Children's Home run by Theracare Homes Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 1 Registered provider: Theracare Homes Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider. The home provides care for up to 3 children who may experience emotional or social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and manager registered with Ofsted in July 202.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 1 December 2025

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/12/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 3

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Summary of findings

The inspection identified serious and widespread failures in leadership, management and oversight that have adversely impacted children’s experiences, safety and welfare. Children’s views were not consistently heard or acted on, education arrangements did not meet individual needs, and care planning, risk management and safeguarding practices were ineffective. Leaders and managers failed to provide sufficient scrutiny of practice, maintain accurate records, respond to known concerns or ensure that staff were suitably supported, supervised and recruited. Weaknesses in communication, decision-making and management oversight reduced accountability and confidence in the home’s ability to provide safe, child-centred care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Leaders and managers have not established effective management and staffing arrangements to ensure that children’s needs are consistently met. Staffing arrangements lack clarity and stability, with regular reliance on bank and agency staff to cover shifts. As a result, children are frequently cared for by staff they do not know well. One child said that although they speak with the staff, they do not feel comfortable to discuss any worries or concerns they may have with them. This instability has led to children not being able to develop trusted and secure relationships with the staff caring for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children live in a setting that is remote and some distance from their home areas. This increases children’s vulnerabilities. However, the impact of these vulnerabilities is reduced due to regular visits from professionals such as social workers and children spending time with their families. Leaders and managers have not submitted a quality- of-care review to the regulator. This does not allow the regulator to understand children’s experiences and outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children have raised concerns regarding staff practice and the extent to which their views and wishes are considered when planning activities. One child reported that staff had not listened to their preferences and stated that, despite raising the matter with the manager, they were unclear about what actions had been taken and felt that there had been no improvements as a result. Although the child subsequently submitted their concern in writing to the deputy manager, a copy of this was unavailable during the inspection and staff were unaware that the concern had been raised. This indicates weaknesses in the home’s processes for recording, communicating and responding to children’s concerns. As a result, opportunities to hear children’s voices, address their experiences and take effective action are being missed, leaving concerns unresolved and reducing children’s confidence that their views will be listened to and acted on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 4 Leaders and managers do not demonstrate sufficient oversight of the quality and suitability of children’s education arrangements. One child attends an education provision that does not meet their identified needs. Leaders and managers were unable to provide evidence of how they are challenging this arrangement or what actions they are taking to secure a more appropriate education provision. Another child receives support from a home tutor. However, the child does not consistently engage with the tutor and is not making progress. Leaders and managers have not taken effective action to understand and address the barriers to the child’s engagement or to ensure that alternative strategies are in place to support the child’s educational development. Consequently, children do not receive education that consistently meets their individual needs or supports them to achieve positive outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children reported becoming aware of confidential information relating to other children after overhearing staff discussions. Staff practice does not promote children’s privacy or support them to feel valued and respected. This compromises the confidentiality of sensitive information and does not support the development of trusted relationships between children and the staff caring for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are not routinely consulted or prepared when decisions are made about new children moving into the home. For example, staff informed one child only one day before another child moved in. In addition, leaders and managers do involve relevant professionals, such as social workers, in the decision-making process. This does not demonstrate that leaders, managers and staff appropriately consider children’s views, wishes and feelings and limits opportunities to assess and manage the impact of new children moving into the home on the children already living in the home, reducing their sense of permanence, stability and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children are not consistently receiving a good quality of care. One child’s bedroom was cluttered with clothes, dirty cups and plates and other items scattered across the floor, limiting the child’s comfort and safety. In addition, staff had not removed negative comments written by the child about living at the home from the radiator. This does not support children to feel valued or develop a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One staff member reported that they encourage the child to keep their bedroom clean and tidy. However, any improvements are short lived and the room quickly returns to its previous condition. Staff have not adopted an approach that supports the child to develop the skills needed to maintain their bedroom to a good standard. Furthermore, staff miss opportunities to promote the child’s independence, sense of achievement and wellbeing.

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

One child who is subject to a deprivation of liberty order has their liberty restricted without understanding why the measures are necessary or when they should be implemented. For example, staff keep doors locked at all times, despite the child being supervised by two members of staff. Leaders and managers have not considered the Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 5 impact of these restrictions on the other child, resulting in their liberty also being restricted. This practice does not ensure that children’s rights and liberty are appropriately considered and protected.

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

Children are being cared for by a member of staff who previously moved from another home in the organisation due to safeguarding concern. Although managers did deal with the safeguarding matter, they did not think about any impact for other children in the organisation. This potentially places children at risk of harm.

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

Children’s records such as risk assessments set out what action staff need to take when there are concerns for children’s safety. However, one risk assessment is password protected and leaders, managers and staff were unable to access this. Staff not having access to children’s risk assessments does not support them to understand children’s risks or the action they need to take to safeguard children effectively, and places children at risk of harm.

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

Children at high risk of child criminal and sexual exploitation are not consistently safeguarded through effective supervision and professional curiosity. For example, despite concerns that one child may have access to a mobile phone contrary to agreed risk management plans, there were significant delays in searching the child’s bedroom. This lack of appropriate action and professional curiosity places this child at further risk and does not demonstrate that staff understand their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding children.

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

Children rarely go missing from home. However, when one child was missing, staff took appropriate action to search for and locate the child. The child was provided with an opportunity to speak with an independent person to explore the reasons for going missing and to help to prevent further missing incidents from occurring.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The inspection was hindered by the absence of key leaders and staff, including the registered manager and deputy manager, as well as delays in senior management attendance and access to electronic records. Leaders and managers were unable to identify a suitable person to support the inspection, and staff on duty were unable to provide detailed information about the children or the home’s operation. These shortfalls delayed the inspection, restricted opportunities to review records, and reduced the ability to gain a comprehensive understanding of children’s experiences and care arrangements. This raises concerns about the effectiveness of leadership and management oversight, staff knowledge of children, communication in the home, and the home’s capacity to support effective monitoring and regulatory scrutiny.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are known concerns within the organisation about the effectiveness of leadership and management oversight. These concerns include the accuracy and reliability of records and indicators of a potential closed culture. Despite the same leadership and management team having responsibility for this home, leaders and managers did not Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 6 adequately consider the relevance of these concerns or take sufficient action to assess and address any associated risks. As a result, they did not evaluate or mitigate the potential impact on the experiences, safety and welfare of children living in this home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers provided inaccurate information to a placing authority social worker by stating that they had consulted with the social worker regarding another child who was subject to a deprivation of liberty order. This consultation had not taken place. As a result, the social worker did not have accurate information to assess the potential impact of the placement on the child already living in the home. This failure to share relevant information compromised effective decision-making and resulted in the placing authority seeking an alternative placement for the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Concerns have been raised with the regulator regarding the accuracy and integrity of records maintained at the home. During the inspection, inconsistencies were identified between records intended to evidence staff presence and the staff rota. In addition, records relating to another service within the organisation had been removed from their usual location and were found at this home. These issues raise concerns about record- keeping practices, the accuracy and reliability of information, and leaders’ and managers’ ability to maintain effective oversight, accountability and governance.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers sought feedback in a team meeting from staff regarding their experiences of raising concerns and the culture in the home. In addition, supervision discussions took place to explore these matters further. However, records do not demonstrate that these discussions were meaningful, reflective or resulted in clear actions to improve care practices. The absence of clear outcomes limits leaders’ and managers’ ability to identify and address concerns effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Safer recruitment practice is not sufficiently robust. Leaders and managers appointed new staff following recruitment processes that did not consistently provide sufficient opportunity to assess candidates’ skills, experience and suitability for working with vulnerable children. Recruitment records do not consistently demonstrate that leaders and managers have taken all reasonable steps to evaluate applicants’ ability to meet children’s needs safely and effectively before appointment. These shortfalls raise concerns about safeguarding arrangements and do not place children’s welfare and best interests at the centre of practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Arrangements for the supervision and oversight of leaders, managers and staff are inconsistent. Newly appointed staff have not been subject to regular probationary review, limiting leaders’ and managers’ ability to assess competence, identify development needs and ensure that staff are suitable for their roles. Staff have not received sufficient guidance, support and reflective supervision in relation to children’s individual needs, including deprivation of liberty arrangements. Consequently, staff do not understand how to apply agreed strategies and safeguard children effectively in practice. As a result, children do not consistently receive safe and effective care. Due to the serious and widespread shortfalls identified during this inspection, a restriction of accommodation notice was issued. Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 7

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills to safeguard children effectively, that children are not subject to unnecessary restrictions, that staff demonstrate professional curiosity during incidents, complete accurate records and make appropriate enquiries when there are indicators of potential risk to children. 24 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 8 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 work as a team where appropriate;

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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

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to 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; 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)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the management arrangements in place for the home are suitable. They must ensure that action is taken to understand the culture in the home to prevent a closed culture continuing, and that staff fully understand their roles and responsibilities and take appropriate action to care for children safely and effectively. 24 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. 24 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 9 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that assessments of children’s suitability to live at the home carefully consider the needs of the children already living at the home and staff skills, experience and ability to meet their needs.

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Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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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

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to express views, wishes and feelings;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child’s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child; 24 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 10 regularly consult children, and seek their feedback, about the quality of the home’s care;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how the child’s privacy will be respected and the circumstances when it may have to be limited;

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Requirement Due date

make each child aware of and, if necessary, remind them of each of the matters in sub-paragraph (d)(i) to (iii);

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Requirement Due date

is enabled to provide feedback to, and raise issues with, a relevant person about the support and services that the child receives;

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Requirement Due date

has access to the home’s children’s guide, and the home’s complaints procedure, when the child’s placement in the home is agreed and throughout the child’s stay in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

keep the children’s guide and the home’s complaints procedure under review and seek children’s comments before revising either document;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that an explanation is given to each child as soon as reasonably practicable after the child’s arrival about—

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Requirement Due date

how to make a complaint or representations in relation to the home or the care the child receives and how any such complaint or representations will be dealt with; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the views of each relevant person are taken into account, so far as reasonably practicable, before making a decision about the care or welfare of a child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 11 (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(iii)(e))

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

maintain regular contact with each child’s education and training provider, including engaging with the provider and the placing authority to support the child’s education and training and to maximise the child’s achievement;

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Requirement Due date

raise any need for further assessment or specialist provision in relation to a child with the child’s education or training provider and the child’s placing authority;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. 24 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 12 (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(ix))

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to leaders and managers ensuring that children’s bedrooms are clean, free from hazards and immediate action is taken to repair any damage. 24 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all staff are suitably qualified and experienced and have the skills and training to provide consistent care. 24 August 2026

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Requirement Due date

have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which the responsible individual is nominated. (Regulation 26 (7)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that they have effective oversight of the home and that the registered manager receives regular supervision. 24 August 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 13 The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review ("the quality of care review report").

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5)) 24 August 2026

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 14 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: 2839658 15

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Theracare Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit F1-F3 Blenheim Court, Carrs Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK8 2JY

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Inspector

Nicola Forrester, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2839658 16 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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