Children's home run by New Moon Residential Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 1 Registered provider: New Moon Residential Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private organisation. It provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living at the home. Two children spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2024.

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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: 29 October 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: 2710735 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/10/2024 Full Good 18/07/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are settled and feel secure. They are making good progress from their individual starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they like living at the home and that they have good relationships with staff. One child said, ‘Living here is a blessing that I feel grateful for. I am a totally different person now. Staff have built me.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are nurturing in their approach and strive to provide children with a safe, secure and loving home. Families and professionals consistently say that children are ‘thriving’ living at this home. One family member said, ‘[Child’s name] has become a child again and got his smile back.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive lots of praise and their achievements are celebrated. Staff seek opportunities to tell children how proud they are of them and the progress they are making. Receiving praise and recognition helps to enhance children’s self-esteem and confidence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff carefully plan a wide range of activities that are interesting, engaging and expand children’s life experiences. For example, staff have organised driving courses, camping trips and overseas holidays for children. This makes living at the home a more enjoyable and fulfilling experience for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health. Staff help children to understand how to keep themselves healthy and safe. Staff offer support and reassurance when children are reluctant to attend health appointments. This approach has helped one child to overcome their anxieties about having vaccinations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children generally have positive relationships with each other. However, two of the children’s relationship can be fractious. When disagreements occur, staff intervene and poor behaviour is challenged and discussed. However, more support is required to help children to resolve conflicts constructively and to live together more harmoniously.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are supporting one child to prepare to live more independently. The child is ambitious and keen to find employment. Staff are supporting the child to create a CV and to look for work. The child succeeded in securing paid employment over the summer holidays and has recently completed work experience with a local employer. However, the child does not have access to careers advice to help maximise their chances of gaining permanent employment. In addition, the child does not have sufficient information about their rights and the support they could be entitled to when they leave care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 4

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

Children say that they feel safe living at the home. Furthermore, family members and professionals express confidence in the staff team’s ability to safeguard children.

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

Risks for some children have significantly reduced. For example, one child who previously went missing from home on a regular basis now rarely does so. This is due to them being settled and engaged in positive and purposeful activities.

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

One child went missing from the home more frequently. The child was vulnerable to criminal exploitation when they were away from the home. Staff were persistent in their efforts to disrupt this pattern of behaviour. However, notice was served on this child’s placement when these risks escalated and staff were unable to keep the child safe.

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

Children’s behaviour support plans are detailed and bespoke to the individual children. However, there has been an incident when staff did not act in line with one child’s plan. The staff involved do not usually work at this home. The manager has put additional measures in place to minimise the risk of reoccurrence. This includes taking steps to ensure that staff are given a full handover of information prior to working at the home.

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

Staff manage most difficult situations calmly and confidently. Physical intervention is only used as a last resort. Children are given the opportunity to talk about the incident afterwards. This helps managers to understand what happened from the child’s perspective and consider whether changes to staff practice are necessary. However, on one occasion managers did not speak to the staff members involved in the incident. This is a missed opportunity to learn from the incident and ensure that agreed procedures were followed.

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

Positive behaviour is rewarded. Children are encouraged to choose rewards that are meaningful to them. This approach is successful and has encouraged one child to attend school more regularly.

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

Allegations and complaints are taken seriously and investigated. Where managers identify shortfalls in staff practice, action is taken to learn from the incident and to secure improvement. For example, refresher training on safeguarding and the company’s whistleblowing policy has been provided to the staff team.

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

The full names of staff on duty at the home are not recorded on the staff rota. As a result, these documents cannot be relied on to identify who has been responsible for the care of children. The manager took steps to address this during the inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is a visible and accessible leader. He is supported by an experienced deputy manager. Together they form a cohesive management team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 5 The manager is focussed on ensuring that children live in a stable, nurturing family environment. He is committed to ensuring that children receive high quality care that supports them to fulfil their potential.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say they feel well supported by their manager. They receive regular supervision and attend training to ensure that their skills and knowledge remain current. Staff have regular team meetings and daily handovers. This enables them to share relevant key information and provide continuity of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has monitoring systems in place to review the quality of care provided to children. He reviews records of significant incidents at the home and is keen to learn lessons from practice. However, some records of significant events at the home are incomplete which makes it difficult to understand whether staff have taken appropriate action. Managers have identified this issue and are taking action to address this with staff. For example, additional training on reporting and recording has been provided to the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Ofsted are not always informed of significant incidents at the home in a timely way. For example, there was a delay in informing Ofsted of concerns the provider had received from a whistle-blower. This compromises the regulator’s oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals speak highly of the home and the progress children are making. They value the good communication from staff and say that they are kept updated about children’s progress. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 6

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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 notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 28 February 2026

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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. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii)) 28 February 2026

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home. 28 February 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 7 The registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the staff roster should include the full names of the staff working at the home.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are supported to develop understanding and empathy towards each other. Children should be helped to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.11)  The registered person should ensure that children are supported to prepare for their move to independent living. This includes helping children to understand their rights and entitlements. Access to appropriate career guidance should be facilitated. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.27)

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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: 2710735 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Moon Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 67 Chorley Old Road, Bolton BL1 3AJ

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Inspector

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2710735 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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