Children's Home run by Witherslack Group Limited in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 1 SC475689 Registered provider: Witherslack Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in 2014 and is owned by a private provider. It offers care for up to 6 children with learning disabilities. At the time of this inspection, 5 children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home can provide ongoing care for children when they reach 18 until they complete their education. However, it must then reduce the number of children accordingly.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in 2020 and is suitably qualified and experienced.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered provider has recently appointed a new responsible individual, and we are currently checking this person has the relevant capacity, experience and skills to carry out the role.

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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: 9 February 2026

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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: SC475689 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/02/2026 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/01/2025 Full Good 05/03/2024 Full Good 01/02/2023 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 3

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Summary of findings

The home provides a nurturing, family-style environment where children’s individual needs are clearly understood and consistently met through thoughtful planning, strong relationships and supportive care. Staff embed learning from previous shortfalls and show confidence in responding to risks and promoting positive outcomes in health, education and family contact.

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Summary of findings

Children feel settled, valued and safe and are supported to make progress at their own pace. Risk management is generally effective, with improved practice evident, although risk assessments require updating to fully reflect children’s needs.

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Summary of findings

Leadership is strong. The registered manager is committed to children’s development, with a clear, child-centred vision and supportive culture for staff, though some recording inconsistencies and weaknesses in independent oversight slightly limit overall effectiveness.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from warm, positive relationships with staff, which are echoed in feedback from children, staff and professionals. All children said that staff are what makes their home great.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff create a family environment for children. Each room is personalised, with photos of family and items that are important to them. This helps children to have a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are registered with health professionals. One child has specific dietary needs and allergies, some of which were unknown until the provider identified a specialist assessment. These are included in the child’s plan, which has resulted in significant changes to the home environment to ensure safety and care when preparing meals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are attending education and making progress. When children have had difficulties in school, staff have worked with the local authority and education to find alternative learning opportunities. This has supported each child to access learning while taking into account their specific needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children through regular key work, helping them to form positive relationships with their peers. This includes therapeutic support through the provider’s therapist and helps children to remain safe and learn about behaviours that could negatively impact on them or others. Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 4 Children feel valued because staff listen to their views. Staff use the views of children to support their participation in a range of enjoyable activities that reflect their individual interests. This helps them explore and develop their hobbies.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s independence while recognising that some challenges may affect this. They provide consistent support and encouragement, helping each child to make progress in a way that reflects their individual needs and abilities relating to neurodiversity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to see family and friends regardless of distance. Children feel included by their family members, who have also said that staff make them feel like part of the family.

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

Staff understand the needs of children and their individual risks. They manage incidents well. This helps to keep children safe.

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

Staff have physically held children when they are at risk of harm. Incidents are short in duration. Staff hold children as a last resort. Due to continued learning through training, staff have used de-escalating techniques that have resulted in a reduction in the frequency of restraint being used to manage behaviour.

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

Children have risk assessments that outline their specific vulnerabilities. However, for one child, the risk of racial abuse was not included despite being noted in other plans. However, this is a current and recurring risk to the child, staff and the community.

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

Although recording in children’s documents has improved, a requirement is reinstated to ensure that all known risks are consistently and accurately included in risk assessments.

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

Children who go missing from the home are supported to return safely. Missing-from- home protocols are up to date and managers ensures through team meetings that staff understand expectations, revisit safety plans and respond effectively, including reporting to the local authority.

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

Children receive follow-up welfare checks and report feeling safe, as staff support them and help them stay calm. This support helps children develop self-regulation skills and has led to a reduction in harmful behaviours.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides effective oversight and has addressed the shortfalls from the previous inspection. This has been with the support of a dedicated deputy manager. There is a strong leadership team, which drives progress through regular auditing that informs a workforce development plan. Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 5 The manager is ambitious. She creates a nurturing environment for children. Staff and partner agencies speak positively about the leadership and the family-style environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff prioritise a need to understand each child and how they can respond to their individual needs. This is reflected in the personalised care provided. Children benefit from a consistent and tailored approach to their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager provides staff with regular supervision, support and access to training and development opportunities. Staff value the manager’s supportive approach and leadership. However, supervision records do not consistently include clear actions and timescales to measure progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has plans that focus on improving children’s experiences and staff practice. These plans support staff progression and career opportunities for learning. This helps to develop staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff work collaboratively to improve practice and strengthen the care they provide for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals provide positive feedback about the home. They highlight the commitment of staff and managers to providing children with good-quality care. Professionals comment on effective relationships between children and staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Visits from the independent visitor do not consistently identify actions. This raises concerns about the effectiveness of independent oversight and monitoring of progress. Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all risks, when identified, are clearly recorded in children’s risk assessments and care plans and that any risks identified have control measures in place that staff implement. This specifically relates to one child’s verbal racially inappropriate language. 30 June 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and 30 June 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 7 to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

A visit by the independent person to the home may be unannounced.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit ("the independent person’s report") which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the independent person produces a report that sets out whether children are safeguarded effectively and identifies actions to take to promote a safe quality of care for children.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional that allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. Actions set must include measurable timescales to enable review of progress and completion. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: SC475689 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Witherslack Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lupton Tower, Lupton, Carnforth, Lancashire LA6 2PR

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Inspector

Paul McKay-Smith, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC475689 9 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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