Children's home run by Holistic Care Service Nationwide Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 1 Registered provider: Holistic Care Service Nationwide 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 operated by a private company and is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

One child was living at the home at the time of this inspection. The child spoke to the inspector during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered provider has recently appointed a new responsible individual. Ofsted are currently considering the proposed responsible individual’s suitability.

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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: 10 September 2024

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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: 2632889 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/09/2024 Full Good 30/08/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has lived at the home for 18 months. Staff have supported the child through various difficulties and challenges, which has allowed them to remain living at their home. This has provided the child with stability and a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand and support the child’s health needs. Staff and the manager work closely with health professionals to ensure that the child has access to specialist support services when necessary. Staff provided a high level of support and reassurance for the child during their recent hospital stays.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is valued at the home. The child is supported to engage with a home tutor, and there is effective multi-agency working with education professionals to improve the child’s outcomes in education. The child is making good progress in their education and has moved up to the next key stage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and the manager understand the importance of family time. Family members visit the home, which gives the child a sense of normality. For the child’s birthday, staff held a joint party at the home with a family member present. They enjoyed birthday cake and food that is important to the family’s cultural heritage.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff advocate well for the child and listen to their wishes and feelings. The child is supported to express their views about their local authority plans. The child knows how to make a complaint, and the manager ensures that complaint outcomes are clearly communicated to the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is suitable for the child. It is clean, welcoming and a safe environment. The child has personalised their bedroom and has chosen their décor and paint colours.

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

The child is kept safe by staff who are knowledgeable about their needs and vulnerabilities. The manager has ensured that there is clear guidance in place to support the care of the child. Staff attempt to work with the child using therapeutic techniques and display a high level of nurture. A support worker from an external agency said, ‘The staff have done everything they can to keep [name of child] safe. They go above and beyond.’

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

When incidents occur, staff support the child in accordance with their training and guidance from the manager. When physical intervention is used, it is proportionate and necessary. Physical intervention records are sufficiently detailed, and staff and the child are spoken with after incidents. Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 4 The child does not go missing from home frequently. When they do, staff follow stringent procedures and actively search for the child and welcome them home when they return. However, after one missing-from-home incident, staff did not fully record the information about where the child was found.

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

Staff are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities and know how to escalate concerns, including to external safeguarding agencies. Allegations made against staff are investigated fully. The manager notifies all relevant safeguarding partners and the regulator. However, safe recruitment practices are not always followed. In one case, gaps in employment history were not fully explored. In addition, the recruiting manager did not fully consider the staff member’s suitability for the role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and is completing a relevant qualification. She is supported by a committed and stable staff team. The manager has a range of tools to monitor staff performance and the care provided to the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report that they feel supported by the manager. Regular team meetings are used for discussion, reflection and to embed learning. Staff receive regular supervision sessions, which allows them to reflect on and develop their practice. There is evidence of challenge when staff practice does not meet required standards.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is minimal use of staff from other homes in the organisation, which ensures consistency for the child. However, when an agency member of staff was used recently, their full name was not recorded on the rota.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a range of experience in the staff team. Some staff are qualified and experienced in childcare. New members of staff complete an induction before being enrolled to attain a recognised childcare qualification. Staff have access to relevant training and have the skills to meet the needs of the child, including any new needs that emerge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has formed positive working relationships with other professionals. She challenges other professionals to achieve the best outcomes for the child. However, the most recent local authority care plan for the child has not been received and the manager has not escalated this in a timely manner. Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 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 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 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

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that when references do not comment on suitability for the role, potential risks this may pose must be fully explored and analysed by the registered person. Furthermore, any gaps in employment history must be identified and explored, with a full written explanation for these being recorded. 20 December 2025

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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. (Regulation 36 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that records are kept which detail the location where a child is found when they have been missing. 20 December 2025

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children— 20 December 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 6 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

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they receive the most recent local authority care plan for the child.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that full names of all staff are recorded on staff rotas. Regulations 35 to 39 detail the records that must be kept in children’s homes. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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: 2632889 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Holistic Care Service Nationwide Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4 Rose Hill, Southport PR9 0SN

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Inspectors

Eve Ostridge, Social Care Inspector Sonja Vega, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2632889 8 and inspects 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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