Children's Home run by Oldham Council in OldhamOfsted inspection, 25 Aug 2026

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 1 Registered provider: Oldham Council

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and operated by a local authority. It provides care for up to 2 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager in post since December 2025. A manager has been in post since April 2026 and has submitted their application to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, there is 1 child living in the home.

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Inspection date: 25 August 2026

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection date: 25 August 2026

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. The inspector has looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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Findings from the inspection

Children have made progress since moving into the home. The staff team is committed to providing nurturing care to the children. Children lead busy lives and staff support them to explore education and activities in their local community.

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Findings from the inspection

The team is led by an aspirational manager who knows the children well. The children and staff benefit from her consistent presence in the home. Staff have a good understanding of children’s needs and respond quickly to incidents. However, the information recorded in plans and incident records is inconsistent. This prevents the manager from having clear oversight of the quality of care.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff provide children with a home that is warm and nurturing. Staff build positive relationships with children and help them to care for their pets. This helps to foster a sense of stability and belonging in the home. The home is clean and generally well maintained. Children’s bedrooms are freshly decorated. However, the rest of the home requires redecoration. The manager is aware of this and has a programme of maintenance tasks agreed by senior leaders.

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Findings from the inspection

Children are in good health. Staff encourage children to attend health appointments and develop good personal care routines. Staff bought scented bath bombs and shower gels to create a fun washing experience for one child.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff treat children with care and respect. Staff adapt their care to respond to the needs of children. However, staff have not supported one child to explore the culture, food and traditions of where their family once lived.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff celebrate and promote positive behaviour. They talk with children to help them to understand risks and incidents. When consequences are used following incidents, they are restorative, focusing on restoring relationships and building responsibility.

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Findings from the inspection

Staff develop detailed risk assessments and support plans for each child. However, they do not always include children’s behavioural triggers or clear actions for staff to follow. This means that staff responses when children are at risk are not consistent.

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Findings from the inspection

When some incidents escalate, staff use physical interventions to manage children’s behaviour. Staff responses appear to be appropriate to manage the immediate risk to the child. However, records lack clarity and children are not spoken with afterwards.

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Findings from the inspection

The manager has not established the systems to maintain robust oversight of care and staff practice. This is a missed opportunity to address practice issues and prevent reoccurrence. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 3 There is a stable staff team in place. The use of casual staff has been high due to unplanned staff absence. The manager is aware of the impact that this can have on children. A bank of casual staff work alongside experienced staff, and the manager ensures that they complete a robust induction. This reduces the disruption for children.

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Findings from the inspection

Children feel a sense of control during periods of change. The manager knows the children well. She ensures that children’s voices are heard. One child recently moved out, and their choices were at the heart of the transition process. During staff recruitment, children wrote questions and interviewed candidates.

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Findings from the inspection

The registered manager post is vacant. However, the current manager has been in post since April 2026 and has applied to register. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/04/2026 Full Requires improvement to be good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 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 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 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; 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)(a)(b) (2)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that incident reports are factual and that the manager completes a critical evaluation of each incident that can inform further learning and development and improve the quality of care provided to the children. 9 October 2026 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 6 This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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 personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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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

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

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(vii)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff support the children to explore their cultural heritage.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, ensure that the home is well maintained throughout.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 9 October 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and 9 October 2026 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 7 the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it. The registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii) (b)(i)(ii)(c)) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 8 In particular, ensure that staff have the skills to recognise when a restrictive measure is used, and to record the measure in accordance with Regulation 35.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, ensure that records contain accurate information.

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Requirement Due date

Furthermore, ensure that staff and children are spoken to within regulatory timescales.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that information relating to potential triggers for a child are included within care plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should ensure that missing-from-home plans contain clear actions for staff to follow. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.24) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Children’s Social Care, Spindles Shopping Centre Level 8, George Street, Oldham OL1 1LF

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicholas Whitbread

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Inspector

Caroline Bates, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2857949 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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