Children's home run by Bright Futures North West Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 1 Registered provider: Bright Futures North West Limited

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to 2 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2025.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home was registered, one child has moved out of the home, and one child has moved in. Children live in a home that is warm and welcoming. Staff encourage and nurture trusting relationships with children which has contributed to their progress since they moved in.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s social workers say that the children enjoy positive experiences at the home and are making good progress. They say that staff keep them informed about the children and they receive regular updates about their progress. Social workers said that communication and partnership working is a real strength at the home.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children’s education and individual interests. When children face barriers to attending school, staff support them by providing daily routines and educational activities to promote their learning. Managers and staff advocate for plans to ensure that children have opportunities to resume their education.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to spend time with people who are important to them. They engage positively with parents and professionals to promote meaningful and safe family time for children. Family members speak positively about the staff and say they are happy with their child’s progress and the support from staff.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and managers have introduced systems to ensure that children’s needs are considered when moving into the home. However, they do not always ensure that they have all the relevant information from other agencies to make an informed assessment of how they will meet the child’s needs. This contributed towards the ending of one child’s time at the home.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have meaningful conversations with children about important issues. This helps children feel listened to and learn how to manage challenges in their lives.

p.2

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

Staff know the children’s individual risks and vulnerabilities. There is a strong multi- agency approach to safeguarding children living at the home. The manager has devel- oped strong working relationships with professionals involved in the children’s care and maintains regular communication with them to ensure that they are aware of any safe- guarding concerns.

p.2

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

The risks in relation to one child’s substance misuse increased whilst living at the home. Staff managed incidents in accordance with the child’s plans. However, staff did not al- ways record the reasons for some decisions, and the manager did not identify this when reviewing the incidents. Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 3 Staff follow the missing from home protocol when children go missing from the home. They actively search for children, maintain contact with them, and liaise with all relevant agencies to ensure their safe and prompt return home.

p.2

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

There are effective systems are in place to support children to access the internet and social media safely via regular phone checks and online safety measures. Staff work to- gether with parents to ensure that the children are not accessing inappropriate content online.

p.3

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

Staff use effective de-escalation techniques and used physical intervention on one occa- sion since the home was registered. The intervention was used as a last resort to ensure the safety of the child and staff.

p.3

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

The home is managed by a suitably qualified, experienced manager. He is also the registered manager for another home within the organisation.

p.3

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

Staff say they feel supported in their roles and enjoy working at the home. They are enthusiastic and committed to ensuring that the children achieve positive outcomes in all areas of their lives.

p.3

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

There are monitoring and review systems in place to improve and develop the quality of care provided to children; however, these are not always effective. Management oversight of incidents is inconsistent and shortfalls in staff practice are not always identified and addressed. Furthermore, feedback is not always obtained from children and staff following incidents.

p.3

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

There are missing documents resulting in staff not having all the information they need to meet the children’s needs. Although the manager challenges agencies about not receiving the documents, this has been ineffective.

p.3

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

Staff benefit from regular supervision during which they have an opportunity to reflect on their practice and identify areas for development.

p.3

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

Staff are provided with training which is specific to the child’s individual needs. They receive a good variety of training, covering topics such as substance misuse and exploitation.

p.3

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

The quality of the independent person’s reports is inconsistent. Some reports contain information detailed in previous reports and the children’s views are not obtained. This does not help keep children safe or improve the quality of their care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 4

p.3

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.

p.4

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—

p.4

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

p.4

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;

p.4

Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

p.4

Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

p.4

Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

p.4

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)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that there are effective monitoring and review systems in place, and shortfalls in staff practice are identified and addressed to improve the quality of care provided to children. Feedback from children and others should be used to help improve staff practice and children’s care. Furthermore, the registered person must ensure that the staff can effectively meet the children’s needs and ensure their safety. 15 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 5 The care planning standard is that children—

p.4

Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.5

Requirement Due date

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

p.5

Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(a)(b)(ii))

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the needs, risk, and vulnerabilities of a child are fully explored and assessed before deciding if the child should move into the home. 15 April 2026

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they effectively challenge other agencies so that they have all the relevant information required to meet a child’s needs and keep them safe. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 56 paragraph 11.5)

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the reports from the independent person are factually accurate and effective, enabling them to be used to improve the quality of care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 55 paragraph 10.24)

p.5

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: 2813355 6

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bright Futures North West Limited

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 48 - 52 Penny Lane Mossley Hill, Liverpool, Merseyside L18 1DG

p.6

Inspector

Nicola Rutherford, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2813355 7 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.

p.6

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.7