Children's Home run by Accord Care Homes Limited in Bury

Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 1 Registered provider: Accord Care Homes Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company operates this children’s home. The home provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There were no children living at the home at the time of this monitoring visit.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager post has been vacant since 11 July 2024. There is a new manager who has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

An urgent condition was imposed on 25 April 2025 that limits care provision to one child. This condition was reissued on 18 July 2025 and 18 September 2025.

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This monitoring visit

Since the imposition of the urgent condition, no children have been accommodated at the home.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this monitoring visit was to evaluate the actions taken by the provider in response to the requirements raised at the last inspection. The inspector determined that the provider has partially addressed the required steps. However, due to the absence of any children currently living in the home, it has not been possible to assess the provider’s safeguarding capacity or the quality and competency of the staff in practice. Requirements raised under regulations 5, 12, 13, 14 and 35 remain unmet as no child has been accommodated at the home.

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This monitoring visit

At the time of this monitoring visit, the manager was not formally registered with Ofsted, however, the registration process was completed on 2 December 2025. The manager was previously the deputy manager of the home. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 2 Targeted recruitment efforts have resulted in six new full-time members of staff starting to work at the home. However, one senior member of staff has left. There are continued recruitment efforts aimed at attracting new experienced and inexperienced professionals to the team.

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This monitoring visit

The responsible individual and the manager continue to use a comprehensive monitoring framework and are committed to providing regular support to the staff. This system is being actively used to monitor training, health and safety-related checks and managerial responsibilities, such as audits of the quality of care and practice of staff. Monthly supervision continues to take place, and the clinical team delivers therapeutic guidance to the staff on how to respond to the needs of children at these meetings.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last monitoring visit, staff have continued to receive training via online portals and face to face from trained practitioners. However, there has been delay in staff completing face-to-face training due to their availability. The outstanding training is scheduled to be delivered throughout December 2025 into January 2026.

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This monitoring visit

To demonstrate full compliance with The Children’s Homes (England) regulations, leaders and managers should prioritise the admission of a child to the home. This will provide an essential opportunity for staff to apply and evidence their understanding of the children’s homes regulations, and the newly introduced guidance and training in practice.

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This monitoring visit

Following this monitoring visit, Ofsted has imposed a further urgent condition, limiting the number of children who may live in the home to one. The urgent condition is effective from 11 December 2025 until 5 March 2026. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/07/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 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

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)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff follow the individual child’s risk plans and that children are provided with the opportunity to engage in return home interviews following episodes of being missing from the home.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 23 February 2026

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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— 23 February 2026 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 5 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

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered provider must ensure that staff work as a team and provide consistent boundaries and expectations for the children, use effective monitoring systems to recognise any shortfalls in practice and respond swiftly to address the shortfalls.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; the name of the person who used the 23 February 2026 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 6 measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; and

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Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation. (Regulation 5(a)(c)(d)) 23 February 2026 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 7 In particular, the registered person must ensure that leaders and managers advocate for children and challenge the decisions made by professionals if they are not in the best interests of children.

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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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they consider whether staff are able to meet the needs of the child before they move in.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 23 February 2026

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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: 2759542 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Accord Care Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 24 Greek Street, Stockport SK3 8AB

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Abdullah Zulfiqar

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Inspector

Paul McKay-Smith, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2759542 9 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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Inspector

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