Children's Home run by Unique Pathway Care Limited in Bolton

Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 1 Registered provider: Unique Pathway Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a private provider. It provides care for up to 4 children who have learning disabilities. 2 were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the first inspection since registration.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in November 2025.

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 2

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Summary of findings

The home has made strong progress since opening in November 2025, with 2 children successfully moving in and benefiting from careful planning, consistent support and positive relationships with staff.

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Summary of findings

Children are settled, attending education, improving in their health and independence and maintaining strong family links. Staff understand the children well, supported by detailed plans and effective multi-agency working, which has led to a reduction in incidents and improved outcomes.

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Summary of findings

Leaders provide clear oversight, maintain high expectations and support staff through training, supervision and reflective practice, although some areas for improvement remain, including fire drill practice, thorough investigation of staff concerns, and appropriate external referrals following disciplinary action.

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Summary of findings

Overall, the home provides a stable, nurturing environment where children are making good progress and staff are committed to continuous improvement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children have moved into the home since it registered in November 2025. Both children already knew the manager from a previous short breaks service, which helped them settle. Staff and managers carried out thorough assessments to ensure they could meet the children’s needs, and they carefully planned the children’s moves around their individual requirements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child initially found it difficult to settle. Staff and managers worked closely with the child, their parents and other professionals to support them through this time. Their coordinated approach prevented another move and provided stability and consistency. Both children are now settled, benefit from living in the home, and making good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is a large, detached property. Staff have made significant changes to the environment as they have got to know the children and the home to meet their individual needs. The home offers a range of shared spaces, including two lounges and a conservatory, as well as areas where children can spend time alone if they wish. Staff have also provided sensory toys and equipment throughout the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The garden is enclosed and includes a trampoline and a paved area for play. Staff maintain children’s bedrooms to a good standard and personalised them to reflect each child’s individual preferences. Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 3 Children attend appropriate education provisions and have good attendance. One child will move to high school this year and staff and managers have established clear plans to support this transition. Another child will move to a post 16 provision. Although professionals have not put transition plans in place for this move, staff have supported the child to attend open days and have appropriately challenged decisions about the child’s future education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health has improved since they moved into the home. Managers have requested appropriate assessments and appointments to review the children’s health needs. This has led to health professionals to discontinue medication that children no longer require and to withdraw previous diagnoses where appropriate. Staff seek professional advice about health concerns and ensure that children receive the support they need.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s families play an active role in their care. Parents visit the home and celebrated occasions such as Eid and birthdays with their children. Staff work closely with families, and their support has significantly improved one child’s relationship with family members. When concerns arise, managers and staff prioritise the children’s needs, advocate confidently on their behalf, and act in their best interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since moving into the home, the children have developed important skills. These include eating with cutlery, becoming more independent, accepting support with personal care from staff. These are all skills that will last a lifetime and reduce their reliance on others.

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

The children are supported by staff who know them well and place their best interests at the centre of their practice. Incidents involving the children, particularly one child, have reduced significantly. Strong multi-agency working and effective coordination between professionals have contributed to this improvement and helped meet the children’s needs. As a result, staff now use physical intervention less often, and the children are happier.

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

Managers address concerns about staff practice promptly and report them to relevant external professionals to ensure transparency and seek appropriate guidance. Managers have made appropriate decisions in relation to disciplinary action when concerns arise. However, managers have missed opportunities to explore some comments made by staff, which would have ensured that they thoroughly investigated all concerns.

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

Due to the children’s communication needs, the manager has arranged for an external consultant to visit the children monthly. They have developed positive relationships with the children and this has increased oversight of the children’s experiences of living at the home. Additionally, the manager made referrals to the local authority’s advocacy service, to ensure that children have an independent representative.

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

Children have personal emergency evacuation plans in place in the event of a fire. However, the staff have not ensured that children have taken part in regular fire drills. Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 4 This is a missed opportunity to ensure that children know what to do in the event of a fire and can navigate emergency exits in such a large home.

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

Children’s plans provide detailed guidance and managers review them regularly. Professionals, including speech and language therapists and occupational therapists, contribute to these plans, alongside environmental assessments where appropriate. Clear behaviour support strategies help staff understand and respond to each child’s individual needs. As a result, the plans support children’s progress and help them develop positive relationships with staff.

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

The manager follows safer recruitment processes, which reduces the risk of unsuitable individuals working with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has the appropriate experience and is working towards the relevant qualification. The senior leadership team plays an active role in running the home and they directly work with the children, particularly when there have been staff vacancies or when children have needed additional support. This approach helps them maintain clear oversight, develop the team and reduces the need for agency staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report that they receive support and have regular supervision. Managers encourage learning from incidents and reflect on how these can be reduced in the future. Managers have high expectations for the staff and will address when their practice falls short. However, they have not made appropriate referrals to the Disclosure and Barring Service following staff disciplinaries that have resulted in dismissal.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager holds regular team meetings. These meetings are child centred and provide staff with the necessary updates to support the children effectively. Team meetings also provide staff with a forum to discuss any progress and concerns. Staff receive appropriate training to do their role and includes face to face training relevant to the children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have good oversight of the staff and the children’s progress. Regular monitoring ensures that any shortfalls or concerns can be quickly addressed. There have been lots of changes to the staff team since the home was registered. However, managers have worked hard to ensure that the children have not been affected.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are keen to learn and develop, they use monthly visits from the independent person to make improvements and they actively seek feedback from staff and external professionals. Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 5

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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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are supported to take part in regular fire drills. 7 August 2026

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Recommendations

 This registered person should ensure that referrals are made to the Disclosure and Barring Service when staff have or would have been dismissed and where there has been a risk of harm to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 12, paragraph 2.7)  The registered person should ensure that any allegation of harm or abuse must be addressed in line with the home’s child protection policy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 44, paragraph 9.17)

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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: 2864271 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Unique Pathway Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 12 Holme Lea, Clayton Le Moors, Accrington BB5 5XZ

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Inspectors

Kerri Lynch, Social Care Inspector Sadie Green, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2864271 7 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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