Children's Home run by Positive Pathways Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 1 SC410539 Registered provider: Positive Pathways Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted on 29 June 2010 and provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and/or have learning disabilities.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home. Both children were seen during the inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post since August 2025 and is suitably qualified. They have applied to register with Ofsted.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/07/2025 Full Good 08/10/2024 Full Good 18/12/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/07/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 3

p.2

Summary of findings

The home is a warm, welcoming and homely environment for children to live in. Safeguarding arrangements in the home are effective. Staff understand the children’s individual risks and how they can support them. Staff are invested in building positive and trusting relationships with children.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a home that is warm and welcoming, with plenty of indoor and outdoor social spaces. Books and games are easily accessible, and soft furnishings help to create a nurturing environment. The home is clean and maintained to a good standard, while also currently undergoing refurbishment and redecoration.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy warm and nurturing relationships with the staff who care for them, helping to foster a sense of belonging and ensuring that they feel valued. Most members of the staff team have worked at the home for several years, meaning that the children are cared for by adults who know them well. Staff have demonstrated kindness, empathy and support when helping one child to recognise and respond to feelings of grief.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff positively encourage children to engage in discussions about the things that happen in the home, such as meal planning and activities. Children are offered many opportunities to engage in activities independently and with staff. Managers and staff listen to the feedback children provide and have been creative in adapting their approach to seek children’s views about living in the home and in line with their wishes. Staff encourage children to participate in professional meetings where plans for their care are discussed. This ensures that children’s views are heard and that they understand the decisions being made about their care.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to maintain positive relationships with people who are important to them and adopt creative approaches to supporting this, particularly during times of celebration, such as birthdays and Christmas. One child continues to regularly enjoy positive relationships and experiences with extended family members, which enhances their sense of belonging and identity. Children receive excellent support when they move into and on from the home. Staff provide many opportunities and encouragement for children to develop appropriate independent living skills, helping to prepare them for moving on from the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children are supported to enjoy positive physical and mental health. Children are encouraged to attend all health appointments, and where they choose to decline these, staff help them understand the potential consequences. As a result, children feel more confident to attend their health appointments. Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 4 Staff value education and actively encourage children to attend school. While staff endeavour to support children to engage in meaningful educational activities, this has not consistently provided a sufficiently effective learning experience for one child living in the home. As a result, this child has experienced unstructured days, with limited incentive to re-engage in education. This has led to the child missing out on important learning and routine. However, staff have remained focused on supporting this child and have assisted them in applying for college places for the forthcoming academic year.

p.3

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

Staff are highly knowledgeable about the actions required when children go missing. They are confident in speaking with children about the risks associated with going missing and seek to understand the underlying reasons when incidents occur. Managers and staff go above and beyond to locate children when they go missing, including visiting family members and friends. This helps ensure that children are found quickly and feel safe and valued. Managers have excellent oversight of information-sharing with other professionals when children go missing. This ensures that all those working with the child understand the reasons for missing-from-home episodes and can work together to reduce their frequency.

p.4

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

Staff ensure that restorative practices are in place, enabling staff and children to repair relationships and develop children’s sense of responsibility. Rewards and consequences are agreed individually with children, supporting them in taking ownership of their actions and outcomes.

p.4

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

Staff understand how to keep children safe online. They regularly speak with children about the safe use of the internet and social media, ensuring that the associated risks are understood by those living in the home. Staff undertake training in self-harming behaviours and restraint. However, there have been no incidents of self-harm or restraint during this inspection period.

p.4

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

Managers and staff are strong advocates for children, ensuring that their voices are heard and that they have access to appropriate resources. Staff speak with children about the risks associated with vaping and cannabis and seek support and advice from external services. As a result, one child living in the home no longer uses cannabis and has reduced how much they vape.

p.4

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

Staff are trained to administer and store medication safely. While some training has been provided to staff to support a child to self-administer their asthma medication, staff have not received training on how to respond to an asthma attack. This means that one child living in the home may not receive the immediate support required should they become unwell. Staff maintain daily records of medication administered children; however, these records do not include all medications that have been prescribed for a child. This limits staff’s ability to monitor all the medications children may be eligible to take on any given day. Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 5

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is motivated, skilled and knowledgeable about the children living in the home. Staff are appropriately qualified, and some have worked at the home for several years. The home is fully staffed and does not rely on agency staff, which provides children with stability. Staff are appropriately qualified, which ensures that children are cared for by staff who have the skills and knowledge to meet their needs.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff morale is high. They receive regular and reflective supervision, which they say is supportive and beneficial in helping them provide good care for children. Team meetings promote a culture of learning and development, ensuring that staff continue to understand their responsibilities and remain focused on delivering excellent care. Staff are enthusiastic about their roles and report feeling well supported by their managers and colleagues.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective safer recruitment processes are in place, ensuring that children are cared for by safe adults. Senior managers have effective systems and processes in place to monitor the quality of care provided in the home. Significant incidents are reviewed and escalated by managers as appropriate. However, on one occasion, an allegation made by a child against a member of staff was not reported to Ofsted, although the information was shared with the local authority designated officer. Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 6

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when children do not participate in education, they and staff work closely with the placing authority to support and enable them to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are supported to sustain or regain confidence in education and are engaged in suitable, structured activities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)  The registered person should ensure that prescribed medicines are administered only to the individual for whom they are prescribed. Records must be maintained of the administration of all medication. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15)  The registered person should ensure that there are sufficient suitably trained staff on duty to meet the assessed health needs of all children living in the home. (‘Guide to

p.6

Recommendations

the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)  The registered person should ensure that Ofsted and other relevant parties are notified when any of the situations specified in regulation 40 (4)(a) to (d) occur, specifically where a child has made an allegation against a member of staff. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)

p.6

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: SC410539 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Positive Pathways Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Park Business Centre, Hastingwood Industrial Park, Wood Lane, Erdington, Birmingham, West Midlands B24 9QR

p.7

Inspector

Helen Dickens, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC410539 8 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8