Agile Care Solutions Ltd

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 1 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Agile Care Solutions Ltd Registered provider: Agile care solutions ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

This service is owned and managed by a private provider. The provider can accommodate up to 12 children living in 3 shared accommodation or that are not limited to accommodating looked-after children and care leavers.

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provider

At the time of this inspection, the service was providing support for 7 children aged 16 and 17. We visited all 3 of the accommodation under this registration.

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provider

There has been no registered service manager since December 2025.

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provider

The nominated individual registered with Ofsted in October 2024.

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provider

This is the service’s first full inspection since registering with Ofsted in October 2024.

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provider

Ofsted completed a monitoring visit on this provider on 20 May 2025 and following this inspection issued a suspension notice. Ofsted completed a further monitoring visit on the 05 August 2025 and following this inspection the suspension notice was lifted.

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provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 20 July 2026 and started that day. The inspectors were on site on 22 and 23 July 2026.

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Outcome

Serious or widespread weaknesses lead to significant concerns about the experiences and progress of children. Leaders and managers must take urgent action to address failings.

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Summary of findings

Leaders have not sufficiently improved the services offered to children since Ofsted previously visited. The previous registered service manager who had provided effective leadership left their role in December 2025. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 2 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Summary of findings

Leaders and managers have exceptionally poor oversight of services, leading to children with high needs being supported by staff who do not have the skills, confidence and experience to support them and keep them safe. The standard of accommodation is substandard. It isn’t welcoming and lacks basic amenities. Children are not happy with the standard of accommodation they live in. Staff do not understand the risks for children, plans are ineffective and children are left at risk of harm as a result.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children are not consistently receiving the support they need to meet their individual needs. Staff are not supporting children effectively to develop independence skills with their personal care, undertaking cooking, cleaning and day-to-day activities. Staff are not forming relationships with children to develop these skills, for example one child only returns to their home once a week to collect money. Lack of effective staff support limits the children’s progress, and they are having poor experiences living in homes in this service.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

There are significant weaknesses in the assessment and matching of children moving into the service. In some cases, children with needs that fall outside the scope of the supported accommodation regulations have been inappropriately and unsafely moved into the service. Leaders have failed to consider the potential effect that children’s known behaviours and needs may have on others living in the accommodation. On one occasion, a child’s previous offences where not considered before the child moved in, which left children at risk of significant harm.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

The quality of accommodation provided for children is not welcoming or homely. The standard of accommodation is very poor in some homes, including a damaged ceiling with a large hole in it in one home. Two homes were poorly decorated and furnished, which meant they were not homely or welcoming. In one home, leaders and managers have implemented restrictions that affect all the children and limit independence, as all the knives are locked in the office. Children are unhappy with the condition of the homes. One child is not happy with the lack of necessities, such as cutlery and irons. When children move into the service with little or no possessions, including clothing, they are told to save for these items and there is no money available for staff to support the children with settling in. These concerns have not been explored with the children’s placing authorities, and children’s comfort, dignity or sense of belonging are not promoted by staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s plans are not sufficiently detailed to provide staff with the guidance they need to support children safely and effectively. Information contained within key documents is inconsistent, with different plans containing conflicting information. Some information is key to keeping children safe, such as information about their bail conditions. Where these conditions are identified in children’s referrals, they do not detail what those conditions are and how staff should support the children. As a result, staff are not aware of the children’s histories, risk and needs or how these should be met in practice, leaving children at risk of harm. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 3 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers have not ensured that risks to children are consistently identified, assessed and managed. Not all risk assessments reflect known concerns, and staff are not consistently made aware of risks that could affect children’s safety and wellbeing. One child said that they did not receive a caring response from staff in response to their mental health needs. The plans in place to support this child are poor and lack details about what staff should do to keep the child safe. Staff do not have the skills, confidence and experience to help children with self-harm and mental ill health. This means that children are not always receiving the support they need to keep them safe.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff do not always provide an effective safeguarding response to children who are being exploited. For example, where one child had known risks of being criminally exploited, there are no risk management plans in place. Managers have not demonstrated sufficient professional curiosity to explore concerns or fully understand the nature and level of risk to these children. Consequently, opportunities to identify and reduce risk have been missed.

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How well children are helped and protected

Staff are ineffective at supporting children to seek social opportunities and activities away from the home. Although this has been recognised as a concern, there is a lack of effective action taken by staff. Staff have not sought to understand the reasons for children staying at home or to encourage children to engage with support and positive activities. As a result, identified risks remain unaddressed, and children’s welfare is not consistently promoted.

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How well children are helped and protected

The record-keeping of incidents is poor and leaders and managers have not sought to improve it. Staff do not complete comprehensive or accurate records of incidents, the circumstances surrounding incidents, or the actions taken in response. This limits the provider’s ability to evaluate risk effectively and identify emerging concerns. Furthermore, following incidents, leaders and managers have not always taken appropriate action to safeguard children or ensure that staff are adequately protected and supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Management oversight of the service is ineffective. Leaders and managers have not maintained sufficient oversight of the quality of care and support provided to children. As a result, shortfalls have not been identified or addressed promptly, and children’s needs are not consistently met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Managers and leaders do not run the service in line with regulations. They have moved one child into the setting who is in receipt of care and who requires a high level of supervision. Leaders and managers have not recognised this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers failed to notify Ofsted of one very serious incident. On another occasion, leaders have failed to identify significant incidents and respond appropriately. These weaknesses in communication, oversight and monitoring Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 4 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

arrangements prevent leaders from having a full understanding of the experiences and risks for children. These failures have resulted in children experiencing poor care and harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff do not feel adequately supported by leaders and managers. Concerns regarding staff welfare have not been sufficiently considered. One member of staff resorted to calling a family member to attend the home during an incident as there were no managers contactable to support. These factors have contributed to high levels of staff turnover, which undermines continuity of support for children and limits the opportunities to develop enduring relationships.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff are not suitably trained to carry out their roles. Staff are not paid to complete their training, and managers do not have systems in place to monitor the completion of essential training by staff. Staff are not trained in providing care in line with the service’s statement of purpose. This leaves children being supported by staff who do not always have the knowledge or skills required to meet their needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Children’s views are not consistently sought or used to inform service development. Leaders and managers have failed to actively engage children in reviewing and improving the quality of support they receive. As a result, opportunities to understand children’s experiences and make meaningful improvements to the service have been missed. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 5 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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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

lead and manage the supported accommodation undertaking in a way that is consistent with the ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the undertaking’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills appropriate for the work that they are to perform;

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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. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(a)(c)(f)) 6 September 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.

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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

have their individual needs met; 6 September 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 6 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

have 24-hour access to help in a crisis or emergency situation;

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Requirement Due date

are familiar and act in accordance with child protection policies;

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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

support children to maintain appropriate and safe relationships with family, friends and other people who are important to them;

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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)(iv)(f)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

The accommodation standard is that children experience a comfortable and secure living environment.

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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

ensure that the premises used as supported accommodation—

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Requirement Due date

promote children’s positive self-esteem and sense of belonging within the local community, and discourage stigmatisation of children;

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Requirement Due date

are suitable for the purposes of supported accommodation and are accessible, safe, secure and well-maintained;

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Requirement Due date

offer a comfortable, positive and nurturing environment, while respecting children’s need for privacy; 6 September 2026 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 7 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Requirement Due date

are adequately maintained so as to provide a welcoming and homely environment within both individual and shared living spaces. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(iii)(vi)(vii)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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.

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Information about this inspection

The inspection was announced on 20 July 2026 and the inspectors were on site from 22 July 2026 to 23 July 2026. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 8 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Agile care solutions ltd

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: Agile Care Solutions, 381 Acorn House, Midsummer Boulevard, Milton Keynes MK9 3HP

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Supported accommodation provider details

Email address: info@agilecaresolutionsltd.com

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Inspectors

Stephen Challis, Social Care Inspector Louise Webling, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Agile Care Solutions Ltd 9 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Inspectors

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

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

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