Children's home run by Lonsdale Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 1 Registered provider: Lonsdale Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private company. It provides care for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties and/or have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in June 2025.

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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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector spoke with all three children as part of the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff know the children well. They speak about them with pride, respect and genuine care. The children moved into the home in a planned way. This has helped them settle in well and build good relationships with each other and the staff. This has led to the children and staff enjoying various activities and trips out together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of education and consistently encourage children to attend. For example, one child has been encouraged to pursue a college course aligned with their interests. They are making progress and maintaining excellent attendance. This is good progress from their starting point. Through this dedicated support, children are empowered to achieve their educational potential and pursue their future aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s general health and emotional health needs are recognised and understood by the staff. Children are registered with healthcare providers and are regularly encouraged to attend routine and specialist health appointments. This helps children remain in good health. However, on one occasion, a staff member topped a child’s electronic cigarette with vape liquid at the request of the child’s parent. This could negatively impact the child’s health and does not support efforts to reduce this risk.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of supporting the children in seeing and maintaining contact with their families and friends. This helps the children to have relationships with the people who are important to them and to maintain a sense of identity and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are actively encouraged to participate in various activities and hobbies in the community. As a result, one child takes part in Taekwondo and Sea Cadets, and they enjoy going to a scooter park. Another child volunteers at a local horse stable, and the other child has boxing lessons. This helps children develop their interests and learn appropriate social skills to build new friendships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children live in a spacious home that is decorated and furnished to a good standard. The children like their home and their bedrooms, and they take pride in personalising their own spaces. Consequently, the children live in a happy, safe and relaxed home, where staff treat them with dignity and respect.

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

Staff know the children well and understand their histories, risks and vulnerabilities. Risk management plans consider the children’s risks and are regularly reviewed and updated by staff. Staff demonstrate that they understand the plans and know what action to take to safeguard the children. However, control measures to reduce and mitigate the risks Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 3 lack detailed guidance, which may hinder new staff in safeguarding the children effectively.

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

On two occasions, one child has gone missing from school since moving into the home. Staff take action to try and locate the child and work with the police to return them home safely. The child was offered an interview with a professional who is independent from the staff working at the home. This encourages the child to discuss any worries or concerns. This helps staff understand any triggers for the child and identify strategies to reduce and minimise the risk in the future.

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

All the children speak positively about living in the home. They feel safe and say that staff speak to them about staying safe. One child has not been missing since moving into the home. This is a significant reduction in risk in relation to exploitation. One parent said, ‘I have no concerns or worries at all; I think they are safer living in the home.’

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

On two occasions, staff have needed to hold a child to keep them safe. Physical intervention is only used as a last resort. The manager has evaluated the incidents, spoken to the staff and children involved, and deemed the holds to be necessary and proportionate to keep all involved safe from harm.

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

Overall, significant incidents are managed well in line with safeguarding protocols. However, on two occasions, Ofsted was not notified in line with regulation. This does not allow the regulator to have sufficient oversight and scrutiny of the incident.

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

A child made an allegation of abuse against their family members on one occasion. However, the staff delayed reporting this to the police and seeking medical attention for the child until the following day. Although the child was safeguarded, the organisation’s policy on safeguarding children was not sufficiently followed.

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

Staff are trained in a variety of areas, including safeguarding, self-harm, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and child exploitation. This provides opportunities for staff to develop their skills and knowledge. As a result, staff understand their roles and responsibilities regarding safeguarding practices, and children are safeguarded effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is overseen by an enthusiastic and competent registered manager. The staff feel supported by the manager and speak highly of the management team. One member of staff said:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

‘Working with [name of manager] has been amazing; he does absolutely everything he can for our children and makes sure they get the best support possible. [Name of manager] will always take on board what myself, staff and our children have to say. I would like to thank [name of manager] for the work he has done so far at [name of home].’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 4 A stable staff team works with the children. The team or a pool of staff familiar with the children fill any gaps in the roster. This creates consistent care for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff receive a thorough introduction to the organisation, their role and the home. On completion of their probationary period, staff are enrolled in training for a suitable qualification if they are not already qualified. This leads to consistency in care and support for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff receive regular supervision in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Staff attend regular team meetings and training. They use this time effectively to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children. Staff would benefit from using research to enhance their knowledge, skills and practice to support positive outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager welcomes external scrutiny of the quality of care provided to the children by the independent person who visits monthly. The manager is aware of the home’s strengths and weaknesses identified through their own reviewing and monitoring systems. Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 5

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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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(c) (2)(a)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person is responsible for discouraging children from vaping and ensuring that staff do not supply vaping materials to encourage a child to vape. 21 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)(vii)(e)) 21 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 6 Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the organisation’s child protection policy is adhered to. If a disclosure is made by a child, it must be promptly reported to the relevant individuals, and the necessary advice and guidance must be sought in a timely manner.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access research to enhance and develop their practice to support children’s individual needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should have a system in place to ensure that all serious incidents are notified, within 24 hours, to the appropriate individuals. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)

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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: 2834086 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lonsdale Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 20 Brookhouse Road, Caton, Lancaster LA2 9QT

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Inspector

Julie Elder, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2834086 8 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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