manager has ensured that other professionals have been informed. However, the manager has not always informed the children of these outcomes.

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

The staff have a good understanding of the home’s safeguarding policies and the manager follows safer recruitment processes that reduce the risk of unsafe people working with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced and qualified. They are supported by a deputy manager and together they make a strong team that leads by example. They have high aspirations for the children and high expectations of the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, the staff team has been through a lot of change. The manager has recruited new staff, and the team is now more consistent for the children. There has been a need to use agency staff. However, the manager ensured that they were guided by more experienced staff and received supervision in line with permanent staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 5 The manager has good oversight of the children’s experiences and is aware of the strengths and areas of development. The independent person visits on a monthly basis and the manager uses their recommendations to make improvements to the quality of care provided to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular team meetings and supervision sessions ensure that the staff have time to reflect on their practice and discuss the children’s progress. Additionally, the staff have attended relevant training to help them to support the children effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The requirements made at the last inspection have been met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 6

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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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult; and

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Requirement Due date

make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(ii)(iv)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the registered person ensuring that children are supported to develop their understanding around complex processes, including puberty and bereavement. 5 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 7 This additionally relates to the registered person ensuring that there is a clear plan around personal care for the children and how a reduction in reliance on staff support will be achieved.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they escalate any concerns with the local authority in a timely manner. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 12, paragraph 2.8)  The registered person should ensure that children are updated on the outcome of any complaint they have made. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.13)

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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: 2591888 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Horizons (Stockport) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 154-156 Buxton Road High Lane, Stockport, Cheshire SK6 8EA

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Inspector

Kerri Lynch, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 9 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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