Children's home run by Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 1 Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education 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

This home is owned by a private organisation. It provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since June 2019 and is suitably qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. All children were seen and spoken to by the inspectors.

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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

Date of last inspection: 25 February 2025

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/02/2025 Full Outstanding 05/03/2024 Full Good 08/02/2023 Full Outstanding 10/11/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children live in a warm, welcoming and homely environment. The home is personalised and strongly reflects the interests and personalities of the children who live there. There are comfortable spaces for children to relax and enjoy. The walls are adorned with photos of the children enjoying holidays and activities with staff and each other. Children’s bedrooms are individually decorated to reflect each child’s interests and choices.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff sensitively plan for children moving into the home. One child has recently moved in. Their needs were carefully considered alongside the needs and views of children already living in the home. The child received a welcome pack and a video tour and visited the home to meet staff and peers. These opportunities provide reassurance to children that staff value their experiences and help them begin to build positive and trusting relationships with staff and each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff provide children with exceptionally high levels of nurture and emotional support. They are highly skilled in developing strong, trusting relationships, which enable children to feel safe and secure. Interactions between staff and children, and among children themselves, are warm, natural and reciprocal. This creates a stable environment where children make exceptional progress from their starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children who have experienced trauma before moving into the home benefit from the considerable support and encouragement provided by staff, which reassures and helps them to flourish. For example, one child who previously lacked confidence and struggled to form and maintain peer relationships now attends regular extra-curricular clubs, successfully participated in a weekend camp without staff support and was nominated for a local authority achievement award.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff ensure that children’s voices are actively heard through informal conversations, structured discussions and consultation methods such as questionnaires. Staff provide high-quality, reflective and purposeful encouragement that enables children to express their wishes and feelings. These views are routinely shared and discussed during team meetings, ensuring a consistent and responsive approach. The registered manager takes time to respond to children personally, reinforcing the value placed on their contributions. This inclusive and child-centred approach ensures that children feel listened to and are empowered to participate in decisions that affect their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff are proactive in supporting children to maintain positive relationships with their families. Families receive regular communication from the registered manager. One parent said, ‘The registered manager has been a key point of support both for [name of child] and for us as a family. We feel listened to and involved.’ Where appropriate, parents are invited into the home, and staff take purposeful steps to create a welcoming Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 4 and enjoyable experience. These efforts help children to sustain meaningful and emotionally enriching relationships with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff actively encourage children to explore their culture, identity and heritage and are accepting and resourceful in their approach. Through research, they broaden their own understanding to be able to help children explore their feelings. Excellent, well-informed support helps children to accept and be proud of who they are.

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

The registered manager and staff demonstrate an exceptional commitment to safeguarding. Children experience consistently high levels of safety planning and stability. Proactive safeguarding practice means that risks are identified in their early stages and effective responses are coordinated. For example, regular monitoring of a child’s phone highlighted messages indicating concerns about their emotional well-being. Staff acted immediately to safeguard the child, offering consistent reassurance and emotional support to help them manage these feelings. In addition, staff sought specialist advice to strengthen the support provided, ensuring the child’s needs were met comprehensively. As a result of this robust and responsive approach, there have been no further concerns.

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

Staff are skilled and knowledgeable about safeguarding and risk. Managers place a high emphasis on staff implementing their learning from training into their day-to-day practice. Specialist training and clinical support help them to know how to support children’s specific needs. This promotes children’s safety and ensures that presenting vulnerabilities of children are considered and staff have the skills to mitigate those risks.

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

Incidents of concern are minimal. When they do occur, staff are clear and self-assured in their response. Staff use professional curiosity with children to understand the reasons for their expressed behaviour and provide consistent assurance to them. For example, one child’s worries about starting college impacted on their emotional well-being. The staff sensitively and creatively helped the child develop coping strategies and communication tools to express their feelings in a safe way. This needs-led approach has a positive impact on children’s safety and overall well-being.

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

Children are supported to understand how to keep themselves safe and to take age- appropriate risks. Staff encourage and promote children’s resilience and emotional well- being, enabling them to develop essential life skills. Children are encouraged to become increasingly independent at a pace that suits their individual needs. Due to the skilled care and support provided by staff, one child is now able to enjoy spending time in the community with friends, which was not previously considered safe. This demonstrates significant progress in their social development and personal safety awareness. Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager demonstrates exceptional dedication to his role, models best practice and is held in high regard by his team. He leads with inspiration and proactivity, fostering a culture of support and collaboration. His humility in response to positive success reflects his commitment to celebrating children’s and staff achievements rather than personal accolades. This approach has developed a highly motivated and cohesive team, contributing to consistently high standards of care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Children benefit from continuous, exceptional care delivered by a stable and experienced staff team. Staff demonstrate a strong understanding of children’s needs, underpinned by extensive professional experience and a commitment to evidence-informed practice. Their knowledge is continually enhanced through a robust programme of mandatory and refresher training, appraisals and targeted team meetings. Regular supervision, led by the registered manager and senior staff, provides reflective and supportive opportunities that promote professional development and drive improvements in practice. As a result, children experience excellent outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager and staff work effectively and in partnership with a range of professionals. There is consistent positive feedback from professionals about the impact their care and support are having on children’s lives. One professional said, ‘The registered manager and staff are professional, collaborative and proactive in their communication. Their thoughtful and measured approach to care has contributed to the child’s growth and resilience.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Monitoring systems are comprehensive and enable the registered manager to have exceptional oversight of the home. The registered manager is meticulous in his efforts to ensure records are accurate, and there is clear, effective management oversight. He ensures that there are rigorous recruitment checks in the employment of a suitable and safe workforce.

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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: 1277734 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/O DWF Company Secretarial Services Limited, 1 Scott Place 2 Hardman Street, Manchester M3 3AA

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Inspectors

Julia Tompson, Social Care Inspector Helen Dickens, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1277734 7 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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