Children's home run by Simply Care (North West) Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 1 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Registered provider: Simply Care (North West) Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in July 2025 and is owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2025.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 2 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Since registration, one child moved into the home and subsequently moved out after a brief period. At the time the child moved in, the manager did not consider the child’s risks in line with staff sufficiency, competence or skills. Staff were unable to consistently meet the child’s needs, resulting in a swift breakdown of their placement. The child was not helped to make any progress during their time at the home. No further children have lived at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

While living at the home, the child did not access any educational provision or service. No provision was identified before the child moved into the home, and there was no clear plan for the child to access education. Staff did not attempt to engage the child in any type of informal learning before they left the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staffing was inconsistent throughout the child’s time at the home, and this negatively affected staff’s ability to build any positive, sustainable relationships with the child. As a result, staff were unable to assist the child in making any measurable progress in terms of their health, routines or emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Following the child moving on from the home, the manager did not carry out any reflections to identify any areas of development or learning. This was a missed opportunity to reflect on practice and ensure that any future children moving in received a more positive experience of living at the home.

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

Staff do not have sufficient training, experience, skills or knowledge to understand the child’s risks, and they were unable to keep the child safe. Risk assessments do not clearly identify the child’s known risks, and there were no clear strategies in place for staff to follow.

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

The child was subject to a deprivation of liberty order throughout their time at the home; however, staff lacked understanding of this order and failed to implement it appropriately to keep the child safe. In addition, there was insufficient permanent staff in post to consistently support the level of supervision required to safely care for the child.

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

The child was missing from the home on two occasions. On both occasions, staff failed to act in accordance with the deprivation of liberty order to minimise the risk of the child being missing from the home. On one occasion, the child was left in police custody for a significant length of time due to a lack of staff available to collect them and bring them safely home.

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

Staff were not confident in using physical intervention, which resulted in one member of staff being seriously assaulted and subsequently leaving the organisation. The manager Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 3 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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

did not address this with the staff team or provide any further support around the use of physical intervention. No direct work was carried out with the child throughout their time at the home to support appropriate conflict resolution or to understand how to develop healthy, trusting relationships.

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

Staff did not receive the relevant training to understand the child’s risks in relation to self-harm. Room checks did not take place in line with the child’s plans to ensure that the child was safe despite this being a clear direction in the child’s deprivation of liberty order.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager is experienced and suitably qualified. He is supported by a responsible individual who is present in the home. The management team’s ability to identify areas of vulnerability in the staff team is limited. This hinders the improvement and development of practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Oversight of staff practice and incidents is poor and does not identify areas for development. The manager has not appropriately addressed this with staff. Evaluations are limited and are not reflective. No changes or improvements were made following incidents in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff have not had access to regular or consistent supervision. Only one member of staff has a record of supervision with the manager. This supervision was not child focused, reflective or practice led. The staff member raised concerns during their supervision regarding a lack of staffing in the home. This was not addressed by the manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff have not had access to relevant or sufficient training, with only two staff members completing the organisation’s mandatory training. The manager did not have sufficient oversight of staff training needs and failed to ensure that staff were appropriately trained and skilled in managing a child’s known risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

At the time of this inspection, only one permanent member of staff continued to be employed by the organisation. No further children could be safely cared for or supported to live at the home. Leaders and managers did not inform Ofsted of this change in circumstance before this inspection. As a result, action was taken to suspend the home’s registration. Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 4 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

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)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that care arrangements at the home include sufficiently trained and skilled staff who understand children’s risks and know how to keep them safe. 15 January 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—

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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; 15 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 5 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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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)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff are suitably experienced and equipped to care for children and that there are sufficient monitoring and review systems in place to improve the quality of care provided to them.

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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

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; 15 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 6 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children;

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Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same;

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iv)(v)(vii)(ix)(x)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff have a good understanding of children’s needs and that children are helped to learn from incidents in the home. The registered person must ensure that staff know how to help children rebuild positive relationships.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (1)(a) (4)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff receive adequate training and supervision in line with the home’s statement of purpose. 15 January 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 7 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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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: 2843339 8 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Simply Care (North West) Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1 Radburn Close, Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley PR6 7RB

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: James Winstanley

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Inspector

Justina Henry, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2843339 9 FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Inspector

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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