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Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 1 SC394463 Registered provider: Cornerstone Children’s Homes Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private company and is registered to provide care for up to three children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties. Two children were living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2025.

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This monitoring visit

Following a full inspection on 23 and 24 September 2025, the home was judged inadequate. Children were not always adequately supervised, which had led to incidents between them. Poor practice was identified in the management of incidents between children. Additionally, risks around fire-setting had not been managed effectively. Leaders and managers did not always have effective oversight or identify when staff practice had fallen below acceptable standards. A restriction of accommodation notice was issued under section 22A of the Care Standards Act 2000.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this visit was to review whether the action taken means that the restriction of accommodation notice can be lifted and if leaders and managers have taken steps to ensure that children’s experiences have improved.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home. Two children remain living at the home. Both children spoke to the inspector and said that their home was now a calmer and more pleasant place to live. The manager has ensured that staff have been provided with clearer guidance about how to support the children. He has also ensured that staff are fully aware of their safeguarding responsibilities. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 2 Supervision of children has increased and the measures in place to monitor children’s movements within the home have been rigorously assessed. There have been fewer incidents between children. When incidents have happened between the children, staff have been quick to intervene to prevent escalation. On some occasions, in accordance with their training, staff have used low-level physical intervention in the form of guides to encourage children to separate. This has been proportionate and

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This monitoring visit

has allowed children to feel safer in their home. However, staff are still not always spoken to after the use of physical intervention. This prevents learning from incidents.

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This monitoring visit

Staff have had refresher training on fire procedures. The manager ensures that protocols are re-enforced during team meetings and supervision sessions. Steps have been taken to reduce the risk of fire at the home and increased checks of the home environment for fire risks are being undertaken.

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This monitoring visit

The manager and the responsible individual have accepted all the shortfalls raised at the last inspection. They, and the staff team, have worked hard to address the concerns raised and ensure that the children are safeguarded.

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This monitoring visit

A case review was held on 19 November 2025 to consider if the restriction notice could be lifted. It is felt that sufficient progress has been made, therefore the restriction of accommodation notice will be lifted. Some of the requirements raised at the last inspection were not fully explored and therefore are restated. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/09/2025 Full Inadequate 03/09/2024 Full Good 29/08/2023 Full Good 28/09/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful; 20 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 5 de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children;

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Requirement Due date

understand and communicate to children that bullying is unacceptable; and

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(xi)(xii)(xii)(xiii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that bullying in the home is not tolerated. Staff must ensure that positive relationships between children are encouraged. Children should be supported to understand their behaviour and how this impacts on others.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that positive routines and boundaries are promoted in the home.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the full inspection. It has not been reviewed as part of the monitoring visit and remains in place.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and 20 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 6 plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s parents, relatives and friends is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

the child is, or has been, persistently absent from the home without permission.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(iii)(c)(d)(e)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all possible measures are taken to prevent immediate notice being served on a child’s placement. This includes joint working with the local authority and other partner agencies to provide support to the child.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that when considering new children coming to live at the home, the impact on children already living there is fully assessed. Furthermore, robust consideration must be given to the suitability of children to live together.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they challenge the local authority in a timely manner when family time for children is not being promoted in line with their plans.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the full inspection. It has not been reviewed as part of the monitoring visit and remains in place. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 7 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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they have effective oversight of the home. Incidents in the home must be fully evaluated and any learning from these is taken into consideration when making improvements to the care afforded to children. Any shortfalls in staff practice must be addressed in a robust and timely manner.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they make effective use of monitoring systems and tools in the home to monitor the quality of care. They should ensure that any external 20 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 8 monitoring of the home is robust and feedback on the quality of care is gathered from a range of sources.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the full inspection. It has not been reviewed as part of the monitoring visit and remains in place.

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they speak to staff after any use of physical intervention to allow for learning from the event.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the full inspection and is restated. 20 October 2025

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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: SC394463 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cornerstone Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Centenary House, Centenary Way, Salford M50 1RF

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Inspector

Eve Ostridge, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC394463 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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