Children's Home run by Invigor Adolescent Care Limited in WiganOfsted inspection, 9 Sept 2026

Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 1 Registered provider: Invigor Adolescent Care 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

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to 4 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

A new manager has been appointed. The manager has applied to become registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children's home

The registered provider has appointed a new responsible individual.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children and young people are not safeguarded and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 3 December 2025

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/12/2025 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/01/2025 Full Good 15/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 3

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Summary of findings

Serious failings relating to the safety of children and the effectiveness of the management arrangements of the home were identified at this inspection. This has a significant impact on children's safety, progress and experiences.

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Summary of findings

Managers are failing to ensure that the home is led in a way that ensures children are safe. They have not prioritised repairs to the home and this exposes children to the risk of harm.

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Summary of findings

Staff are struggling to manage challenging situations effectively, resulting in multiple incidents and police involvement.

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Summary of findings

Staff do not consistently follow the agreed protocols in children's safety plans. Managers have not identified this or taken steps to address poor and unsafe practice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home. Since the last full inspection, three children have moved out of this home, and two children have moved in. Managers have not demonstrated that they have made improvements to the way children's transitions are managed. This is because managers could not locate the relevant records during the inspection. It is therefore not clear whether children have been adequately supported to prepare for their moves. A requirement in relation to this is restated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The home is in a poor state of repair, including children's bedrooms. It is not a homely, welcoming environment for children to live in. For example, one of the sofas is damaged, some of the kitchen cupboards have no doors and there was no fridge in the kitchen. This means that children had to ask for food and drink as they could not access it without staff assistance. The responsible individual moved a fridge out of the staff office into the kitchen during the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children do not receive effectively planned care. Large sections of children's care plans are blank, including details about the children's needs and how they should be met. This means that staff do not have the information they require to understand children's needs and to respond to them effectively and consistently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One child is spending time with a peer who lives locally. The children are not always a good influence on each other. Staff are struggling to maintain boundaries and manage their behaviours in the home. Staff are trying to offer positive activities and alternatives, but this is not having a sustainable impact. Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 4 Staff have supported one child to return to school after a period of disengagement. Another child is being educated at home while alternative education is sought. Their engagement with this is not consistent. There is no plan in place to help the child learn informally and to support a return to full-time education. Without additional support, the child is at risk of poor educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff organise regular activities for children to enjoy. For example, children enjoy baking, day trips to theme parks and local walks. Staff take an interest in children's hobbies and encourage them to try new ones such as sewing and crochet. Children enjoy these activities and this helps to foster positive relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Children do not have access to independent advocacy. This is a missed opportunity to help children participate in decisions about their life. A recommendation is made that the role of an advocate is explained to children so that they can consider whether they would like to take up this entitlement.

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

Managers are failing to ensure that the home is led in a way that ensures children are safe. Managers have not prioritised repairs to the home and this exposes children to the risk of harm. For example, one child's bedroom door has been significantly damaged and its integrity as a fire door is compromised. This is a hazard as the child was still sleeping in this room at the time of the inspection. Once this was raised with managers during the inspection, the child was moved to a different bedroom. However, managers had failed to take any action prior to this.

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

Leaders and managers have failed to ensure that there are robust and effective safety plans in place to keep children safe from harm. For example, one child is repeatedly accessing the flat roof outside their bedroom window. There are no effective measures in place to manage this risk. Window restrictors are repeatedly broken, and there is no written guidance to staff about how the situation should be safely managed.

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

Staff have not always taken effective action when there are concerns about a child's health and wellbeing. For example, they did not seek medical attention or advice for a child who had been assaulted in the community. This exposed the child to further risk of harm. Furthermore, the manager has not taken action to address this issue with the staff involved.

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

Staff do not consistently adhere to established procedures when a child goes missing. In some instances, staff have delayed notifying the police. On occasion, efforts to locate missing children have been insufficient. This lack of action compromises the safety of children.

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

Children are not always offered an interview with an independent person when they return home from being missing. This is a missed opportunity to learn about what has Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 5 happened and to take steps to safeguard the child. In addition, the manager has not taken sufficient action to challenge the child's placing authority when these interviews do not take place.

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

There is insufficient guidance for staff to manage challenging situations in the home. This hinders a consistent and effective response. It means that challenging incidents are repeated with no effective action taken to minimise chance of reoccurrence. Police assistance has been required to manage challenging situations safely.

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

Records of significant incidents in the home are poor. Reports lack important details about the actions staff have taken to safeguard children. The quality of the recording hinders the manager's ability to evaluate whether staff are taking effective action to protect children from harm. The manager has not identified gaps in records or taken steps to assure himself about how incidents were managed.

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

A lack of vigilance has meant that children have been able to access keys to the safe and the home’s car. Records of these incidents do not capture how these incidents ended and how the keys were retrieved.

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

Staff complete direct work with children to help them understand risks and expectations about behaviour. It is generally well recorded and educational in nature.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

A new manager and responsible individual have been appointed since the last full inspection of the home. The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not have sufficient oversight of the care provided to children. Management oversight and monitoring systems are ineffective. Managers have not identified the shortfalls in the quality of children's plans. There is insufficient guidance available for staff to care for children consistently and safely.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not identify or take action to address shortfalls in staff practice. For example, the manager has not identified that staff have not followed agreed procedures when there are concerns that a child may have misused substances.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager’s oversight of significant incidents in the home is poor. He does not evaluate the effectiveness of staff practice or use learning from incidents to shape future practice. This does not promote children's welfare and means that similar challenging incidents reoccur.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Ofsted are not always informed of significant incidents in the home. This compromises the regulator's oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Not all staff, including the manager, receive regular supervision or an annual appraisal. For example, the manager has only had two supervision sessions since the last full Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 6 inspection of the home. This is a missed opportunity for the manager to reflect on his practice and for his performance to be appraised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager’s oversight of staff training is poor. Records of staff training staff have not been updated. As a result, the manager does not have effective oversight of staff competence, skills and knowledge. The manager has not ensured that all staff have gained a relevant residential childcare qualification in the timescale specified by regulation. In addition, staff have not completed training that is specific to the needs of one of the children. This means that they are not equipped with the knowledge to identify and act on signs that a child is at risk of harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The staff roster does not include the full names of the staff on duty. As a result, these documents cannot be relied on to identify who has been responsible for the care of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Insufficient action has been taken to address the shortfalls identified at the last full inspection. Managers have not been effective in prioritising improvements. All the requirements made at the last inspection are restated, and an additional five requirements have been made at this inspection. Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 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— that staff—

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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

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

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. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(v)(vi)(d))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered provider must ensure that children's plans include all the actions staff need to take to ensure children are safe.

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must ensure that hazards in the home are quickly identified, and effective action is taken to ensure children's safety.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 11 October 2026

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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 promotes their welfare. 11 October 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 8 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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of 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

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)(c )(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered provider must ensure that there are systems in place to monitor the effectiveness of management arrangements in the home. In addition, the registered provider must ensure that staff understand their roles and responsibilities when caring for children. There must be systems in place to identify unsafe practice and take action to address it.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children's home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home;

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child's placing authority. 15 November 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 9 that each child's relevant plans are followed.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(b)(i)(iii)(c ))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the planning for children moving in and out of the home is child focused.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children's plans contain all the necessary information to support staff to care for them consistently.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 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

(Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b)(2(b)(vii)) 15 November 2026

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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

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 any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)(e)) 15 November 2026

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. 15 November 2026 Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 10 (Regulation 33 (4)(b)(c )) The registered person may only— employ an individual to work at the children's home; if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

The requirements are that— the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 32(2)(a)(3)(b)(4)(a)(b)(5)(a)) 15 November 2026

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children's home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

Specifically the staff roster must detail the full name of each person working at the home. 15 November 2026

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 11

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children understand the role of an independent advocate and their entitlement to access independent advocacy support. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 23, paragraph 4.16)  The registered person should ensure that they challenge placing authorities when they do not offer an independent interview to a child when the child returns from being missing from home. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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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: 2724379 12

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Invigor Adolescent Care Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Warren Bruce Court, Warren Bruce Road, Trafford Park, Manchester M17 1LB

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Inspector

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2724379 13 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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