Children's Home run by Pike View Care Ltd in Bolton

Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 1 Registered provider: Pike View Care Ltd

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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 owned and is registered to provide care for up to 4 children who experience emotional and/or social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2024

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 4 children were living at the home.

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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: 25 February 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/02/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they trust staff and feel listened to. Children have trusted relationships and enjoy spending time with staff who know them well. Children are referred to affectionately and have nicknames for themselves and staff. This supports children to experience a strong sense of permanence and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to manage their feelings safely. Staff use consistent, calm approaches and ensure that children can access external therapeutic support when this is needed. As a result, one child who previously struggled to express their emotions and often reacted physically is now able to talk about how they feel. A social worker said: ‘I could not ask for a better placement. [Name of child] ‘is now settled, feels safe, engages well, attends school, and is making progress because of the staff’s consistent support.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to attend school and are learning and making progress. Leaders, managers and staff are ambitious about what children can achieve. One child who was out of education has been supported to transition to a more suitable setting that meets their needs. Another child has been supported to transition to an alternative setting to meet their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to express their cultural identity in ways that feel right for them, and staff support them to make choices that reflect their backgrounds. However, children are not consistently supported to develop key independence skills, such as managing their own money or taking more responsibility for everyday tasks. This limits the progress they can make in developing confidence and preparing for greater independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to pursue their individual interests and take part in a wide range of activities, both inside and outside the home. Staff ensure that children’s wishes and feelings shape these opportunities, including holidays and shared experiences that help children build positive memories together. This approach supports children to grow in confidence, develop their interests, and enjoy a strong sense of belonging within the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with people who are important to them, and staff provide consistent reassurance that has enabled meaningful progress in this area. One child is now spending regular, supported time with their parents in the community, reflecting the positive impact of staff’s approach in strengthening relationships. On one occasion, a child’s family member arrived unexpectedly with an unknown partner. While the member of staff remained present to supervise the session, there was no clear guidance outlining who the child could and could not see. This meant that staff were not fully equipped to support the child’s experience with clarity. Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 4 Children live in a home where monitoring equipment is used. Leaders and managers have not ensured that its purpose is clearly explained or that consent is in place from children and social workers. Aspects of the home, such as worn decor, damaged fixtures

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

and very visible window restrictors, need improving. These issues reduce the overall quality of the environment.

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

Children have been allowed to play computer games that are not suitable for their age, which does not support them to make safe choices about online content. However, the manager took immediate action during the inspection, speaking with the child and replacing the game with an age-appropriate alternative.

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

Children very rarely go missing from the home. On the one occasion this did occur, staff acted immediately, completing area searches, making enquiries with known individuals and reporting the incident to the police without delay. When the child returned, staff explored the reasons for leaving and ensured an independent return home interview took place. Staff use this learning to strengthen their understanding of children’s experiences. There have been no further incidents, and children feel supported and settled within the home.

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

Children manage difficult emotions increasingly well because staff provide calm, consistent support. When children have needed to be held, staff have used brief and proportionate responses in line with agreed plans and have immediately helped children to understand what led to their distress. The manager reviews every incident with clear curiosity and ensures that children receive timely follow-up support. As a result, children recover more quickly, show improved emotional regulation and the number of occasions they need to be held has reduced significantly over time.

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

Children are taken seriously when allegations are made. Safeguarding procedures are followed consistently, and advice is sought promptly from the local authority designated officer. Leaders complete thorough investigations and ensure that children understand what actions have been taken. Staff and the child involved receive appropriate support. This approach promotes transparency and reinforces children’s confidence that their voices matter.

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

Children who need closer supervision in the community are supported by staff who stay with them and provide clear, practical guidance about everyday risks, such as how to cross the road safely. This consistent approach helps prevent children from being hurt and builds their understanding of how to keep themselves safe.

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

Children are spoken with regularly to build their understanding of how to keep themselves safe, including practical issues such as car safety and safe behaviour in the community. However, a child who may not yet recognise risks in the community Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 5 has not been supported to develop their awareness of risks posed by people they do not know, which leaves gaps in their understanding of how to stay safe when away from the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders, managers and staff have an ambitious view of what children can achieve and hold high expectations for their progress. Recruitment processes are thorough, and children have recently been involved in interviewing new staff. This strengthens the child-centred ethos of the home and ensures that children benefit from a stable, skilled team that is focused on their success.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have systems in place to monitor and review children’s progress. These arrangements give them a clear overview of daily practice and children’s experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff new to the setting have their suitability reviewed through a structured probation process. Supervision is used well to explore staff development, test their understanding of the regulations and quality standards, and discuss safeguarding scenarios, such as missing-from-home situations. This ensures the manager maintains strong oversight of staff practice and that children benefit from a team whose skills and knowledge are continually strengthened.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings support consistent practice. Staff use these meetings to review children’s progress, consider upcoming plans and identify any training needs. Scenario-based safeguarding discussions, including the local authority designated officer process, help staff understand their responsibilities. However, safeguarding procedures are not fully embedded across the team, and some staff would benefit from greater clarity about the actions to take if an allegation is made. Strengthening this will support consistent and confident safeguarding practice for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have excellent relationships with external professionals, and communication is consistently strong. Professionals speak highly of the quality of care provided and describe children making significant progress because of the consistent, high-quality support they receive. One professional reported that the child is now ‘the most settled I have seen’, and praised the home for creating a placement where the child feels safe and able to thrive. These positive partnerships ensure that children benefit from well-coordinated plans, timely support and a shared commitment to their success. Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 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 care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

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

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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

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;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s parents, relatives and friends is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(a)(d)(ii)(iii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that plans for family time set out clearly who children are permitted to see.

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Requirement Due date

Children must be supported to develop their independent living skills. 5 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 7 The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance;

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Requirement Due date

so far as reasonably practicable in the light of the child’s age and understanding, the child is informed in advance of the intention to do the monitoring or surveillance; and

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy.

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Requirement Due date

This regulation is subject to any monitoring or surveillance requirements imposed by a court.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d) (2)) 5 April 2026

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must take action to ensure that the home’s environment is of is an appropriate standard for the children to live in, such as redecoration and repairing or replacing damaged items. 5 April 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should support staff to be ambitious for every child in the home and to gain skills and experience that enable them to actively support each child to achieve their potential. To ensure that staff understand and can meet each child’s needs, in line with their responsibilities, the registered person themselves will need to have a high level of understanding of the needs of the children in their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 10.5)  Staff need the knowledge and skills to recognise and be alert to any signs that might indicate a child is in any way at risk of harm. The registered person should ensure that skills in safeguarding are gained, refreshed and recorded in the home’s workforce plan. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.12)

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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: 2795951 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 9 Wyndham Avenue, Bolton BL3 4LQ

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Inspectors

Nicola Forrester, Social Care Inspector Sylvia Eboigbe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2795951 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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