Children's Home run by Bluebell children’s care Ltd in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 1 Registered provider: Bluebell Children’s Care Limited

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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 provider and offers care for three children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, there were no children living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

This monitoring visit was undertaken following the inadequate judgement at the full inspection. The purpose of this visit was to review the steps taken to address the requirements in the compliance notices and to assess if the provider has adhered to the restriction of accommodation notice.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider has operated in accordance with the restriction of accommodation notice and has not admitted any children to the home. At the time of this visit, no children were living at the home and one child had left since the full inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The child previously placed in the home was not supported to access education. Staff provided limited structure and routine and there was a lack of boundaries. Although staff introduced an education planner, this was delayed and not implemented.

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Information about this children’s home

The child was missing from the home on multiple occasions and for extended periods. Responses to missing incidents were inconsistent. Staff did not always follow missing-from-home procedures or undertake regular searches. There was limited professional challenge to the placing authority regarding the child’s access to mobile phones and transport links.

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Information about this children’s home

Since the full inspection, the interim manager has left. A new deputy manager has taken on the manager role. They are supported by a new senior member of staff who is the acting deputy manager. Changes to the staff team resulted in the child being cared for by an unfamiliar and inexperienced staff team. As a result, staff were unable to ensure the child’s safety, and the child’s placement ended abruptly. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 2 Compliance notices have not yet been met. The new management team has begun putting in place training for the largely new staff group, who have limited prior experience of caring for children with complex needs. Training has included online and face-to-face sessions that were focused on daily planning, structure and routines.

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Information about this children’s home

An education procedure has been introduced. This will support staff to address educational issues. Staff have also reviewed the child’s risk assessment to support learning from incidents.

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Information about this children’s home

Staff experience, skills and training remain limited. The home’s statement of purpose and children’s plans refer to the use of a therapeutic model. However, staff have not received training in this approach. In addition, staff have not been trained in physical intervention and therefore would not be able to safely hold a child if required.

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Information about this children’s home

Safer recruitment procedures have not been consistently followed.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider has not submitted an updated statement of purpose to the regulator when changes have been made, as required by regulation.

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Information about this children’s home

The new manager has ensured that all staff have now received supervision. A revised supervision document guides supervision sessions. This means that supervisions now include discussions about safeguarding practice, decision-making and children’s progress. Supervisions also include discussions on staff development.

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Information about this children’s home

Leaders and managers have acknowledged the shortfalls identified at the previous inspection. Actions have been implemented, including revised procedures, staff training and strengthened oversight. These developments are recent and not yet embedded. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/09/2025 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 4

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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 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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the children’s individual risk management plans provide staff with clear strategies to manage and reduce risk, particularly around missing episodes and exploitation.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that risk management plans also take into consideration other relevant safety plans provided by external agencies to manage and mitigate risk. 21 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 5 This also relates to managers and staff following safeguarding procedures.

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Requirement Due date

*The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the provider ensuring that there is adequate management oversight in the home. Specifically, around the recording of significant incidents.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that significant incidents are evaluated with scrutiny, taking into consideration any learning outcomes that can be implemented within children’s risk management plans, or to support the development of staff.

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Requirement Due date

Also, the registered person must ensure that all staff have access to regular training that relates to the needs of the children. 21 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

*The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment; 21 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 6 help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(vi)(vii)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

The provider must advocate on behalf of children who are not in full-time education, by challenging and escalating concerns with the placing authority and virtual school.

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must ensure that when children are not in education, there is clear structure and routine in place at the home to support independent study.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that the child’s records are kept up to date.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement ("the statement of purpose") which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide a copy of the statement of purpose to HMCI and make a copy of it available upon request to—

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Requirement Due date

a child, or a child for whom accommodation in the home is being considered;

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Requirement Due date

a parent of a child, or a parent of a child for whom accommodation in the home is being considered;

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Requirement Due date

in the case of a qualifying school, the Secretary of State.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and 21 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 7 notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e) (3)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1)(a) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)) 21 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject of a compliance notice.

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Recommendation

 When a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30) Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 8

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bluebell Children’s Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christopher Dingley

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Inspectors

Nicola Forrester, Social Care Inspector Anna Belshaw, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2813238 10 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.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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