Children's Home run by Witherslack Group Limited in Wakefield

Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 1 Registered provider: Witherslack Group 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

This home is operated by a private provider. It provides care for up to 7 children, who may experience emotional and social difficulties. At the time of the inspection, 7 children lived in the home and all were spoken with during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted in November 2018. The manager registered in July 2026.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/06/2025 Full Good 02/07/2024 Full Good 17/10/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 30/11/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 3

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Summary of findings

Children are cared for by staff, who understand their needs and they benefit from nurturing care alongside consistent boundaries. Staff are dedicated to helping children make progress and keeping them safe.

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Summary of findings

An experienced manager is in place. He understands the impact of staff responses to children and ensures that children’s behaviour is managed in a restorative way. The manager and staff work hard to promote a culture, where children feel safe and well supported.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff build trusting relationships with children, which helps children feel able to seek support and comfort from staff. Professionals involved in the care of children describe the staff as nurturing. A social worker for one child said that staff demonstrate a strong understanding of the child’s individual needs and consistently provide a high standard of care and support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make significant progress in their education. Some children were not engaged with education before coming to live in the home and had been out of school for significant periods of time. Staff promote the importance of education and, as such, all children are now engaging in education, and school attendance is high.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to have relationships with their families. Staff recognise the importance of maintaining family connections and promote positive relationships in line with children’s care plans. The manager and staff strive to help parents feel heard, understood and included in care planning for children. Parents are positive about the care their children receive and how family time is promoted.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have dedicated key workers, who have high ambitions for them. Staff understand the children’s needs and how best to support them. They demonstrate genuine care and warmth towards children, cultivating a sense of belonging. There is careful consideration given to supporting children to understand and develop their emotions in a child friendly and age-appropriate way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a wide range of activities outside of the home, such as horse riding and go karting. One child is a valued member of a local football team. Staff have further encouraged the child’s interests by supporting them to attend their favourite team’s football matches. This helps children to develop interests and friendships outside of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 4 The home overall provides a warm and welcoming environment. Children are encouraged to decorate their bedrooms as they wish. While one child’s bedroom is very bare and stripped back, this is in accordance with their specific care needs. Plans are in place to progress this slowly, at a pace the child can manage and in line with their wishes and feelings. Some areas of the home, including the outside area, look worn and are in need of updating. Damage to walls in children’s bedrooms is not always repaired

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

in a timely manner and some mattresses are low quality and uncomfortable.

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

Staff have a thorough understanding of individual children’s needs and issues that can affect their behaviours. Staff use a wide range of de-escalation techniques, when children are distressed and apply a nurturing approach to help children to regulate and feel cared for. When physical interventions have taken place, these are used as a last resort with staff using the least restrictive measure possible.

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

Children’s records and plans are thorough and comprehensive. The detailed and useful assessments help identify the support and interventions needed to promote progress for children and provide clear strategies for staff to manage risks. This helps to ensure that the right level of support is provided for children and behaviours are understood.

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

Allegations made by children are managed appropriately. Staff listen to children and appropriate actions are taken to investigate concerns. Any necessary actions as a result of these investigations are completed. This helps children feel heard and promotes trusting relationships.

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

The manager has undertaken work with the staff around the importance of natural and logical consequences. Each child has rewards and incentives specific to their own needs. Staff value restorative work and consequences are proportionate. This helps children to take responsibility for their actions and encourages better choices without children feeling shamed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home had been without a registered manager for a period of time. Leaders have ensured that adequate support has been provided to minimise the impact of this on children and staff. An experienced manager is now in place. He has spent time getting to know the children and staff to develop a clear understanding of children’s needs and any areas for development for staff. A clear plan is in place to further strengthen the quality of care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are a visible presence in the home and lead by example. The manager and staff demonstrate a committed, child-centred approach. External professionals are very positive about the communication from the manager and the dedication of the staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 5 The manager has robust systems for effective oversight of children’s care. These help to identify patterns of behaviour, and this helps the staff team to learn from incidents and identify the most successful approaches to support children. The manager identifies learning to improve staff practice and models a nurturing approach that helps staff to separate the behaviour from the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel supported and are positive about the recent change in manager. Staff receive regular supervisions sessions from the manager, which are beneficial to their practice. They help staff to reflect on children’s behaviour, their relationships with children and the progress or struggles children may have.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a thorough induction, which helps support them on their employment journey. Staff receive training that is relevant to the needs of children. Team meetings are regular and have good attendance. They are reflective and provide opportunities to discuss the children’s needs with the input of the clinical team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that a high-quality, homely environment that meets the individual needs of children is maintained. In particular, the provider should ensure that repairs and redecoration are undertaken promptly and that all children benefit from high-quality furnishings. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)

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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: 2494551 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Witherslack Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lupton Tower, Lupton, Carnforth, Lancashire LA6 2PR

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Inspectors

Sarah Adotey, Social Care Inspector Amber Merriman, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2494551 8 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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