Children's Home run by Care Today (Childrens Services) Ltd in Manchester

Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 1 Registered provider: Care Today (Children's Services) 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

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to 2 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2023.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home. The inspector spoke with both children about their experiences 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: 29 January 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: 2711785 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/01/2025 Full Good 16/01/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive a good standard of care from a stable and consistent team of staff who know them well. Staff are committed to providing good-quality care and support to the children. Children live at this home for a long time, which provides them with extended periods of stability. One professional said, 'This is most settled [name of child] has been and I am really impressed with the care and support they receive.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff actively promote children's education and work collaboratively with school head teachers to devise bespoke timetables and provide one-to-one tutoring to meet the individual needs of the children. They use incentives and rewards to increase children's engagement with learning. This has resulted in improvements in attendance for both children. One child is now on track to achieve good grades in their GCSEs and is making plans for further education that align with their aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Saff hold regular discussions with children to help them develop healthier lifestyles, build their confidence, support their individuality, understand themselves and their emotions and develop independence skills. Discussions are carried out sensitively and demonstrate that staff show care and empathy. Staff use resources from educational websites to further support children's learning, development and progress. Staff also support children to complete training courses to aid their learning and understanding around key issues and changes in their life, such as leaving care, healthy relationships and maintaining a home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to engage in positive experiences and activities that are specific to their individual interests. Children engage in a wide range of activities, including movie nights, pamper nights, go karting, fishing, golf, visiting theme parks, zoos and coffee shops, and children have enjoyed caravan holidays. This supports children to nurture their talents and grow in confidence. Staff create memory books to capture each child's time at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff understand the importance of children maintaining their family relationships. They organise family time and ensure that children are able to celebrate key dates and occasions with those who are important to them. Staff make sure that children have everything they need to feel comfortable so that these experiences are enjoyable. As a result, children are able to spend quality time with their families, strengthening important relationships and creating positive memories.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff create a warm, homely environment that feels like a family home. Children are relaxed and comfortable in their home. The home is well maintained and furnished, with children's photographs proudly displayed. Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 4

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

Staff build positive and trusting relationships with the children, and children identify staff as trusted adults who they can talk to about any concerns or worries they have. Staff respond to children's concerns warmly and sensitively. Children say that the staff have helped them with their mental health, education, family time and independence skills.

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

Allegations are taken seriously. The manager works closely with relevant professionals to ensure that investigations are thorough and children receive the right support during investigations. This helps to reassure children that they are being listened to and taken seriously. The manager takes appropriate action to address staff practice concerns.

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

Children rarely complain about their care. When complaints are made, they are taken seriously. Managers ensure that children speak with an independent person about the concerns raised. Children's views are listened to, and practice is adapted where necessary in response to their feedback. Staff work with children and adults to help repair relationships. Children are informed of the outcomes to their complaints.

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

The home's exterior door locks do not support health and safety and could present a hazard in the event of a fire. The home's fire risk assessment has not been reviewed or updated to reflect the changes made to the exterior locks. As a result, potential risks have not been fully considered or assessed, which does not ensure that appropriate measures are in place to keep children and staff safe.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding responsibilities and reporting protocols. However, not all staff are aware of whistleblowing escalation procedures. This compromises safeguarding practice.

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

The manager ensures that staff complete training that is specific to children's individual needs, including self-harm, substance misuse, adverse childhood experiences, neurodiversity, child criminal exploitation and child sexual exploitation. This ensures that staff have the knowledge and skills required to care for and support children effectively.

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

Staff respond appropriately to significant incidents and follow the home's protocols to safeguard children. They report concerns to relevant agencies, including the police, when required. The manager maintains effective communication with each child's professional network to ensure that appropriate support is sought and concerns are escalated appropriately. However, not all significant incidents are reported to the regulator. This limits the regulator's ability to maintain full oversight of incidents occurring at the home.

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

Staff respond effectively when children are missing from home. They follow agreed protocols and make every effort to locate children and encourage their safe return. When children return home, staff welcome them warmly and complete appropriate safe- and-well checks. This helps children to feel cared for and valued. Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 5 Room searches take place when there are concerns that children may be in possession of prohibited items. Children are made aware of the reasons for the search, and all room searches are recorded appropriately in line with the home's procedures.

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

Staff complete follow up work with children following incidents. This helps children to identify and understand risks and consequences. Staff support and encourage children to develop strategies to keep themselves safe. Children are spoken to about a wide range of potential risks, including healthy relationships, sexual health, online safety, drugs and alcohol and antisocial behaviour. Staff use online resources and training courses to aid their discussions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by an experienced manager and senior who are committed to achieving positive outcomes for children. Staff say that the management team is approachable and they feel fully supported. Staff are committed to their role and enjoy working at the home and supporting the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective monitoring systems in place to ensure that the home is compliant with regulations. The manager uses information from the independent visits and monthly monitoring completed for the quality of care reports to identify shortfalls and areas for improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers follow safer recruitment procedures. This means that staff are fully checked before they provide care to children. There are detailed induction plans in place to support new staff. These enable staff to complete training, familiarise themselves with the home's policies and procedures and get to know the children. This helps staff to understand the responsibilities of their role and prepares them well to support the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular, reflective and supportive supervision, and the manager is proactive in supporting career development. One staff member is currently being supported through the home's management pathway, while another is being supported to gain a counselling qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff appraisals are completed routinely. They provide an opportunity for staff to reflect on their work over the year, recognising achievements and identifying areas of development. However, the manager does not seek feedback from children, colleagues or professionals to inform the appraisal process.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly and are well attended. These meetings ensure that staff understand and follow children's individual risk assessments and routines, are aware of recording and reporting processes and work in line with the home's expectations. Managers also use these meetings to support staff development on topics such as managing and assessing risks, building positive relationships with children and understanding depression and anxiety. This development is supported by training hub Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 6 presentations and guidance from a well-established children’s charity. This ensures that staff are well informed and promotes effective, collaborative working across the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff communicate effectively with the children's professional networks. Professionals report that the manager and staff maintain open communication and keep them fully updated. One professional said, 'Communication is fantastic. The weekly reports are informative and the best I have received.' This enables the children's network to work collaboratively and respond proactively to the children's needs. Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 7

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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

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire.

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Requirement Due date

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(30) applies to the home—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person must ensure that the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (1)(b) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers must ensure that door locks for the property enable children and staff to exit the home in the event of a fire. Additionally, leaders and managers must ensure that the fire risk assessment is reviewed regularly and following any changes that may impact fire safety. 29 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

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 any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)(e)) 29 April 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are fully aware of whistleblowing procedures, and they should report to an appropriate authority any concern they have about a child in the home being either at risk of, or already experiencing, significant harm. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 43, paragraph 9:15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that annual staff appraisals consider, where reasonable and practical, the views of children in the home and other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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: 2711785 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Care Today (Children's Services) Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 2nd, Floor Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, STOCKPORT, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspector

Renée Sims, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2711785 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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