Children's home run by Positive Pathways Limited

Inspection report children's home: 2557914 1 Registered provider: Positive Pathways 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 provides care for up to 3 children who may have social and emotional difficulties and/or a learning disability.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living in the home. All children were present during the inspection and spoke with the inspector.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since March 2021. She is suitably qualified and experienced.

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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: 30 September 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

This children’s home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 30 September and 1 October 2025. Ofsted issued a compliance notice, under regulation 13. A monitoring visit took place 22 November 2025, where the compliance notice under regulation 13 had been met. Inspection report children's home: 2557914 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/09/2025 Full Inadequate 28/08/2024 Full Good 19/09/2023 Full Good 20/07/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children's home: 2557914 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a welcoming, homely and well-decorated home. Children’s artwork and photos of children are displayed throughout the home. Children’s bedrooms are personalised and comfortably furnished. This helps children to settle in the home and develop a sense of self-worth.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff want the best for the children who live here. Relationships between adults and children are warm, affectionate and loving. Their positive relationships are clear to see. Children are also extremely positive about living here. One child told the inspector 'I love it. The best thing is the adults who care for me'.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Internal care planning processes are structured and well recorded. Staff complete internal placement plans to a good standard. These plans detail clear targets and enable staff to track children’s progress and achievements. Children’s internal care plans detail longer-term aims and mirror statutory care plans. This promotes good-quality and consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop independence skills at a pace that suits their needs and abilities. Children develop skills, such as being able to budget, travel independently, complete laundry tasks and prepare basic meals. These opportunities enable children to take on appropriate levels of responsibility to develop life skills for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to stay in touch with people who are important to them. Staff support family visits and recognise the importance of these relationships. One parent told the inspector, 'Staff have been perfect, I cannot fault them. They cannot do any more than they are doing, they have given it their all'.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff understand the importance of education. All children continue to face challenges with their education, and their attendance continues to be an area concern. The manager is persistent with children in motivating them to want to learn and finding ways to engage them, despite coming up against a lot of resistance. They work in partnership with schools and the placing authority to find children a suitable provision that reflects their learning needs and understand their individual barriers to learning. This helps children to maintain a daily routine that supports their academic needs. However, one child is currently not in education, employment, or training, whilst this child has attended a college interview for a course starting in September 2026, there has been a lack of action to provide anything else in the interim.

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

Managers and staff are clear about their responsibilities to protect children. Staff understand the child protection policy and know how to report a safeguarding concern. The manager has an effective system in place for recording, reporting and monitoring Inspection report children's home: 2557914 4 safeguarding concerns. Liaison with professionals is effective. Information is shared swiftly with professionals to avoid delay and to ensure that children are protected from harm. The manager takes guidance from these professionals, and they work together to ensure that children are safe. Safeguarding records are comprehensive. They detail the outcome of any concern, as well as further actions that staff need to be aware of.

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

Staff educate children about risk. Children take part in key-work sessions and engage in conversations to address identified risks and raise their awareness about topics of concern. This direct work includes dangers of going missing from home, keeping safe in the community, and making safe and lawful choices. This positive work enhances children’s knowledge of risk and allows them to take the lead in their learning.

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

Children’s risk assessments are detailed and clear. These plans provide the staff with the information and guidance they need to understand and support the specific vulnerabilities and risks for each child. This awareness is embedded in the staff’s day-to- day work, which effectively reduces and minimises the risks for children. Staff are directed in how to manage and mitigate the risks identified for each child.

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

When children go missing from care, staff follow the joint protocol effectively. Searches conducted by staff and persistent attempts to make contact show children they are cared about. Proactive collaboration with parents, local authorities and police supports children to return home safely. Multi-agency meetings are held when required to support children to keep safe. Missing-from-care incident records are clear, enabling thorough monitoring of these events by the manager.

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

Managers and staff listen to children’s views. Children know how to make a complaint, and any complaints are taken seriously. For example, one child has been supported to write a letter to their social worker sharing their feelings, as they did not want to leave the home to move to supported accommodation. They were also supported by an advocate. In addition, the manager raised formal concerns with the local authority, heavily advocating for the child in line with their views and wishes. As a result, children feel listened to and valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an extremely dedicated, passionate and conscientious manager. She is enthusiastic about the service and advocating for children's views. She keeps children at the heart of all she does. The manager shows great ambition for the home and where it aims to be. This ethos is shared with the staff and children, resulting in good-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers’ monitoring systems are embedded into practice, which ensures that they have a good oversight of the home and take action to address issues as they arise. New systems have been implemented from the previous inspection such spot checks on records, the manager has quickly recognised shortfalls in practice and taken swift action to support and develop the teams skills in this area, as a result records are now clear and concise and the requirement raised at the last inspection has been met. Inspection report children's home: 2557914 5 Staff receive regular supervision, which addresses children’s care and any practice or performance concerns. Team meeting discussions are reflective and provide a comprehensive overview of the progress made by children. This allows all staff an opportunity to discuss children’s progress, generate ideas and have a consistent approach to the care provided.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about working at the home. The manager is well regarded, and she is nurturing towards the team. This means that staff work in an environment where they feel well supported. One staff member said, ‘The management team are amazing, so supportive, always around to help, I feel very lucky to be part of this team.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals working with the home speak highly of managers and the good joint working arrangements in place. Consequently, children receive consistent care and support. Staff work in conjunction with children, social workers and a range of education and health agencies to plan and support children’s current and future placements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a wide range of training and development opportunities that inform their practice and help them to understand children’s individual and diverse needs. However, some staff have not completed all mandatory training in timescales. This does not ensure that staff have the necessary skills to care for children with complex needs. Inspection report children's home: 2557914 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, 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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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 the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment, and

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. (Regulation 8(1) (2)(a)(iv)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children are supported to participate in further education, training or employment and that education is promoted within the home and improve their school attendance. 5 April 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 promotes their welfare.

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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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff complete all mandatory training within timescales. 5 April 2026 Inspection report children's home: 2557914 7

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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 children's home: 2557914 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Positive Pathways Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Park Business Centre, Hastingwood Industrial Park, Wood Lane, Erdington, Birmingham, West Midlands B24 9QR

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Inspector

Marianne Grandfield, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2557914 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 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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