Children's Home run by Aspris New Education Services Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 1 SC443959 Registered provider: Aspris New Education Services 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 is privately operated. The home provides care for up to eight children with learning disabilities, of whom up to three can be cared for on a short break basis.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since April 2012.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, 6 children were living in the home, and 1 child was accessing short-break services. 4 children were seen during the inspection.

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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: 3 December 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/12/2024 Full Outstanding 12/03/2024 Full Good 02/03/2023 Full Outstanding 08/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend education and are making positive progress. Children have positive routines, which support them to have excellent attendance at school. Staff support most of the children throughout their school day. Education professionals have shared that this consistency has a positive impact on the children making progress. This has helped one child who has moved into the home make progress with their social skills and improve their anxiety.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a variety of activities. Children’s interests are considered, and staff actively encourage regular activities. Staff use children’s preferred communication methods to gather their views and support them in choosing activities. This helps children to share their views and enjoy new activities that enhance their experiences and social skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support important relationships between children and their family members. Staff are pro-active in supporting children to enjoy time with their family. Family are welcomed into the home and in the community to regularly join in activities with their children. Feedback from parents has been positive with all parents spoken to stating that they are always invited to activities. One parent said, ‘the staff are amazing’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop independence skills relevant to their age and understanding. Staff regularly help children to develop skills with daily tasks such as cooking, personal care and household tasks. This has helped one child learn how to brush their teeth and other children develop the skills to prepare meals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prepare children when they move in or out of the home. They work closely with other professionals to make sure that there is a shared understanding of the children’s needs. Children get to spend time getting to know their new home and the staff. Furthermore, staff include parents and encourage the other children to participate in welcoming children into the home. This support helps children to feel safe and develop relationships before they move into their new home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Not all of children’s health needs are met. Two children have outstanding optician appointments that staff have not followed up. This means that children’s basic health needs are not consistently met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some areas of the home look tired and in need of attention. The maintenance issues have been identified by the manager but had not previously been addressed in a timely manner. The home is set up appropriately for the needs of the children who live here with pictures of the children on display. The outside of the home is well presented and has ample gardens that the children can enjoy, explore and play in. Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 4

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

Risk assessments help staff to understand and respond to each child’s individual risks. Assessments are up to date and have clear guidance for staff to follow. Additionally, children have sensory profiling assessments and individual behaviour support plans to identify specific support that each child needs. This allows staff to intervene effectively when a child is at risk of harm, helping children to stay safer.

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

Staff are creative and use individualised de-escalation strategies to help children when they are upset. For example, through using weighted blankets or sensory play. When children need to be held by staff this is to keep themselves or others safe. Staff are trained to support children and hold them safely. The manager reviews the incidents and identifies areas of positive practice or learning for the staff team. This helps staff respond to children in the right way.

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

Some children living in the home or accessing the service have complex health and emotional needs. Staff receive relevant training to effectively care for children and administer medication safely. The manager has a clear process in place to ensure that medication is recorded and administered effectively.

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

The manager takes appropriate steps to investigate and address concerns about staff. The manager works well with multi-agency professionals to investigate concerns and complete any actions. This helps ensure that children are cared for by adults safe to do so.

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

Staff understand the ways in which children communicate and are creative with tools they use to help children express their views, such as social stories and PECs. However, staff miss opportunities to support children to develop their skills in line with their individual plans. For example, through completing tasks to help children develop their individual skills through interactive play or help them learn about road safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an experienced manager who knows the children well. The manager is committed to supporting children to achieve. The manager is ambitious for the future of the home and wants to continuously improve the care they offer to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff well-being is a priority. Staff are provided with regular supervision focusing on their well-being. Staff share that they feel supported and listened to by the management team. One staff member said, ‘the support is over and above’. Staff like coming to work and talk about their jobs with enthusiasm and satisfaction. This enables staff to carry out their role effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 5 The management team have effective working relationships with partnership agencies and families so that they can provide children with the right support. The manager has acted on feedback from professionals to put measures in place to improve communication for children. Feedback from professionals and family was positive about the effective communication from staff. This helps to improve outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management team complete audits specific to areas of risk and incidents for children. Audits highlight triggers and develop action plans to mitigate and reduce risks. The manager uses some of this information to identify specific training for staff to help them respond to children’s needs. For example, staff completed PICA training. This means that children receive care that meets their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings and supervisions are not used effectively with staff. Team meetings and supervisions are regular are held regularly, changes to policy and children’s achievements are shared. However, learning from audits and incidents are not fed through to the staff team and there are limited discussions around children and their progress. This prevents staff from having opportunities to continuously improve the care they offer to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers do not always use internal review processes or regulation 44 reports to make improvements within the home. Manager’s do not ensure that children’s files have all information up-to-date information or that it is clearly recorded. Not all of the children’s essential documents are held on their files. This includes care plans for children from their placing authorities. Some records are unclear and all information is not recorded. This prevents staff and children from being able to access important and accurate information.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

When there are incidents of concern the manager does not always notify Ofsted in a timely manner. When allegations against staff have been investigated, the actions taken is not always provided to Ofsted. This prevents the regulator from having oversight in a timely manner. Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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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

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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

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; 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)(f)(g)) 22 April 2026

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met; and

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)) 22 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 an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

must include details of— 22 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 7 (any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)(e) (5)(a)(iii)).

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff help each child to develop emotional and mental resilience with skills such as road safety and those outlined within their plans to develop their skills. ('The Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards' page 17 paragraph 3.27)  The registered person should ensure that the children's home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of their children and is a homely, domestic environment. In particular maintenance to the home must be actioned in a timely manner. ('The Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards' page 15 paragraph 3.9)

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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: SC443959 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aspris New Education Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 Barton Close, Grove Park, Enderby, Leicester, LE19 1SJ

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Inspectors

Natalie Clark, Social Care Inspector Mel Turner, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC443959 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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