Children's Home run by Northridge Care Group Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report on children’s home: 2803965 1 Registered provider: Northridge Care Group Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. The home provides care for up to 2 children with social and emotional difficulties and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home. The inspector spoke with both children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 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: 2803965 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/06/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 3

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Summary of findings

The children are making good progress and benefit from strong, nurturing relationships with a small, stable team of staff.

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Summary of findings

Staff have a good understanding of risk and there are consistent boundaries in place that support children to feel safe.

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Summary of findings

The home is managed effectively, and the children’s wellbeing is strongly prioritised by the whole team. However, continuity of care is impacted when staff are directed to support other homes, and parents’ views are not consistently sought when evaluating the quality of care provided.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children have moved into the home in the last 12 months. They are very settled and have warm, engaging relationships with staff and each other. Staff are very welcoming and there is a calm and playful atmosphere that helps the children to feel a sense of belonging. One child described the home as ‘brilliant’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Plans for when children move in and out of the home are managed sensitively. One child has been fully prepared for an imminent move, and this is being commemorated in a way that celebrates the progress that the child has made and gives them positive memories. Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home. The move was planned and supported in a positive manner, and staff continue to provide emotional support through regular telephone contact.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is valued and promoted. Both children have made positive progress in this area, with both accessing education that is suitable to their needs. School attendance is excellent, and incentives are put in place to encourage positive behaviour in school. One child has won an award for their excellent level of attainment in their chosen subject.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are met. Staff work hard to support children to be healthy and to improve their quality of life. Children are encouraged to make healthy choices through conversations with staff and being provided with additional learning support in some areas, such as smoking cessation. There are appropriate arrangements in place for safe storage and administration of medication. The provider’s therapy service offers a direct service to children to support their emotional wellbeing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are clear in planning, and their views are sought in a way that suits their levels of engagement and understanding. Both children engage in a range of activities and are encouraged to take part in household tasks to support their independence, such as cooking and gardening. One child enjoyed taking part in a charity event with the manager to raise funds and support awareness of challenges that others face. Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 4 Staff have effective working relationships with professionals involved with the children. Positive feedback was received, and one social worker said that staff have been great and really communicative; they are always available to support the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Arrangements for the children to see their family and friends are supported, including those who live long distances away. However, the manager is not consistently proactive in engaging with parents outside of these arrangements. This impacts on the parents’ ability to be involved in decisions about their child’s day-to-day care and welfare.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is decorated to a good standard and there are photos of the children and artwork displayed throughout. The children’s bedrooms are decorated in colours chosen by them and have been personalised with items such as gaming equipment and a mini fridge for the older child.

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

Any risks in respect of the children are clearly recorded, and staff understand these risks and how to respond to them. Children are encouraged to take risks that are appropriate to their stage of development and supported to develop independence skills. Children have trusted relationships with staff, and this enables open conversations when children have any worries. This helps children to feel safe.

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

There are consistent boundaries in place, and staff respond to the children in a playful and affectionate manner. The children cherish the warm, nurturing relationships they have with staff.

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

When children are missing from home, there are clear plans in place and staff look for children in known locations. One child had a significant number of missing-from-home episodes before moving into the home. The manager sought to understand the underlying reasons for this and put incentives in place from the outset. This approach was effective and the child was suitably rewarded with items of their choice.

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

When children show signs of increased distress, staff intervene in a timely manner to prevent escalation and to support the child’s emotional wellbeing and the safety of everyone involved. Physical interventions are used appropriately if there are significant risks of harm to staff or others. Children are offered time to discuss and reflect on any incidents. Restorative practice is used to repair relationships and to support children to understand the impact of any behaviours. Any incidents are fully recorded and have oversight from the manager and senior managers for monitoring and learning purposes.

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

Staff recruitment is completed safely, and probationary periods are used effectively to ensure that staff’s skills and values meet the children’s needs. Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities and how to escalate any concerns. Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The team is managed effectively by a manager who clearly has children’s best interests at heart. All decisions are made with children’s wellbeing at the centre of any planning. The manager’s focus is on children receiving good-quality care and achieving to the best of their abilities. When there are delays in children being provided with necessary services, such as statutory education, these are escalated until a resolution is reached.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is supported by a stable team of staff with varied backgrounds that complement the needs of the children. Supervision sessions are provided regularly and give staff opportunities to reflect on practice and discuss the children. Appraisals are completed yearly and include feedback from professionals and children to enable a thorough evaluation of staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place monthly, and any recent developments are discussed as a team. Activities are completed to allow staff to develop their skills and knowledge in areas such as professional curiosity and use of language in recordings. There is a robust training plan for new members of staff. Additional training is provided to support staff to understand children’s emerging needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children have developed positive and meaningful relationships with staff, and they spend a lot of time together. However, staffing structures do not always promote continuity of care for children, and staff are often used to support shortfalls in other homes. When staff are required to leave the home unexpectedly to work somewhere else, this is sometimes upsetting and confusing for children, who may not understand the reasons why.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An independent person visits the home every month and speaks to the children and professionals; however, views are not routinely sought from the children’s parents. Therefore, parents are not consistently involved in evaluating the quality of care provided to their children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals involved with the children talked about their positive relationships with the manager and staff, the homely atmosphere in the home, and how they are always made to feel welcome. Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 6

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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 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 requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that staff from this home are not regularly used to cover shortfalls in the other homes in the organisation. Contingency arrangements should be in place to manage shortfalls in staffing levels so that they do not impact on the continuity of care for the children living in this home. 4 September 2026

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff —

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Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation. (Regulation 5 (d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must be proactive in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with the parents of the children in their care. The manager and staff should ensure that parents receive regular updates regarding their child’s welfare, progress and daily lived experiences. They should promote open lines of communication and encourage 4 September 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 7 parents to be involved in decisions about their child’s care and welfare.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person —

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must support the independent person to obtain the views of any parents on a regular basis. 4 September 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 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: 2803965 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Northridge Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Richard House, 9 Winckley Square, Preston, Lancashire PR1 3HP

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Inspector

Melanie Cotterill, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2803965 9 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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