Children's Home run by Oldham Children’s Social Care in Oldham

Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 1 Registered provider: Oldham Children’s Social Care

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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 owned and operated by a local authority. 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

There has been no registered manager in post since December 2025.

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Information about this children’s home

There have been 2 children living in the home during this inspection period. Both children spoke to the inspectors.

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people, taking into account requires improvement to be good

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

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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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 April 2026

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 2

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Summary of findings

This is the first inspection of a new home.

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Summary of findings

The children are beginning to settle into the home despite only living together for a short time.

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Summary of findings

Interactions between the children and their staff demonstrate that they have formed some positive relationships.

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Summary of findings

There has been no registered manager in post and this has had a significant impact on the stability of the staff team and the consistency in care provided to the children.

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Summary of findings

When incidents occur, staff respond quickly. However, staff knowledge and the quality of responses are inconsistent. In addition, the manager’s evaluations lack the analysis to inform future practice.

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Summary of findings

The home environment is generally well maintained. However, there are some areas that require attention.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they are happy in their home. However, children’s overall experiences are inconsistent due to the varied care they are receiving.

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improvement to be good

There is a core staff team that knows the children well. Nevertheless, the lack of a permanent, full-time manager in the home has had a significant impact on the stability of the staff team. The use of unfamiliar staff means that the children have not received consistent care from staff they know.

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improvement to be good

One child recently moved into the home. The move was well planned and at the child’s pace. Consideration was given to the impact on the child already living in the home, but there was a period of instability for the children following the move.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to access education. Staff work with education professionals to find the right provisions for the children. One child was not attending school before moving in and has now been introduced to a local school. One child is being supported to find a more appropriate school that can better meet their needs

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improvement to be good

Children are in good health. Staff ensure that they access community services and there are clear plans about the support children require to maintain their health. However, staff Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 3 knowledge of health plans is inconsistent and staff have not supported one child to engage with their recommended sensory activities.

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improvement to be good

The children have personalised arrangements for spending time with the people important to them. Staff work proactively and positively with professionals and families to ensure that their time together is meaningful and safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff engage children in a wide range of positive experiences that are now based on their individual wishes. One child loves horses and goes riding every week. Staff encourage children to explore their community and regularly visit local parks on their scooters and bikes.

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improvement to be good

Staff showed some awareness of one child’s heritage, but have not encouraged them to find out more about the culture, food and traditions of where their family once lived.

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improvement to be good

The home is generally well decorated and maintained. The children use all of the spaces and there are photos of the children throughout the home. There are areas that require some cleaning and maintenance tasks to be completed.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they feel happy at this home, but staff’s ability to keep them safe has been inconsistent

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improvement to be good

Staff have an understanding of how to keep the children safe. Staff are supported by the clinical team to better understand the children’s experiences. This enables staff to implement agreed strategies to help to keep the children safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff talk with children to help them manage their feelings safely. Staff also promote and reward positive behaviour with treats, such as buying milkshakes and taking children on activities. However, there are inconsistent responses to situations as the children are supported by staff who do not know them well.

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improvement to be good

Agency staff lack the same depth of knowledge as familiar staff and there is a lack of clear and consistent boundaries for children. This has led to risks not being anticipated and incidents occurring.

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improvement to be good

When incidents have escalated to require physical intervention, staff responses have been appropriate to manage the immediate risk. However, staff have not reflected to determine whether earlier intervention and the use of other strategies was required.

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improvement to be good

Staff are aware of their responsibility in relation to recording incidents and safeguarding children. However, there is often information missing from the reports. Due to the absence of a full-time manager, incident records have not consistently been evaluated. There is little reflection of the roles of staff and how staff practice contributed to Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 4 incidents. This prevents a culture of learning and development being embedded into practice.

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improvement to be good

Only adults deemed safe to care for children are permitted to work in the home.

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

The registered manager for the home has been absent since December 2025.

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

A registered manager in the organisation has divided their time across 2 homes to provide support to the team. This is a relatively new staff team and the lack of management presence has resulted in the staff not receiving the day-to-day support they require.

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

An induction programme and training is completed by all core staff. Staff say they have the right training for their role and they continue to receive monthly supervision sessions that are reflective in nature. Staff appreciate that supervision sessions focus on their wellbeing, but miss having the daily management support in the home.

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

There has been significant use of agency staff who do not receive the same training or supervision sessions to ensure that they provide high-quality, consistent care to the children.

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

The manager and staff are developing positive relationships with other professionals. They act on concerns and work collaboratively to achieve the best outcomes for children.

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

Complaints and allegations from children are responded to swiftly and staff performance is addressed via internal processes. However, without consistent management oversight, the records are incomplete, which prevents managers from having a thorough understanding of shortfalls in practice that they can then address.

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

A full-time manager is now in post and there are plans for them to be supported by experienced senior leaders in the organisation. They are aware of inconsistencies in staff practice and leadership of the home and spoke about their plans to improve the quality of care and leadership provided. Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must ensure that all staff understand the child’s individual health needs and support them to complete recommended sensory activities. 20 May 2026

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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— 20 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 6 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 work as a team where appropriate;

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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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must ensure that the core staff team is prioritised to work at this home to ensure continuity of care to the children.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, the manager must ensure that agency or occasional staff have the required skills, training and experience to meet the children’s needs.

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Requirement Due date

Furthermore, the manager must ensure that incident reports are accurate and that the manager completes a critical evaluation of each incident that can inform further learning and development and improve the quality of care provided to the children. The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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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

ensure that staff— 20 May 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 7 provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iv)(vii)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must ensure that the home is clean and well maintained throughout.

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Requirement Due date

Furthermore, the manager must ensure that staff support the children to explore their cultural heritage.

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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: 2857949 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Oldham Children’s Social Care

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Metropolitan House, Hobson Street, Oldham OL1 1HD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicholas Whitbread

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Inspector

Caroline Bates, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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