Altus Social

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 1 Altus Social Registered provider: Altus Social Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

A private provider operates this supported accommodation service. The provider can accommodate up to 27 individuals in 2 shared or group-living homes that are limited to accommodating looked-after children or care leavers, and 5 shared or group-living homes that are not limited to accommodating looked-after children and care leavers.

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provider

The provider operates in the north-west of England. At the time of the inspection, 13 individuals, who were looked-after children or care leavers aged 16 or 17, were being accommodated.

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provider

The provider has been registered since 5 January 2024. The registered service manager has been in post since this time. They also hold other responsibilities, which include the nominated individual and a director.

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provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 22 June 2026 and started that day. The inspectors were on site 24 and 25 June 2026.

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Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will be within approximately 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Children have positive relationships with staff and feel that they provide good levels of support. Children are making progress within the service. When children move in, staff and children welcome them into the home.

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Summary of findings

Staff have missed opportunities to completed educational work with children when new and emerging risks are highlighted. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 2 Accommodation is suitable for children. However, some maintenance repairs are outstanding. Accommodation is not consistently welcoming or homely, or furnished with suitable furniture.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers have failed to update their statement of purpose since being registered. The service has expanded and now employs additional staff. Additionally, managers do not always follow safer recruitment processes. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children said that they feel happy and safe in their home. One child said, ‘It is nice here, everything is great.’ They can access support from staff during the day and throughout the night by contacting the on-call service. Staff have positive relationships with children, and this was observed throughout the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are making progress in line with their support plans. The provider specialises in supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. They receive referrals from local authorities and the National Transfer Scheme. Referrals are appropriate. Staff make sure they complete assessments for children to live safely together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff offer children a range of different experiences. They are strong advocates for children to engage in positive activities. The provider runs a football club, which has excellent attendance from all children who reside in the service. They have recently been approved from the Football Association to register as a team. Leaders and managers have partnered with youth services and offer children a range of experiences, which children enjoy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff support children to access education. Children access different forms of education and training and speak positively about their experiences. Staff promote education opportunities for children as soon as they move into their accommodation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Most of the accommodation has outstanding repairs and maintenance. One child said that they were unhappy about the standard of accommodation. Leaders and managers acknowledge that maintenance work does need to be completed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Leaders and managers work closely as part of a multi-agency team, supporting children. They communicate with external services, which means that information is shared with different agencies involved in children’s care. Children’s services have been positive about the communication from staff. One social worker said, ‘Communication from the home is consistently strong. Their communication with [name of child] is positive, clear and supportive, helping [child] feel heard and involved in decisions.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff complete risk assessments and support plans for children, which are clear and provide most of the necessary information. Staff support children to develop life skills to prepare them for independent living. Staff regularly complete key-work sessions. However, there have been missed opportunities to address emerging risks for children, such as missing-from-home incidents and alcohol use, and the effect that this will have on their physical and emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are all registered with health services and are supported to attend appointments. Staff support children to access specialist services and encourage them to engage. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 4

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff respond well to safeguarding incidents and take appropriate action. Staff report children missing from home and follow the child’s care plan. Children have independent return interviews.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children have clear and detailed risk assessments and support plans, which include known risks. However, new risks are not included in some children’s plans, which does not inform staff working with the child how to manage this safely.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff working with children are safe. However, leaders and managers do not always follow safer recruitment processes. They fail to confirm the reason for new staff leaving their previous employment when they have worked with vulnerable adults or children. Additionally, leaders and managers do not explore gaps in employment.

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How well children are helped and protected

The staff rota does not reflect which properties members of staff are working in daily. The model of the service is for staff to work across different properties in the area during their working day. Leaders and managers were unable to provide a rota, which highlights potential concerns if dealing with any safeguarding matters.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff complete a wide range of safeguarding training to help them support children effectively. Training is in line with children’s individual needs. Leaders and managers have oversight of staff training. Staff spoke positively about the training they receive and how this has been relevant for their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The statement of purpose has not been updated since the provider has been registered. This does not reflect the current service that they are operating. The service has expanded, with several premises added since registration. The young person’s guide is basic and is not kept up to date. This needs to be clear, especially for children who speak English as an additional language.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The provider has a workforce development plan. However, this is basic and does not fulfil the requirements in the regulations concerning the recruitment and employment of staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers monitor the service and have submitted their review of support every 6 months. However, they have failed to consistently consult with children, staff and other agencies or carried out relevant research to help staff to support children better.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Managers provide staff with regular supervision meetings. This means that staff can discuss their wellbeing, development and progress within the service. As a result, staff feel valued and listened to by managers. Children are discussed at weekly team meetings. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 5 Staff are positive about the support and training they receive. They said that they feel valued working for the service. One member of staff said, ‘[Name of service] is a wonderful place to work, and I feel like I am part of a family. The organisation has provided me with many opportunities to improve and develop my skills and career.’ Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the ‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The protection standard is that children are enabled to feel safe and that their needs are met.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

work collaboratively with children to help them understand how to keep safe, by offering guidance and support on how to minimise any potential risk of harm. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(f)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff complete key-work sessions with children when new risks emerge to support them in mitigating this risk. 20 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used as supported accommodation—

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Requirement Due date

are adequately maintained so as to provide a welcoming and homely environment within both individual and shared living spaces. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(b)(viii)) 3 September 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep records of other information relating to the supported accommodation undertaking set out in Schedule 3. 20 August 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 7 The registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

maintain the records in Schedule 3, which may be kept in electronic form. (Regulation 25 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the electronic rota includes the name of the property at which staff are supporting children. They must include times when staff attend different properties and the length of time spent at each property.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile a statement ("the statement of purpose") which covers the following matters in respect of the supported accommodation undertaking—

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Requirement Due date

the category or categories of supported accommodation it offers;

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Requirement Due date

the services it provides for children it accommodates and supports;

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Requirement Due date

the characteristics of the children for whom it is intended the supported accommodation undertaking will provide accommodation and support, including the age range, number and sex of the children;

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Requirement Due date

the facilities it provides to the children it accommodates;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the accommodation it provides, including how the accommodation meets the accommodation standard (see regulation 6), how the accommodation might be adapted to meet the individual needs of children it accommodates and the security arrangements in place;

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Requirement Due date

the organisational structure, including management structure and staffing arrangements;

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it, and

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Requirement Due date

notify the CIECSS of any revisions and send the CIECSS a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 9 (1)(b)(c)(d)(f)(h) (3)(a)(b)) 20 August 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 8 The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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Requirement Due date

before a child arrives or upon a child’s arrival, ensure that the child is given a written guide, in an accessible format, containing information about—

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Requirement Due date

the support and accommodation provided by the supported accommodation undertaking;

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Requirement Due date

what advocacy support or services are available, how the child may access that support or those services, and any entitlement the child may have to independent advocacy;

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Requirement Due date

how to make a complaint or representation in relation to the support and accommodation provided and how any such complaint or representation will be dealt with;

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Requirement Due date

what services and facilities are available that take account of children’s needs arising as a result of cultural differences or disability;

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Requirement Due date

and which the registered person must keep under review, seeking children’s comments before revising the written guide. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(j)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that a copy of the young person’s guide is provided to CIECSS. 20 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile, in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking, a plan ("the workforce plan") which covers the following matters in respect of the recruitment and employment of all staff—

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Requirement Due date

the experience and qualifications of managers and other staff, and any further training required for those managers and staff;

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Requirement Due date

the processes and timescales for staff to complete induction, probation and core training, including in safeguarding and health and safety;

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Requirement Due date

the process for managing and addressing poor performance; 20 August 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 9 the process and timescales for supervision and monitoring of staff.

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Requirement Due date

keep the workforce plan under review and, where appropriate, revise it, and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the workforce plan available on request to the CIECSS. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain a system for monitoring and improving the quality of support provided by the supported accommodation undertaking by completing a review ("a quality of support review") at least once every six months, which must take into account—

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Requirement Due date

the views of children, including any feedback and complaints received;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from individual children on the impact the supported accommodation has had on the child’s life, especially regarding how well prepared the child felt for transition into supported accommodation and how well prepared the child feels for transition out of supported accommodation;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from each child’s accommodating authority, staff and any relevant persons;

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Requirement Due date

any relevant research and developments in relation to the way in which the needs of children are best met. (Regulation 32 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d)) 18 December

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Recommendation

 The registered person must ensure that they are maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that if the person has worked in a position involving children or vulnerable adults, they verify as far as practicable the reason why employment ended. They should also explore any gaps in employment and a full explanation of the gaps in writing. (‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’, page 51) Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 10

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 11

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Altus Social Limited

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Victor Aturinda

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Inspectors

Helen Fee, Social Care Inspector Sarah Probert, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Altus Social 12 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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