Children's Home run by Social Care Services (Clayton) Limited in Wigan

Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 1 Registered provider: Social Care Services (Clayton) 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 one of several homes owned by a private provider. It provides care for up to 3 children, who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There were 2 children living in the home at the time of this inspection. The inspector spoke to both children about their experiences of living in the home.

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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

Date of last inspection: 24 September 2025

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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: 2553543 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/09/2025 Full Good 15/01/2025 Full Good 19/07/2023 Full Good 02/08/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 3

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Summary of findings

The children living in the home say that they are happy and supported by staff. Children are supported to experience different activities. However, the home has not been well maintained and action has not been taken to address hazardous items in the garden.

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Summary of findings

Safeguarding practice is not consistent. Actions taken by staff do not always safeguard children. This is particularly relevant when children go missing from home overnight.

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Summary of findings

Leadership oversight is not effective. Managers miss opportunities to evaluate staff practice and shortfalls are not identified.

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improvement to be good

Shortfalls in safeguarding practice and the leadership and management of the home have affected children’s progress.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff have not ensured that children are provided with a safe and well- maintained home to live in. There are areas of damage in the home that have not been addressed, such as a bedroom carpet that has burn marks on it. There are several hazardous items in the garden that pose a risk to children.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they are happy living in the home and enjoy living here. They say that they have good relationships with staff and they have been able to personalise their bedrooms to their tastes.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to move on from the home sensitively. Managers put plans in place to minimise impact for children who are not prepared to move on due to safety concerns. This helped one child to have familiar staff supporting in them in their new home.

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improvement to be good

Staff develop positive relationships with children and speak warmly about them. Children are provided with activities in relation to their interests. For one child this is baking cakes, which they are supported to do in the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always take action to meet children’s health needs. For one child they did not seek medical advice in a timely manner, following a child declining to take a controlled medication.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported to attend education and staff communicate effectively with education staff. When children are not in school, they are supported to complete educational activities at home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 4 Staff support children to spend time with friends and family. This is both in the community and in the home. One family member said that they are happy with the care their child is receiving but would like more regular communication from staff.

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improvement to be good

Staff responses to safeguarding incidents are inconsistent. Staff do not always take appropriate action to safeguard children effectively.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from the home, staff take some action to look for children and contact children’s friends to try to locate them. However, staff are not reporting children missing in line with their safety plans. In addition, children are not being searched for overnight. This means that children remain at risk, with staff not knowing their whereabouts, for prolonged periods of time.

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improvement to be good

Staff use strategies in line with children’s plans to support them to de-escalate behaviour at times of crisis or distress. When these are not effective, staff physically hold children to safeguard them and others. The use of physical intervention is proportionate, and children are spoken to following incidents.

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improvement to be good

Staff recording of incidents is not consistent. Some records lack key details, such as the searches staff have completed when children are missing from home or if a return home interview has been requested on their return. This means that managers do not have full oversight of incidents to ensure that staff are taking action to safeguard children.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not have access to all relevant information of how to safeguard children. This includes a lack of guidance and strategies of how to safeguard children, when they are under the influence of substances.

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improvement to be good

The use of consequences by staff is proportionate. However, records do not demonstrate that these are reviewed to ensure that they are effective. Furthermore, consequences are not always clearly explained to children.

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improvement to be good

Safer recruitment processes are followed. This ensures that children are cared for by a safe and suitable staff team. The manager does not use agency staff and familiar bank staff cover staffing shortfalls when required.

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

The registered manager has resigned but is currently serving their notice period. They are being supported by an interim manager, who has been in post since August 2026.

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

Management oversight of the home is not effective. Managers do not have sufficient oversight of incidents and do not identify shortfalls in staff practice and recording. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 5 Staff speak highly of the support they receive from leaders and managers. Staff receive regular supervision and appraisals. Professionals say that the manager and staff communicate regularly with them to keep them up to date about the children.

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

Allegations are managed effectively. However, the manager has not maintained effective oversight of records.

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

Staff receive regular training and development opportunities. However, this has not included training in some areas that are relevant to the children’s needs.

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

Team meetings are held regularly and give staff opportunities to discuss practice in the home as well as development. However, there are no systems in place to track the completion of actions from team meetings. In addition, opportunities for reflection with the team on improvements needed to safeguarding practice and undertaking direct work with the children are sometimes missed. As a result, managers are not able to evaluate changes in staff practice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 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, 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

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;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff are provided with clear guidance to follow to keep children safe. This specially relates to ensuring all safety plans and risk assessments have detailed information to ensure staff have the knowledge to support children especially around health and well-being.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that staff take 4 November 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 7 effective action when children are missing from home. This specially relates to ongoing searches for children and welfare checks when children are missing through the night.

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Requirement Due date

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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that incidents are recorded by staff with the necessary detail, so that managers can evaluate staff safeguarding practice effectively.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that staff are suitably trained in practice issues relevant to the children’s needs and risks, such as room searches.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 4 November 2026

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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; 4 November 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 8 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

that staff help each child to— 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

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being; that each child has access to such dental, medical, nursing, psychiatric and psychological advice, treatment and other services as the child may require. (Regulation 10 (1)(a) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iv)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff are seeking medical advice for children, specifically when controlled medications are not taken. 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 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

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. 4 November 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 9 (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(vii)(viii) (c)(i)(ii)(d)(i))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the home and garden are free from hazardous items. 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

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Requirement Due date

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

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

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the date, time and location of the use of the measure; a description of the measure and its duration;

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

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

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a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure; 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 has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person 4 November 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 10 or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that consequences are proportionate and are recorded effectively and evaluated for effectiveness.

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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: 2553543 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Social Care Services (Clayton) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Social Care Services Group, 31 Shaw Road, Stockport SK4 4AG

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Inspector

Hannah Longdon, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 12 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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