Children's Home run by ROC Northwest Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 1 SC464809 Registered provider: ROC Northwest 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 and operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to 5 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties or have physical disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 3 children were living at the home, and they all spoke with the inspectors.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has submitted an application to register with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/05/2025 Full Good 04/06/2024 Full Good 27/06/2023 Full Good 06/12/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 3

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Summary of findings

Two out of 3 children living at the home are happy and have positive experiences. They have good relationships with staff who know them well and like spending time with them. However, further work is required with one child to improve their overall experience of living in the home and their relationships with staff.

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Summary of findings

Staff promote children’s relationships with the people who are important to them. Feedback from parents and professionals is generally positive and reflects the care provided to children. However, one parent reported that communication from the home could be improved.

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Summary of findings

The recently appointed manager has identified areas of concern and taken action to strengthen oversight and risk management. The manager has demonstrated a clear commitment to improving the quality of care provided to children and has begun implementing changes to address identified shortfalls and ensure that his monitoring of records and systems is effective. The manager recognises that these improvements are at an early stage and requires time to fully embed revised systems and ensure that monitoring arrangements are effective in driving sustained improvement.

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improvement to be good

Children have mixed experiences of living at the home. Most children enjoy positive relationships with staff, are happy in the home and participate in enjoyable activities, including holidays that are captured in memory books. However, one child experiences barriers to accessing activities and spends more time in their bedroom. Staff have not fully explored or addressed these barriers, which limits the child’s experiences and progress.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to attend health appointments. However, children’s health plans do not contain accurate and up-to-date information about their health needs, medication and the support required to meet their health needs. As a result, staff do not have all of the information they need to ensure that children’s health needs are appropriately addressed in the event of a medical episode.

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improvement to be good

A positive and welcoming home environment has been created in some communal areas of the home. However, there are areas of the home that need decoration and maintenance. One child’s bedroom has marks on the carpet and walls and has a strong odour, meaning that they do not have a suitable space to spend time and sleep.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to attend school and engage in education. Staff work closely with education providers to develop individualised timetables that meet children’s needs, Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 4 including access to forest school and one-to-one tutors. As a result, all children engage in education well and are making positive progress. One child has received the headteacher’s award, and another has been appointed as head boy for the upcoming school year.

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improvement to be good

Staff promote and celebrate children’s individual identities. For one child, staff actively supported and encouraged their individual interests, preferences, identity and expression. The manager’s monthly ‘chill and chat’ sessions provide children with regular opportunities to share their views, wishes and feelings, helping to ensure that their voice is heard.

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improvement to be good

Staff actively promote and support children’s relationships with their families. Family members report that children have made positive progress since moving into the home. One family member described the placement as ‘the best thing that could have happened for the child’, reflecting the positive impact that staff have had on the child’s care and development.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to experience positive moves from the home. They provide practical support throughout the transition and continue to offer support afterwards, particularly when children experience a crisis or struggle to engage with services. As a result, children receive consistent support during significant periods of change.

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improvement to be good

Staff did not effectively address bullying incidents between children who have now left the home. They missed opportunities to intervene at the time, resolve the behaviour and consider the impact on 2 children with complex needs. This has resulted in children experiencing behaviour that left them feeling scared, and these concerns have remained unresolved.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not ensured that one child understands how to make a complaint. As a result, the child’s views, wishes and concerns have not been effectively captured or considered. This has limited opportunities for staff to reflect on and adapt their practice, consider the child’s previous experiences and develop plans that better meet their needs and support their progress.

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improvement to be good

Incidents relating to fire safety have not been appropriately addressed or followed up. Children’s risk assessments do not identify risks relating to fire starting, and direct work has not been undertaken with the children involved. In addition, a proactive approach to this potential risk has not been taken. Specifically, room searches have not been carried out, and there has been no involvement of other agencies, such as the fire service, to educate children about the associated risks.

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improvement to be good

When serious incidents occur or children go missing from the home, staff understand and follow the procedures required to keep children safe. Records and discussions during Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 5 the inspection demonstrate that staff take appropriate action in response to these incidents. However, children’s risk assessments are not always in place, up to date or sufficiently clear about the actions staff should take to reduce risks and safeguard children following incidents. As a result, staff do not always have clear guidance to inform their responses and promote children’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Staff use their knowledge and understanding of children to support them during periods of dysregulation, helping to prevent situations from escalating and ensuring that physical intervention is used only as a last resort. Following any use of physical intervention, staff speak with children to help them to reflect on the incident and provide appropriate support.

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers follow safer recruitment procedures and ensure that staff complete the necessary pre-employment checks before working at the home. This helps to ensure that the staff caring for children are safe and suitable to do so.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers do not provide sufficiently effective oversight of practice, risk assessments and key documents in the home. However, they have responded promptly to identified shortfalls and have begun to strengthen monitoring and oversight systems.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers failed on one occasion to notify the local authority designated officer (LADO) and Ofsted of serious concerns relating to alleged staff practice. They also delayed notifying Ofsted and the LADO of additional concerns about staff conduct and practice on several occasions. This lack of timely reporting reduces transparency and limits external scrutiny of safeguarding concerns, hindering the ability of relevant agencies to take prompt action to help to ensure that children are protected and kept safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Newly introduced monthly audits help leaders and managers to identify shortfalls and make recommendations to improve staff practice. However, when staff practice has fallen below expectations, leaders and managers have not always addressed concerns directly with the individual staff members involved. Instead, they have discussed these with the wider team. As a result, opportunities to promote individual accountability, reflection and sustained improvement have been missed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers do not ensure that all staff receive training that reflects children’s emerging and individual needs. Staff have not completed training in ‘Prevent’ or substance misuse, despite this being a recommendation at the last inspection, which has therefore been restated. In addition, staff do not consistently have the knowledge and skills required to provide informed care and respond effectively to children’s specific vulnerabilities and needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The manager and staff team are committed to supporting children and can confidently talk about their progress. However, children’s plans and records do not always evidence Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 6 this progress. Despite having oversight records, the manager has not identified or addressed these recording shortfalls. In addition, the manager has not had effective oversight of impact risk assessments. Some assessments contain information that has been incorrectly copied from another child’s records, which undermines the accuracy of decision-making about children’s suitability to move into the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Although staff receive supervision in line with the company’s policy, the quality and follow-up of these sessions are not consistent. However, the manager’s improvement plan identifies the need to improve the quality of supervision, and he has provided senior staff with additional training to support this. While this demonstrates a commitment to improvement, these changes have not yet been fully embedded in practice or resulted in consistently high-quality supervision.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff feel supported by leaders and managers and note that morale is improving gradually after a difficult time. They attend regular team meetings where the manager explores current issues and revisits professional boundaries and expectations. Although some staff have left their roles, this has not impacted on the continuity of staffing for children. Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. 21 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 8 (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that children’s risk assessments are in place and include clear actions that staff should take to safeguard children and to mitigate risks after incidents occur.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that any bullying incidents between children are appropriately addressed and the impact on all children is fully considered. Specifically, the registered person must ensure that children’s relationships with each other are supported so children always feel safe in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that any serious incidents are addressed with children and that direct work is completed with all children to educate them and to mitigate further risks.

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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

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;

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Requirement Due date

provide to children personal items that are appropriate for their age and understanding; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(2)(b)(vii)(viii)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home is maintained to a high standard and children’s bedrooms are clean and suitable environments. Any damage or maintenance issues must be identified and rectified in a timely manner. 21 September 2026

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Requirement Due date

The enjoyment and achievement standard is that children take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that meet their needs and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical and social interests and skills. 21 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 9 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

develop the child’s interests and hobbies;

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Requirement Due date

participate in activities that the child enjoys and which meet and expand the child’s interests and preferences; and

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Requirement Due date

make a positive contribution to the home and the wider community; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to a range of activities that enable the child to pursue the child’s interests and hobbies. (Regulation 9 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff explore all barriers to children engaging in activities in and out of the home. They must ensure that records reflect the action taken by staff to support children in this area.

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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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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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— 21 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 10 the children’s guide;

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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. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)(d)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all children know how to make a complaint and have the home’s complaints policy.

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children’s health plans contain accurate and up-to-date information about children’s health needs, medication and the support required to meet their health needs.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children are fully supported with any required physiotherapy and that records 21 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 11 document the actions taken by staff, any barriers for the child and how they have been addressed.

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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

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;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; 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) (2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they have sufficient oversight of risk assessments and key documents. Some risk assessments require reviewing and implementing to make them current. 21 September 2026 Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 12 The registered person must ensure that staff receive training that is specific to children’s individual needs and experiences and that any lessons learned from feedback are shared with all staff members in reflective supervision sessions and team meetings. Monitoring of practice must include consideration of the quality of supervision being offered to all staff.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must implement an effective monitoring system to ensure improved oversight and evaluation of significant events in the home. When concerns with staff practice are identified, the registered person must ensure that they are addressed with the staff member.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other 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;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

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

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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 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that there is no delay in the notification of serious incidents and/or concerns regarding practice in the home. 21 September 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that they make suitable arrangements to manage, administer and dispose of any medication. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15) Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 13

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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: SC464809 14

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: ROC Northwest Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4th Floor, Parkview, 82 Oxford Road, Uxbridge UB8 1UX

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Inspectors

Rebecca Robson, Social Care inspector Cheryl Field, Social Care inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC464809 15 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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