Children's home run by Inspire Children’s Services Limited in St. Helens

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 1 Registered provider: Inspire Children’s Services Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and/or learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Inspection date: 10 March 2026

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection date: 10 March 2026

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspections, the inspectors evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home, and 2 children have remained living there.

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Findings from the inspection

The child who moved out of the home had a poor experience of living there due to staff lacking the necessary skills and experience to support them effectively. Staff frequently used physical intervention to manage the child’s behaviour and ensure their safety. There has been a significant decline in the use of physical intervention since the child moved out of the home.

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Findings from the inspection

The children currently living at the home speak positively of their experiences and relationship with staff. Staff know the children well and understand their individual needs and vulnerabilities. They spend quality time with children and engage them in fun activities. One child said that staff are ‘supportive’ and described them as being like family.

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Findings from the inspection

Both children are accessing a form of education. However, their attendance is inconsistent. Staff encourage children’s attendance using personalised incentives. Staff help children to develop their independence and regularly work with them to support their preparation for independent living.

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Findings from the inspection

There have been some improvements to the home environment since the last inspection. However, there are areas of the home that are not maintained to a high standard. For example, there are stained carpets and damage to paintwork. This does not give children a home they can take pride in.

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Findings from the inspection

Overall, there has been a reduction in safeguarding incidents for children, largely due to the departure of one child from the home. Staff have a good understanding of the current children’s risks and how best to support them. However, on one occasion staff did not complete all necessary actions following a safeguarding incident to ensure the child’s safety. They did not ensure that the child was discharged from hospital with a safety plan in place, which meant that appropriate welfare checks and continued oversight from mental health professionals were not in place. The manager identified and addressed these shortfalls in staff practice, and additional training has since been completed by the staff team.

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Findings from the inspection

When children go missing from the home, staff take effective action and follow their plans to ensure their safe return. They actively search for children and contact family when this is appropriate. Staff have meaningful conversations with children about known risks which helps support them to learn how to keep themselves safe. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 3 There are some improvements in the quality of children’s records. However, some information in the children’s plans is out of date and strategies to support children are not consistent across all their records. This does not help staff to provide children with consistent care.

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Findings from the inspection

Since the last inspection, there has continued to be instability in the leadership and management arrangements of the home. The registered manager’s post has been vacant since August 2025 and there has been a high staff turnover which impacted on the consistency of care for children. Supervision did not take place regularly with staff and there were gaps in staff training.

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Findings from the inspection

There is a new manager working permanently at the home. He has an understanding of the strengths and areas for development and has begun to implement positive changes.

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Findings from the inspection

There is now a full staff team in place who say they are supported by the manager. Supervision is now taking place and team meetings provide staff with opportunities to discuss the children’s progress and reflect on their practice. Gaps in staff training are being addressed to ensure that all staff have the necessary knowledge and skills to meet the children’s needs effectively. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/06/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/06/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 03/05/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/08/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 5

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff take effective action in response to incidents of self-harm or ligature for children. And that the plans to keep children safe contain up to date and accurate information.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 8 May 2026 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 6 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;

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that all staff receive regular supervision and training relevant to the children’s individual needs. 8 May 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children are provided with a homely, domestic environment, which is maintained to a high standard. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 15, paragraph 3.9) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Inspire Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 3, Craig Court, Standish Street, St Helens, Merseyside WA10 1GJ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Michael Bradshaw

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Inspectors

Hayley Smith, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Suzanne Birchall, Social Care Compliance Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 1241757 8 to 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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