Children's Home run by Enable Living Solutions Limited in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 1 Registered provider: Enable Living Solutions Limited 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 provider and is registered to provide care for 2 children with social and/or emotional difficulties and who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered in February 2025. A new manager has been in post since February 2026 and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

During the inspection, 2 children were living in the home. Both children agreed to speak with the inspector.

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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: 15 September 2025

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/09/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 3

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Summary of findings

Since the last inspection, children have been developing positive relationships with a consistent staff team who provide individualised, therapeutic care. Admissions are well planned, helping children to feel welcomed and settled. Children are supported to engage in education activities, independence planning and meaningful activities and to maintain important family relationships. When incidents occur, staff respond calmly and appropriately to safeguard children. A new leadership team is strengthening oversight, accountability and monitoring to make changes and improvements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has remained living at the home since the last inspection and continues to develop positive relationships with staff. A second child has recently moved in and is settling well. They are personalising their bedroom, and celebrated their birthday with staff and family, which has helped them to feel welcomed. The admission was well planned and involved strong collaboration with parents and thoughtful preparation by staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience child-centred care and individualised support, underpinned by a therapeutic model based on PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy). This approach helps staff to understand children’s experiences and to respond consistently and in a nurturing way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Structured daily routines are in place and support consistency and predictability for both children. These routines are shaped around individual interests, demonstrating that children’s voices are listened to. Children are supported to develop their talents, such as in sports, where they travel to venues, enter tournaments and achieve success, which is enhancing their confidence and aspirations. Routines are also aligned to individualised, bespoke reward systems that are linked to children’s desired goals. These include engagement in education, adhering to vaping guidance and developing positive bedtime routines.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education plans have been in place since the last inspection. Personal education plan and education, health and care plan meetings have been held to identify suitable provision and to set targets accordingly. One child is being supported to explore employment opportunities linked to their interests and has also secured a college place for the next academic year in their chosen career area. The other child has recently arrived and is settling into the home. A joint plan has been agreed with children’s services to support this crucial period. An interim education plan is in place, and while suitable provision is being identified, staff are providing learning support. Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 4 Children’s health and emotional needs are mostly being met. Children are supported to attend medical and health appointments as advised by health professionals. Where there are concerns about unmet needs, advice is sought and, where appropriate,

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

referrals are made to relevant services to provide guidance and intervention.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has made progress in their independence time, which has increased, to support them as they prepare to leave care. Staff provide support with bespoke sessions around key areas of need. There are assessments for post-18 planning arrangements, which remain unclear. Managers have appropriately raised this with the relevant professionals; however, further confirmation is required to ensure that plans progress and that the child’s views are shared in decision-making so they feel listened to and prepared for adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who live far from their home areas are supported to maintain relationships with people who are important to them. They are supported to have daily phone contact, and one child has been enabled to return to their home area for a visit. Staff work closely with families, which strengthens children’s sense of belonging and stability. Feedback from families is positive, with one describing ‘great partnerships’ with managers. Another parent rated communication with staff as ‘10 out of 10’. This strong, collaborative approach helps children to feel valued, connected and settled, and supports them to maintain their identity.

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

Children are cared for in a safe environment where their needs are understood and managed appropriately. Staff demonstrate a clear understanding of children’s vulnerabilities and respond proportionately, which helps children to feel safe. When children need support to make positive choices and decisions, staff provide bespoke sessions to educate them and reduce the potential for harm or increased risk.

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

Missing-from-home plans and guidance to help children to stay safe have been reviewed since the last inspection. There have been 2 incidents of children going missing. However, the guidance does not yet clearly distinguish between a child being missing when out independently and a child leaving the home without permission. This lack of clarity can affect the consistency of staff’s responses and record-keeping. Leaders recognise this shortfall, and further action is required to ensure that staff have clear guidance and know which actions to take in different situations when these episodes of children going missing occur.

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

When children display inappropriate or discriminatory behaviour, staff respond calmly and use consistent therapeutic direct work to help children understand the impact of their behaviour. This supports them to develop safer and more appropriate ways of expressing themselves. Referrals are made to specialist services where needed to support sustained improvement. Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 5 The use of physical intervention is low. When children are held, staff follow agreed guidance and procedures, using physical intervention only as a last resort to keep children safe. Incidents are managed appropriately, and restorative work is completed afterwards to help children understand what has happened and to reduce the likelihood of repeat incidents. This also includes involving both staff and the child to ensure that relationships are not adversely affected and that children feel safe, supported and

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

Following an incident in which a child was assaulted in the community, staff responded appropriately and prioritised the child’s safety and wellbeing. Staff managed the situation calmly when the child became heightened and distressed, which helped to prevent further escalation. This response was supported through therapeutic consultation with the clinical support team. This helped staff to reflect, better understand the child’s experiences and responses and apply curiosity to the incident to strengthen safeguarding practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, a new leadership team has been put in place, including a manager, who has applied to register with Ofsted. She is supported by an experienced deputy manager who shares the same vision and ambition for the children and the home. The new leadership team work well together and have agreed roles and responsibilities to ensure clear direction and accountability across operations. The new manager is experienced and has a strong background in education and care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff turnover is low, which provides stability for children. Staff say that they feel supported and have access to the training they need to meet children’s needs. There is a clear commitment to staff development and progression within the organisation. Staff spoke confidently about the children and their individual needs, and about how to keep them safe. One member of staff said, ‘We all have individual strengths and are confident in what we do.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Some staff have not yet achieved the required qualification within expected timescales. Managers are aware of this and are using a monitoring tool to track progress and to support staff to achieve the qualification within agreed timescales, in line with regulatory expectations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision and appraisal arrangements are regular and purposeful, supporting staff to reflect on their practice and respond effectively to children’s needs. Monthly team meetings include input from external clinicians, which supports the therapeutic approach and provides staff with dedicated space and time to reflect on individual children and how best to support them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Independent visitor reports are generally timely and consistent. However, the registered person should ensure that the independent visitor remains suitably independent and objective in line with the expectations of the regulation 44 role. Any potential conflict or Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 6 relationship that may impact perceptions of impartiality should be appropriately reviewed to maintain effective external challenge and accountability accordingly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders have introduced an additional monitoring system to ensure that relevant information is shared when children move into the home. This has identified gaps in information-sharing for one child, and action has been taken to strengthen key details and relevant information. This ensures that staff have a full understanding of the child’s history to keep them safe and meet their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Overall, the recording of documents, plans and logs is maintained; however, there are examples of some documentation requiring more detail to ensure clear accountability and responsibility. Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they actively challenge and escalate concerns when children’s plans, health needs, assessments or access to services are delayed or lack clarity. 31 July 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint, at the registered provider’s expense, a person ("the independent person") to visit and report on the children’s home carried on by the registered provider.

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5), the registered provider may not appoint the following as an independent person—

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Requirement Due date

a person who has, or has had, a connection with—

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Requirement Due date

which the registered provider considers to give rise to doubts about that person’s impartiality (for the purposes of producing the independent person’s report – see regulation 44). (Regulation 43 (1) (3) (g)(i)) 31 July 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 8 In particular, the registered person must review any personal or professional connection with the independent person and ensure this does not compromise, or appear to compromise, the impartiality of the monthly report that they produce.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of clear recording and ensuring that key information is consistently embedded in all documentation, plans and reports. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that all staff achieve the relevant qualification within the expected timescales and at the appropriate level. Where there are identified gaps, managers should take timely action to monitor progress and ensure all required qualifications are completed to support staff in delivering consistent, high- quality care to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 68, paragraph 1.4)  The registered person should ensure that procedures clearly specify the roles and

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Recommendations

responsibilities of staff when a child is missing from care or away from the home without permission. Staff should be provided with clear guidance about the actions they are expected to take in every situation and how incidents should be accurately recorded and categorised. This will help ensure consistent safeguarding responses and support children to return safely and receive appropriate care and support following any episodes of going missing. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.28)

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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: 2781999 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Enable Living Solutions Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 6 Ebbw Vale Road, Irthlingborough, Wellingborough NN9 5PG

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Inspector

Gill Rudkin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2781999 10 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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