Children's Home run by New Horizons NW Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 1 Registered provider: New Horizons (NW) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

The home is operated by a private provider. It provides care for up to 4 children who may experience emotional and/or social difficulties and/or have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2022.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living at the home. The inspectors spoke to all 3 children about their experiences of living in 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/06/2025 Full Good 23/07/2024 Full Good 20/09/2023 Full Outstanding 04/10/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 3

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Summary of findings

The home is run by an experienced manager who supports staff to develop their knowledge and skills. This enables staff to safeguard children effectively, and risks to children have reduced since living in the home.

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Summary of findings

Children make progress in education while living at the home and are supported to access formal education.

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Summary of findings

Children enjoy positive relationships with staff, who know them well. They are supported to take part in a variety of positive activities.

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Summary of findings

There are some areas within the home that require attention to ensure that they are of an acceptable standard and provide a clean and safe environment for children to live in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, 2 children have moved out of the home. They were supported by staff to move on to semi-independent living. Staff continued to provide support after they had moved out of the home. This ensured that their moves were successful.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to explore their own identities and interests. Children take part in a variety of activities, including hiking, visiting theme parks and going to the gym. These experiences support children to improve their physical and emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with educational professionals when children experience barriers to attending formal education. This coordinated approach ensures that children are reintroduced to formal education successfully. As a result, children's attendance at school has improved significantly since they moved into the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Feedback from different agencies about the staff's care of the children is positive. They say that children are happy and settled in the home and have positive relationships with staff. When asked about living in the home, one child said, 'It's amazing, the staff are lovely.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and managers prioritise embedding a child-centred ethos within the home. However, some of the language used and recorded about children is not always objective and not trauma informed. This is a missed opportunity for managers and staff to ensure that their care of children remains child focused.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The downstairs of the home is generally well maintained, and children have areas to relax and socialise. However, repairs and refurbishment to the home are not always timely and not always carried out to a high standard. Additionally, there are poor levels Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 4 of cleanliness in 2 of the children's bedrooms. This does not provide children with a clean and safe environment to live.

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

Staff follow individual risk plans for children to ensure that they are safe. Children's plans reflect their individual vulnerabilities and are regularly updated by managers. However, leaders and managers did not fully identify and evaluate the risks for a child completing part-time work in the community. Although staff took appropriate steps to ensure that the child was safe, this was a missed opportunity to ensure that there are clear plans in place prior to any activities.

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

When children are missing from home, staff respond appropriately and encourage them to return home safely. The number of missing-from-home incidents has reduced significantly since children moved into the home.

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

Staff successfully de-escalate incidents when children become distressed. This means that physical interventions are used proportionately and only when necessary. When physical interventions are used, the manager evaluates each incident to establish learning and develop new strategies of support for children. This ensures that physical intervention is used in a safe way.

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

Leaders and managers ensure that allegations are managed quickly and appropriately. When an allegation was made, appropriate action was taken, and managers ensured that the child's voice was central to the investigation. This ensured that the child felt listened to and supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager was not present for the inspection. However, the impact of her positive leadership was visible in the home. Staff speak highly of the valuable support and positivity she provides in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers support staff to reflect on their practice with regular supervision sessions and appraisals. These help staff consider the progress of children and the impact of their own practice. In addition, managers hold weekly team meetings and provide staff with new information and strategies to develop their practice and remain motivated. Feedback from colleagues and children is also used to support staff development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that staff are provided with training opportunities to develop their skills in line with children's individual needs. The provider also commissions a clinical psychologist to support with tailored training to the team. This ensures that staff practice is continuously developing to reflect the changing needs of the children. Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 5 Leaders and managers advocate for children to ensure that they receive the support they need. Effective working relationships with other agencies support children to make progress. They speak highly of the home and the care that children receive. One partner agency said, 'The team consistently advocates for [the child's] best interests and undertakes meaningful work and conversations with [the child] to ensure [they feel] safe, supported, and understood.' Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 6

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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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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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 (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home is of a high standard of cleanliness and repairs are completed in a timely manner. 19/06/2026

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the language that staff use when recording about children is careful, objective and clear. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that the risks to children are fully assessed prior to them engaging in any activities where they may be vulnerable. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 43, paragraph 9.10)

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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: 2594985 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: New Horizons (NW) Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: New Horizons (NW) Limited, Unit 17-18, Navigation Business Village, Navigation Way, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston PR2 2YP

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Inspectors

Ruth Mortimer-Jones, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Sarah Gilbert, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2594985 8 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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