Children's Home run by Omega Care Group Limited in Cheshire West and Chester

Inspection report children's home: 2599183 1 Registered provider: Omega Care Group 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

The home is owned by a private provider and is registered to care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, 2 children were living in the home. Both children spoke to the inspector about their experiences of living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2021.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/05/2024 Full Good 16/05/2023 Full Good 06/04/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 20/01/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 3

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection three children have moved on from the home. One child was supported to return home to their family. Staff lacked the skills to meet the needs of two children who moved on following an increase in incidents and risks. Consequently, children’s experiences of living in the home are not always positive.

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improvement to be good

The children say that they like living in the home and that they trust the staff. Staff sup- port children to participate in activities they enjoy and to pursue new interests. One child plays the piano and other children have enjoyed horse riding and volunteering.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children’s education and are strong advocates for them. When children have not attended school, they receive support to maintain a structured routine. This ensures children are supported to achieve their academic potential.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff support children to have relationships with the people who are im- portant to them. Consequently, children have a strong sense of identity and support out- side of the home.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health needs are understood. Staff work closely with other professionals and escalate concerns when children require additional professional support. The homes in house psychologist also provides additional advice and support. This ensures that staff’s responses are trauma informed and child focused.

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improvement to be good

Promoting equality and diversity is a priority for the team. Staff ensure that children have the opportunity to celebrate their own and other people’s religions.

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improvement to be good

The home is clean and tidy and has sufficient space for the children who live there.

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improvement to be good

Shortfalls in care planning and safeguarding practices led to a child’s risks not being fully understood.

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improvement to be good

Children have gone missing from the home and staff have taken appropriate action, including looking for the children and working with other professionals to ensure the child’s safe return. However, on one occasion a child did leave the home during the night without the staff having any knowledge. The manager delayed taking appropriate action to prevent further incidents. As a result, the child was able to leave the home undetected on another occasion. Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 4 Risk management plans do not include all known risks and clear guidance and strategies for staff to follow to keep children safe. When children move into the home in an emergency all historical information is not fully evaluated.

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improvement to be good

Children are only physically held when it’s necessary to keep them or others safe. Children and staff undertake a de-brief following any incidents. However, some incidents lacked manager’s oversight and evaluation.

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improvement to be good

Staff have important conversations with children about their emotional well-being and risks that they may be exposed to. This helps children to develop their understanding and awareness of risk and have a safe space to talk about their lived experiences.

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improvement to be good

When children report allegations, managers appropriately share information with other safeguarding professionals. When there are concerns about practice, managers ask for a review of their internal processes by the local authority designated officer. This transparency means their safeguarding process has an independent overview.

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improvement to be good

Partnership working with other professionals is a strength of the home. Staff work collaboratively with external professionals and specialist services to safeguard children.

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improvement to be good

Safer recruitment practices are in place to ensure that only adults who are safe to work with children are employed in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home is managed by an experienced and child centred registered manager, she is supported by a deputy manager. The registered manager also manages another home in the organisation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Regular team meetings provide opportunities for staff to reflect on the children’s needs. However, when the child was missing from the home during the night this was not reflected on with the team. This does not improve staff practice for the benefit of the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff benefit from regular supervision and are positive about the support they receive from the managers. They enjoy working at the home and spending time with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Training and inductions have been undertaken to ensure staff have the right knowledge and skills. There is a positive culture of learning and development, and staff value the training provided.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers do have internal and external monitoring system in place. However, monitoring systems have not identified recent concerns around care planning and risk assessments. Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 5 Not all incidents have been notified to Ofsted as required by regulation, which limits the regulator’s oversight of practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The registered manager has carried out a detailed review of the quality of care which includes feedback from others. The reports are evaluative and identifies strengths and areas to develop. Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 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 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

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

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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child's welfare; and

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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)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi) and (b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered manager must ensure that children’s risk assessments provide staff with clear strategies to manage and reduce any identified risks.

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that staff take action to safeguard children who are at risk of going missing from home. 6 April 2026 Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 7 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;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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) and (h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the manager must ensure that they have robust oversight of the care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, they must ensure that the monitoring and review systems support the ongoing development of the home. 6 April 2026

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that children care needs and risks are understood before a child moves into the home. 6 April 2026

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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

There is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e)) 6 April 2026 Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 8

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2599183 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Omega Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 40-42 Kemble Street, Prescot L34 5SQ

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Inspector

Michelle Snape, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2599183 10 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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