NeedPro Nurturing Support Services

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 1 NeedPro Nurturing Support Services Registered provider: NeedPro Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

This service provides ring-fenced shared accommodation for up to 4 children.

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provider

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the provider’s ring-fenced shared accommodation. The child chose not to speak with the inspector.

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provider

The service and service manager registered with Ofsted on 24 October 2024.

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Inspection dates: 27 to 31 July 2026

The inspection was announced on 27 July 2026 and started that day. The inspector was on site from 29 to 31 July 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 approximately within 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers have provided supported accommodation for children whose needs exceed the level of support that the service is intended to provide.

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Summary of findings

Leaders, managers and staff have not completed relevant training to enable them to adequately safeguard and support children.

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Summary of findings

Staff do not support children to understand how to keep themselves safe while in the community. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 2 Children do not make sufficient progress, and staff do not have access to an effective system to monitor children’s progress.

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Summary of findings

Staff take time to get to know children’s families and develop trusting relationships with children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Since registration, the provider has supported 2 children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are not engaged in education, training or employment. Staff are not sufficiently proactive in supporting children to develop a meaningful daily structure. The progress made by children to develop their independence skills in preparation for adult living is not tracked by the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Before moving in, children have the option to visit the home and personalise their room. Staff attempt to make children feel at home and reassure them that they have a safe place to live. Children’s rooms are appropriately furnished for their comfort. The accommodation is safe and secure, and staff carry out regular health and safety checks. However, the home requires some cosmetic improvements to make the communal areas more homely. For example, following a leak on the first floor, some of the paintwork has been damaged.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children maintain positive relationships with their families and the people who are important to them, when appropriate. Staff know and have good communication with people who are important to children, helping them to continue to have a network of support around them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children maintain good health. All children are registered with health professionals, including GPs and dentists, promptly after arrival. Staff encourage children to attend regular health check-ups. However, children do not always make their appointments and therefore miss opportunities to maintain optimum health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff support children to maintain their religious customs and cultural identities. Staff talk to the children to help raise their awareness and understanding of others’ religious beliefs, and this helps to promote inclusion and consideration for others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

There is no system to help staff to monitor children’s progress. The children are not encouraged to express their views and provide feedback about the quality of the service they receive.

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How well children are helped and protected

The registered service manager has accepted children to live in supported accommodation whose needs are not suitable for this type of service. This includes a child who is at high risk of criminal exploitation. One child goes missing regularly and has access to significant financial funds, the source of which has not been identified by staff. Staff do not demonstrate enough professional curiosity about Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 3 children’s activities when they are away from the home. They are not providing sufficient support to help children understand the potential risks or how to keep themselves safe while in the community. The approach from staff to engage with the children lacks creativity and therefore opportunities are missed for meaningful discussions about staying safe.

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How well children are helped and protected

The registered service manager does not have a process to enable them to make considered decisions about the compatibility of the children moving into the service. This includes taking into consideration the potential impact on any other children already living in the home.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff understand the safeguarding process they should follow for children who go missing. They respond appropriately because they contact the relevant agencies to report them missing and share appropriate information. However, the registered service manager does not take action to ensure that children receive return home interviews with the local authority following their return. Staff do not have access to important follow-up information that may help them to prevent further incidents. As a result, children continue to go missing.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children’s written risk assessment and support plans are generic. They do not include updated information to help staff understand how to support and safeguard children effectively. Staff talk with the children, but many conversations are not in depth or meaningful.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children receive support outside of usual office hours, including in emergency situations, because staff make themselves available whenever they are needed. For example, the registered service manager acted as an appropriate adult for a child during a police interview. This ensures that children receive physical and emotional support during times of stress.

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How well children are helped and protected

The recruitment and vetting processes followed by the registered manager do not provide sufficient assurance that unsuitable individuals are prevented from working with vulnerable children. Previous employment references and international checks are not consistently sought.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered service manager and nominated individual roles are held by the same person. The registered service manager regularly works shifts in the service and provides direct support to children. As a result, they know the children well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered service manager regularly speaks with staff about the children and their support needs and is aware of the risks individual children face. However, the registered service manager does not take sufficient action in response to the known risks faced by children who are vulnerable to criminal exploitation. Furthermore, they do not do enough to seek advice and guidance from relevant partner agencies to explore alternative ways to support children. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 4 Staff feel supported and listened to by the registered service manager. They receive regular supervision and attend regular team meetings. However, the registered service manager does not receive supervision. Consequently, opportunities to reflect on practice and children’s progress are missed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered service manager communicates with placing authorities but does not escalate concerns about risk consistently or ask for relevant information when it has not been received. Consequently, opportunities are missed to work together to identify how to keep children safe and reduce risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The registered service manager does not have a workforce plan. There is no structured approach to recruitment, and there is no well-defined induction process. The registered service manager and staff have not completed all training identified by the provider. This includes training in relation to safeguarding, behaviour management and criminal exploitation. As a result, staff are working without the necessary knowledge to appropriately support children and their specific needs. However, the staff have requested further training to better equip them to support children, and the registered service manager is sourcing this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Children and staff do not have access to a process to make complaints or raise concerns about the registered manager. As a result, they may feel unheard, as they do not have an independent process to raise issues about the quality of the support they are receiving. The provider does not have an appropriate contingency plan ready to implement in the event an allegation is made against the registered service manager. This increases the likelihood of disruption for children and staff in the event of a serious concern.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The provider has not notified Ofsted of significant safeguarding events, such as children being arrested and being criminally investigated and when they are at risk of criminal exploitation. Consequently, Ofsted is unable to maintain appropriate oversight of the service and the quality of support children receive and assess the appropriateness of the provider’s response to serious incidents and safeguarding concerns. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 5

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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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking that puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

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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

implement recruitment practices that ensure staff are suitable to work with children and to keep them safe from harm;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place to manage referrals of children to the supported accommodation undertaking and admissions of children to premises used as supported accommodation, including, where relevant, emergency referrals and admissions;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that arrangements are in place for the supervision, training and development of staff;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the skills necessary to support children to identify, access and receive their entitlements in a way that helps them to learn to identify, access and receive their entitlements independently in the future;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that a business continuity plan is in place, outlining the actions the registered provider will take during unplanned disruption, covering all areas of the undertaking’s operation, including staffing, premises and emergency scenarios. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(e)(f)(g)(i)(k)) 30 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The protection standard is that children are enabled to feel safe and that their needs are met. 30 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 6 In particular, the standard in paragraph requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or any other harm, and act to reduce such risk;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

understand the relevant roles and responsibilities assigned to them by the registered person in relation to protecting children. (Regulation 5 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(f)(ii)(iii)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must:

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the staff receive appropriate training so that they have the skills and knowledge to identify and respond to children’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that they have all relevant information from the placing local authority;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that children’s risk assessments and support plans are up to date.

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints and representations made by or on behalf of children.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the procedure must provide that no person who is the subject of a complaint or representation takes any part in its consideration or investigation, except at the informal resolution stage if the registered person considers it appropriate. (Regulation 31 (1) (2)) 30 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile, in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking, a plan (“the 30 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 7 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;

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Requirement Due date

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. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the registered manager receives regular supervision.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) in relation to each child accommodated by the supported accommodation undertaking which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 2,

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that they obtain all relevant documents regarding each child from the placing local authority. 30 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify the CIECSS and any relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation; 30 October 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 8 an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child and the registered person considers that incident to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the supported accommodation undertaking or a person working for it;

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry);

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Requirement Due date

there is an incident involving the use of a measure of restraint of a child;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 27 (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)(f))

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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: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 9

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: 124 City Road, London EC1V 2NX

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered service manager: Rita Odubanjo

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Inspector

Josephine Onwubiko, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: NeedPro Nurturing Support Services 10 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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