Children's Home run by Vita Spirit Limited in Liverpool

Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 1 Registered provider: Vita Spirit 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 small private company and provides care for up to 4 children with learning difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

Three children were living at the home at the time of this inspection. Two children have moved into and out of the home since the last inspection.

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Information about this children's home

The home and the manager have been registered with Ofsted since August 2025.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/05/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 3

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Summary of findings

Weak leadership and management have resulted in shortfalls across the home. These include weaknesses in safeguarding, health planning, risk management, recording and management oversight. As a result, children do not consistently receive good-quality care. While staff develop positive relationships with children and support their education and family time, these strengths are undermined by ineffective leadership and management.

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improvement to be good

Children do not receive the help and care they need to make sustained progress and achieve positive outcomes. Weak leadership and management have resulted in inconsistent practice.

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improvement to be good

The manager does not provide staff with accurate information to support children's health needs. Guidance for staff in relation to children's prescribed medication is unclear and does not reflect current prescribing instructions. During the inspection, the manager and responsible individual updated one child's epilepsy protocol to include accurate guidance for the administration of rescue medication and shared this with staff. Prior to this, staff did not have clear guidance to enable them to respond safely and consistently to the child's health needs. This shortfall compromised the arrangements in place to protect and promote the child's health, safety and welfare.

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improvement to be good

All children attend school. Staff have appropriately sought advice from the speech and language therapist at one child's school. However, the manager has not implemented the communication aids and strategies that the child uses successfully at school. As a result, the child's communication needs are not consistently met across home and school.

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improvement to be good

The home is not maintained to a consistently good standard. Shortfalls in the home environment detract from the home's presentation and children's experiences. One child's bedroom window is broken and can be left open. This has been an issue for a prolonged period, including during a heatwave. Broken furniture has not been removed and replaced, including a damaged dining table protector with sharp edges. This presents a hazard to children.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to spend quality time with their families. When family arrangements change, staff recognise the emotional impact on children and adapt their care accordingly. This provides children with consistent emotional support and promotes positive family relationships. Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 4 Staff enjoy working at the home and build positive relationships with children. They spoke enthusiastically about supporting one child to attend their school prom and shared the child's excitement.

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improvement to be good

Weak leadership and management mean that children do not receive good enough care, help and protection.

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improvement to be good

Assessments completed by the manager before new children move into the home are not sufficiently thorough. They do not fully consider children's known needs or the potential impact of new admissions on children already living in the home. In addition, guidance for staff is unclear and is not updated when new needs arise. This reduces staff's ability to provide consistent and good-quality care.

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improvement to be good

Staff have missed opportunities to support children's learning and understanding of sexual health, despite children's requests for this information. Although staff have sourced educational resources for this, these are not easily accessible for children. As a result, children have sought information independently online without the support and guidance needed to understand the information they access or to recognise and manage potential risks.

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improvement to be good

There have been 2 allegations made since the last inspection. One allegation investigation is ongoing. The previous responsible individual took all reasonable steps to progress the investigation. Records relating to the second allegation are limited. Although records identify the need for a lessons learned review, the manager has not completed this. This weakens management oversight and limits opportunities to improve practice and the experiences of children.

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improvement to be good

Staff use physical intervention when necessary to keep children safe. However, records of these incidents do not consistently contain all the information required by regulation. The manager has not identified or addressed these shortfalls. In addition, there is no process in place to ensure that the manager has a debrief when they are involved in interventions. This weakens monitoring and oversight arrangements and limits opportunities for reflection, learning and evaluation of practice.

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improvement to be good

The manager has implemented safe recruitment practices. All required pre-employment checks are completed before new staff begin working at the home. This promotes children's safety and welfare by reducing the risk of unsuitable individuals caring for them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leadership and management of the home are ineffective. The manager has not taken prompt and effective action to address identified shortfalls and improve the quality of Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 5 care provided to children. A new responsible individual is in post. While leaders are aware of some of the identified shortfalls, they have not taken effective action to address them. As a result, children continue to experience inconsistent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager has not identified gaps and inconsistencies in children's plans and risk assessments. These records do not consistently reflect children's needs. Key documents contain conflicting information, and risk assessments do not accurately record all known risks or the strategies staff should follow to manage and reduce risks. The manager does not update records promptly. This means that staff do not have access to reliable and accurate information to guide their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Monthly visits completed by the independent person routinely take place during school hours, and the manager has not challenged this. Furthermore, the manager has not ensured that the independent person has the necessary communication skills and resources to engage with children. This limits opportunities for children to contribute to the independent visitor's assessment of the home and weakens external scrutiny.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager does not maintain effective oversight of staff training. Training records are not consistently updated to reflect the training that staff have completed or when it took place. Therefore, the registered manager cannot reliably monitor staff competence or identify gaps in training that may affect the quality of care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Supervision provides staff with opportunities to reflect on their practice. However, the manager has not used supervision effectively to address performance concerns and set clear targets for improvement. New staff have not received supervision in line with the home's statement of purpose. These are missed opportunities to improve staff practice and support consistent high-quality care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager identified areas for improvement in staff practice, including reporting and recording. However, the workforce development plan does not set out clear actions, timescales or success measures to address these practice issues. Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 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

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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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

understand and apply the home's statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home's statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child's welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child's needs, as recorded in the child's relevant plans, taking account of the child's background;

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably;

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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 (1) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iv)(vii)(c)(i)(ii) 19 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met; 19 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 7 children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child's relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the child's health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child's health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child's age and understanding. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff have all necessary information to safely administer children's prescribed medication and what action they should take when medication is required.

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

that the home's day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm; 19 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 8 that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child's health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(vi)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children's home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home's statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h) 19 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— 19 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 9 within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child's behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (1) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(i)(ii))

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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

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Requirement Due date

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. 19 August 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 10 A visit by the independent person to the home may be unannounced. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the independent person visits the home at times when the children are present.

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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: 2821457 11

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Vita Spirit Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Seymour Chambers, 92 London Road, Liverpool, Merseyside L3 5NW

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Inspectors

Alexandra Pearson, Social Care Inspector Sam Baird, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2821457 12 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 looked after children, 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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