Children's Home run by Yourcare (Northwest) Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 1 Registered provider: Yourcare (Northwest) 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

A private provider operates this home. It provides care for up to 2 children with social and emotional difficulties. There was one child living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The registered provider has recently appointed a new responsible individual, and we are currently checking this person has the relevant capacity, experience and skills to carry out the role.

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Information about this children's home

Since the last inspection, there have been 3 managers. The new manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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 for children's home: 2821688 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/05/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 3

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Summary of findings

The home is judged to be requires improvement. There are positive aspects of practice. The child has remained in the home since the last inspection, despite a high number of incidents which demonstrates the home’s commitment to providing care. Care plans are child centred, family time is supported, and the child’s health needs are met.

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Summary of findings

However, a high turnover of staff has affected the consistency of care, and the home is now led by its third manager within 12 months of the child moving in. Ongoing concerns for the child include frequent missing-from-home episodes, risks of child sexual exploitation, self-harm and poor engagement in education.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, one child has remained living at the home. The home is well presented and homely, and the child's bedroom is decorated to their individual taste. When damages occur or repairs are required, the manager ensures that these are acted upon in a timely manner. This supports the child to develop a sense of belonging.

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improvement to be good

The child has not received consistent care from familiar adults. There has been a high turnover of staff, including the departure of 2 managers, one of whom was dismissed. In addition, some staff have been dismissed following allegations made by the child, and others have been moved within the wider organisation to address skills and experience gaps. As a result, the child has experienced inconsistent care, which has impacted the child's sense of security and stability.

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improvement to be good

Staff are nurturing, child focused and enthusiastic in their approach to the child. Staff have built positive relationships with the child, and they support them to express their views and wishes. Since being in the home, the child has taken part in activities they have chosen to do, such as going to the hairdressers and a theme park.

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improvement to be good

Care plans are child centred and reflect the child's voice. The documents are detailed and provide clear and relevant information for staff to inform their practice with the child and how best to support them. The home's placement plan is regularly updated and aligns with the child's risk assessments and health and education documents.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to maintain relationships with those people who are important to them. Staff understand the value of these relationships, and they make practical arrangements to ensure that the child can spend time with their family and friends. When challenges arise in the child's relationships, staff work sensitively with social workers and the child’s family to promote positive and safe interactions. Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 4 Education has been an ongoing struggle for the child in this home, but staff are creative in ways to help them engage in their learning. Staff make significant efforts to communicate with multi-agency professionals to advocate the learning needs of the child.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the child's health needs and work with relevant health professionals to support access to appropriate services. However, there have been occasions when medication has not been stored correctly, resulting in it needing to be disposed of. When the child has been reluctant to attend health appointments, staff recognise the importance of the child's engagement. They take time to explain the purpose and benefits of attending, offering reassurance and encouragement to support the child to be involved in their own healthcare.

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improvement to be good

The manager has oversight of safeguarding incidents within the home and monitors concerns as they arise. However, not all significant incidents have been notified to the regulator, and some notifications were not submitted within required timescales. While leaders and managers understand their responsibilities, oversight and monitoring arrangements have not been sufficiently robust to ensure timely and consistent regulatory notifications.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the risks and vulnerabilities that the child experiences, including concerns relating to going missing from home, self-harm and substance misuse. Risk assessments and care plans highlight known risks, including child sexual exploitation, fire setting and online safety. However, this understanding is not consistently reflected in practice, and opportunities to prevent risk are sometimes missed.

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improvement to be good

When there was an identified fire risk, staff did not search the child's bedroom. Additionally, there are no clear or specific plans in place for mobile phone checks. These are rarely carried out despite the child's known vulnerabilities, including persistent missing-from-home episodes and self-harm incidents.

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improvement to be good

The child is only physically held when this is necessary to ensure their safety or the safety of others. However, the manager does not consistently ensure that incidents involving a physical intervention are reviewed. Staff debriefs are not consistently completed or accurately recorded. The child is not routinely spoken to following these incidents, and clear outcomes are not always shared with them. This limits the manager’s ability to identify learning and areas for improvement.

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improvement to be good

Staff are trained in, and aware of, missing-from-home procedures. When the child goes missing, there is a well-coordinated response. Staff take suitable action to find and return the child to the home, attempting to keep in contact with them throughout the incident. Reports are chronologically written with precise details of all the actions taken and who is informed. Staff encourage the child to engage in reflective sessions to think Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 5 about the dangers of being missing from home and the risks around child sexual exploitation.

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities for safer recruitment and retention of staff. When there are concerns about staff practice, these are taken seriously and appropriate action is taken. The manager ensures that any concerns are shared with the local authority designated officer.

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

The manager is well supported by the responsible individual and other senior leaders in the company. Staff enjoy working in the home and say that they are supported by the manager and senior leaders. However, the high turnover of managers and staff since the last inspection has impacted on the quality of care provided to the child.

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

A strength of the home is the promotion of equality and diversity. This ensures that the child's cultural and individual needs are met. The child can talk to the staff and manager about whatever issues affect them and know that staff will listen and be supportive of their views.

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

Team meetings are well attended and used to reflect on the work that staff are doing with the child. This gives staff an opportunity to share their experiences and knowledge of good practice and learn from any incidents that have occurred over the previous month.

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

Staff receive supervision in line with the home's statement of purpose. Staff say that they find formal supervision helpful. They are also able to approach the manager at any time and she is responsive. Supervision records generally cover a broad range of subjects. However, some records show that only brief discussions about the child have taken place.

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

Training and development are a priority in this home. Staff have completed all mandatory training, and the manager identifies further additional training when required. This is tailored to the child's individualised needs and supports staff's confidence and knowledge, helping them in their roles.

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

The manager's review of the quality of care provided to children is detailed; however, it does not include feedback from children, staff or children's family members. This limits the effectiveness of the review in evaluating and improving practice.

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

Since the previous inspection, leaders and managers have not maintained consistent oversight of the home, resulting in ineffective and sporadic monitoring arrangements. However, in the past few months, the actions raised by the independent visitor have significantly decreased, showing the manager's insight to the home's weaknesses and improving them. Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 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

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home's child protection policies;

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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)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that staff undertake checks on bedrooms and mobile phones when concerns arise for the child. 18 May 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 7 The registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vi)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that following any incident in which a child is held an authorised person speaks with the staff members involved and an accurate record of this discussion is completed. In addition, once the staff debrief has taken place, the child concerned must be spoken to and provided with an update on the matter, including the outcome. 18 May 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

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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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— 18 May 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 8 the matter;

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter;

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Requirement Due date

must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that robust systems are in place to identify, record and notify all significant events to Ofsted promptly and within required timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children's home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (2)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that the views and opinions of staff, children and their parents are included in the report. 18 May 2026

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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: 2821688 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Yourcare (Northwest) ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 64 St. Georges Park, Kirkham, Preston PR4 2DZ

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Inspectors

Nicola Jeffery, Social Care Inspector Cathy Wilkins, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2821688 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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