Children's Home run by WPS Care Ltd in Wakefield

Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 1 Registered provider: WPS Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This home is owned by a private company. It provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

One child was living in the home at the time of this visit.

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Information about this children's home

The home was registered with Ofsted in March 2025. The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2026.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

This children's home was judged 'inadequate' at the home's first full inspection on 2 and 3 July 2025. Inspectors found several regulatory breaches that impacted children's safety and welfare. In response to these serious and widespread concerns, Ofsted immediately suspended the service on 3 July 2025. Ofsted also issued 2 compliance notices under regulation 12, the protection of children standard, and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 2 On 19 August 2025, a visit was carried out to monitor the suspension notice and review the action taken by the provider to address the compliance notices. The compliance notices were not met, and the suspension notice remained in place.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 23 September 2025, a visit was carried out to further monitor the suspension notice and to continue to review the effectiveness of the action taken by the provider to address the compliance notices. The compliance notices were not met, and the suspension notice was reissued and therefore remained in place.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 25 November 2025, a visit was carried out to further monitor the suspension notice and to continue to review the effectiveness of the action taken by the provider to address the compliance notices. The compliance notices were met, and the suspension of the home expired on 18 December 2025. Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/07/2025 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 4

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Summary of findings

The child who lives in this home is happy and feels safe. They are supported by kind and caring staff who understand their needs. The child is fully involved in decisions regarding their care. The child enjoys spending time with the staff and trying new experiences and activities.

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Summary of findings

The child is making steady progress in all areas of their life, including the ability to talk about and manage their own emotions. One professional said, '[The child's name] is doing great and the staff understand them.'

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Summary of findings

The manager offers good support to the staff. This gives staff confidence to carry out their roles.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has developed positive relationships with the staff in a short space of time. They have grown in confidence and started to explore their creative side, presenting plays to the staff and play acting. The child is supported to explore their identity in a safe space by staff who offer genuine opportunities for them to talk about their feelings and aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is encouraged to make links in the local community. They attend a range of clubs and activities, giving them the opportunity to try new things such as gymnastics and fishing. The wishes and feelings of the child are paramount to all decisions about the activities they take part in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is offering stability for the child, and they have expressed a wish to remain living in the home. They described staff as caring, saying they were 'mint' and that they would recommend the home to other children because it is 'amazing'. While the child is closely supervised, they have appropriate levels of freedom and privacy, supporting their safety and development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is engaging well with a new tutor and is keen to attend school. They understand that the manager is attending regular meetings with education providers and professionals to find them the right placement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is able to earn extra pocket money and incentives of their choosing, such as days out to theme parks. They described how they can earn these incentives and said they are achievable. When issues arise, such as damage being caused to the home, consequences are in place. The child said they understood the use of consequences through discussions with staff and described them as 'fair'. Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 5

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

Staff demonstrate an empathetic understanding of the needs of the child and understand their experiences. They apply trauma-informed practice consistently, recognising how the child's past may influence their behaviour. The child benefits from regularly reviewed, bespoke risk assessments that reflect their known risks. However, the overall risk assessment did not fully reflect the current care provided to the child when they went out on free time.

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

The child said they feel safe in the home. They said the staff helped them when they felt angry and that staff are caring. The child said the staff do a 'decent job of keeping me safe'. Staff are supported through clear and detailed plans that help to keep the child safe and to reduce harm, including when the child goes missing from the home. When the child leaves the home, staff look for them and offer support and encouragement to return.

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

The child is developing skills and making progress with their ability to manage and talk about their emotions. This is reducing incidents and risk to the child. Staff work alongside professionals to enhance plans of care and offer safe and effective support. In addition, staff consistently make themselves available to the child and create a calm and nurturing home.

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

When incidents occur, these are well managed, and there is good support in place for the child and staff. The manager informs Ofsted of incidents when needed. The wellbeing of the child is at the centre of staff practice. However, the child does not always have the opportunity to talk to someone who was not directly involved in the incident. This does not allow the child to talk about any concerns about the individuals involved.

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

Communication with external professionals is open and transparent, helping to keep the child safe and protected from harm. One professional said the staff worked well with them, escalated risk appropriately and that good safety planning was in place. Another professional who regularly visits the home said staff were 'amazing' and that they had seen positive practice that kept the child safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There has been a change of manager, deputy managers and staff following the previous full inspection. The new manager is ambitious for the child in his care and ensures that they have appropriate support from skilled staff. Staff training is tailored to meet the needs of the child. This includes training in self-harm and attachment and trauma. The child said the manager is a 'good guy' and gave a score of '10/10' for the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are clear systems and processes in place to support the effective review and safe management of the home. The environmental risk assessments show a clear understanding of the local area and the actions required to manage potential risks. The Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 6 manager knows the issues that may cause risks to the child and what actions are required from staff to keep the child safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak very positively about the manager and the deputy managers of the home. They speak positively about the help they offer each other. The staff said the manager shows concern for their wellbeing and offers guidance and support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professional relationships are good. Professionals said proactive support is in place and that this improves the care offered to the child. The manager is not afraid to challenge others when necessary. He advocates for the child to ensure that they have access to the support they require and have opportunities to progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Continued improvements have been made to the home environment. The home is generally warm and nurturing. However, there is low-level damage throughout the home to fixtures, fittings, and floor coverings. Some areas of damage have not been repaired in a timely manner. Frequently used areas of the home are generally clean and tidy. However, this level of cleanliness is not maintained throughout the home. This includes the basement and top floor. Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of the children. It should be a homely and domestic environment. In particular, damage caused to the home must be repaired in a timely manner and standards of cleanliness must be maintained across all areas of the home. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,' page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that staff encourage children to share any concerns about their care or other matters as soon as they arise. Children must be able to take up issues or make a complaint with support and without any fear that this will result in any adverse consequences. In particular, in relation to incidents, the child should have the opportunity to discuss any concerns they may have about the staff who were involved. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality

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Recommendations

standards,' page 22, paragraph 4.13)  The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, the registered person must ensure that when risk assessments are updated, the information is accurately reflected across all the child's plans and assessments. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,' page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: 2812360 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 10 Cliff Parade, Wakefield WF1 2TA

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Inspector

Jo Cansfield, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2812360 9 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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