Children's Home run by Sankofa Specialist Care Ltd in Oldham

Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 1 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.1

Registered provider: Sankofa Specialist Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children's home

This home is operated by a private provider. It provides care for up to 3 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children's home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living in the home and one child in an unregistered holiday home that was arranged and staffed by the provider. During the inspection, both children were spoken to by the inspector.

p.1

Information about this children's home

The registered manager post is vacant. An interim manager has been appointed and has applied to Ofsted to be the registered manager. The operations director supported this inspection.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

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

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

p.1

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.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 21 January 2026

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

p.1

Recent inspection history

Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 2 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/01/2026 Full Good 14/05/2024 Full Good 20/09/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 13/12/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 3 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.2

Summary of findings

Children's care experiences are varied, and not all children have been consistently happy living in the home. This resulted in leaders and managers in conjunction with the local authority arranging for one child to live in an unregistered home. Children have not consistently had suitable care arrangements to meet their health and wellbeing.

p.3

Summary of findings

Although missing incidents are rare leaders and managers have not ensured that staff have responded effectively to missing-from-home incidents. Furthermore, children have had access to items that can cause harm, resulting in one child requiring medical attention.

p.3

Summary of findings

Reviewing and monitoring systems have failed to provide leaders and managers with effective oversight or learning following incidents. Actions are not taken to promote children's welfare, and leaders and managers have not ensured that all staff have the required skills to reduce known associated risks for children.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children have made progress. However, their experiences in the home have been varied. Children have not consistently been safeguarded, and breakdowns in relationships between children, and also with staff, have affected children's sense of stability and security.

p.3

improvement to be good

Leaders and managers work in partnership with local authorities to review children's care and adapt their plans. Joint decisions led to a child's move into a holiday home. This helped the child to maintain continuity of care from the staff while placement plans were finalised. However, plans have not progressed, and the child remains living in this unregistered home, which has impacted on the quality of care provided.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children have access to in-house therapeutic support. They are supported by staff to access emergency care and specialist healthcare relating to significant changes in their health needs. Staff have experienced challenges when supporting children to access general health services. Leaders and managers took actions during the inspection to ensure that all children are registered with a local GP.

p.3

improvement to be good

Staff understand the importance of children accessing and attending education. Social workers said that staff work closely with education professionals to help children overcome any challenges. Some children access alternative learning opportunities that help them to develop important life skills that are significant to their current stage in life.

p.3

improvement to be good

Staff help children to engage in and enjoy a variety of activities, such as shopping trips and attending concerts. Additionally, staff assist children to spend time with their family and Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 4 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.3

improvement to be good

people who are important to them. This helps children to develop their identity and social skills and also have fun.

p.4

improvement to be good

Staff have not prevented children from accessing hazardous and harmful items. On one occasion, this resulted in a child requiring medical attention. On a further occasion, no actions were taken to seek medical advice when a child ingested hazardous items. Delay in management oversight of this incident meant that managers failed to ensure that the child's safety and welfare needs were met.

p.4

improvement to be good

Not all children feel that they have a trusted adult they can talk to about their worries. Children are aware they can access advocacy support but have not been reminded of this. Advocacy is discussed during reviews and is mentioned in the children’s guide, but the local authority has been slow to provide such advocacy support which leaders have complained about. Unfortunately, the net result remains that means some children do not have access to independent support in line with their wishes.

p.4

improvement to be good

Children's risk assessments and plans are detailed but are not routinely updated after significant events. This means that staff do not have all required information regarding associated known risks or supporting practice guidance to reduce risks to the children.

p.4

improvement to be good

Although missing incidents are rare, on occasion staff have not responded effectively to missing-from-home incidents. Staff have delayed searching for children and delayed reporting them as missing to appropriate authorities. On one occasion, staff were not aware a child was missing from the home and failed to carry out suitable checks of the child. There is no evidence suggesting the child was harmed, despite a lack of management oversight.

p.4

improvement to be good

Staff know children well and attempt to use de-escalation skills to prevent incidents from escalating. Staff use restraint as a last resort and ensure that children have the chance to talk about incidents. This helps children understand events and rebuild relationships.

p.4

improvement to be good

Children and staff know how to make a complaint and raise concerns about staff practice. Any concerns are taken seriously by leaders and managers, who carry out investigations and share information with the appropriate agencies.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There have been some changes in the management team. The registered manager left, and a new manager is in post. However, they have not had the opportunity to implement changes to make essential improvements. The lack of consistent and robust management oversight has impacted on the ability to prioritise children's welfare. Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 5 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have not ensured that the home is free from potentially hazardous items and that medication is safely stored. Some actions were taken during the inspection to reduce potential risks to the children. However, lessons have not been learned; leaders and managers have not ensured that all staff have effectively prevented children from gaining access to hazardous items. This resulted in repeated significant incidents that affect children's welfare.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Delays in management oversight of some safeguarding incidents mean children have not had access to required support. On one occasion, the actions taken when a child said they had been assaulted were unclear due to gaps in records. Leaders and managers offered assurance that no harm occurred, but records failed to evidence the actions taken. Furthermore, leaders and managers have failed to work in line with their procedures to ensure that staff recruitment checks are carried out before newly appointed staff begin caring for children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have reviewed the quality of care offered to the children but have not ensured that this is informed by the views of children or significant others. They have not ensured that children and significant others are aware of how surveillance and monitoring systems are used in the home. These actions are not in line with the home's procedures and could impact on children's right to privacy.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff talked about feeling supported by leaders and managers. However, staff are not receiving regular supervision sessions, including newly appointed staff. This is a missed opportunity for managers to talk to staff about children's needs and explore staff practice and development. Additionally, leaders and managers have not helped all staff to secure suitable skills to help them meet the specific needs of children. Some of these skills are essential to ensure children's welfare during times of significant crisis.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders actively challenge local authorities regarding drift in progressing children's plans. They support children to raise concerns regarding their care plan and escalate concerns when necessary. Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 6 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

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;

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

p.6

Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child's welfare; and

p.6

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; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

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)(iii)(v)(vi)(b)(d)) 31 July 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 7 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.6

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—

p.7

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

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;

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

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)(c)(f)(g)(ii)(h)) 31 July 2026

p.7

Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction;

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

p.7

Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

p.7

Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (1)(a) (4)(a)(b)) 31 July 2026

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

p.7

Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children; 31 July 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 8 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.7

Requirement Due date

the child's placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance;

p.8

Requirement Due date

so far as reasonably practicable in the light of the child's age and understanding, the child is informed in advance of the intention to do the monitoring or surveillance; and

p.8

Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child's need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d))

p.8

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children have access to appropriate advocacy support in line with their wishes. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 23, paragraph 4.16)

p.8

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: 2643338 9 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.8

Children's home details

Registered provider: Sankofa Specialist Care Ltd

p.9

Children's home details

Registered provider address: 449 Brook Lane, Birmingham B13 0BT

p.9

Inspector

Gina Lightfoot, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2643338 10 OFSTED USE ONLY

p.9

Inspector

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.

p.10

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspector

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.10

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.10