Children's Home run by Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited in Cornwall

Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 1 SC482275 Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a large private provider. It offers care for up to 4 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, 3 children were living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2017.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Staff in the home are referred to as adults. This is reflected in the report.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/07/2025 Full Good 10/09/2024 Full Good 09/01/2024 Full Good 23/08/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 3

p.2

Summary of findings

Children have strong relationships with key adults, and there is a clear sense that this is their home. The children have lived together at the home for over 3 years and were all involved in the inspection. One child moved into and out of the home during this year; they also spoke to the inspector. There has been an increase in children going missing from the home since the previous inspection. The adults were unable to prevent 2 of the children from repeatedly going missing. Shortfalls have been identified in leaders and managers ensuring that guidelines when children are missing from home are followed. Learning has identified the need for improvements, but this does not detract from children’s overall positive experiences.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have a solid sense that this is their home and have developed stable relationships with key adults. Feedback from professionals and family members highlights this sense of a family home. Each child has secure relationships with some of the core team members. Another child moved into and out of the home in a short period of time. Learning has been taken from this child’s time at the home. Some adults and children remain in touch with the child that moved on, providing them with ongoing support.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Feedback from professionals about the child who moved out indicates that the child had a positive experience. One professional said that ‘immense progress’ was made. The child told the inspector that there were ‘good things’ about the home. The child experienced a positive move into the home. Adults met with the child before they moved in and used video calls to help the child get to know everyone at the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children overall make good progress in education. Adults work closely with schools to support children with their timetables and encourage their engagement in school life. When needed children attend alternative education sessions, which help them to learn outside of formal education.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have many opportunities to have fun. They have enjoyed snowboarding holidays, music festivals and days out. Alongside this, children have been supported to develop relationships outside the home. Participation in clubs outside of the home help to widen children’s friendship groups and provides important links within the local community. Although children’s memories are captured in well- presented memory books, these are not always kept up to date.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s identities and cultures are supported well by adults. Children are encouraged to explore various aspects of their identity. For one child, conversations about veganism take place regularly. Adults have lots of open conversations with children to help them explore different ideas. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 4 Children have clear routines and lead active, busy lives. The structure of their day is clear. However, boundaries are not always applied consistently, and, at times, this has led to children feeling upset or confused. It is not always evident that adults respond to children in a consistent manner, for example in relation to using inappropriate language.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family relationships are well supported. Feedback from one family member highlighted how important the support of the adults is to enable them to spend regular time with the child.

p.4

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are celebrated throughout the home, with numerous photos of them on display. Their bedrooms are highly personalised spaces, filled with toys and personal belongings that are unique to them. Some areas of the home have been overlooked, but there is generally a warm and homely feel throughout.

p.4

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

Risks are well understood, and adults know the children well. Since the previous inspection, there has been an increase in the use of restraint and incidents of children going missing from the home. Managers have a good understanding of the factors contributing to these increases.

p.4

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

Adults have taken appropriate protective action to ensure the safety of all children during periods of difficulty. They demonstrate a clear focus on the safety of the younger children when incidents involving older children occur. The younger children were affected by these incidents, and adults took time to reassure them.

p.4

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

When children have gone missing from the home, adults have responded promptly and followed agreed processes. Adults are familiar with some of the locations that children are likely to be and carry out searches in the local area. Work has been carried out with children to help them understand the risks associated with going missing. On occasion, children have been missing from the home for extended periods without adults knowing what is happening for them. Adults were unable to disrupt the missing-from-home incidents effectively until the children were living separately.

p.4

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

When children return home after going missing, they are warmly welcomed by adults. Statutory guidance is followed, and children are given the opportunity to discuss the incident with an independent person. Information is shared promptly with relevant professionals.

p.4

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

Guidance to the team is clear about how to respond to concerns and what to do when children are missing. Nurturing conversations take place with children. This supports them to manage their emotions and understand their feelings. The police were called to support on one occasion. The adults made continued efforts to work therapeutically with the children. All children were kept safe. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 5 Incidents of restraint have increased. Records are detailed. Managers demonstrate a good understanding of these incidents and clearly evidence how children are responded to. There is a better understanding of when a child has been guided away from a situation or danger, rather than being physically held.

p.4

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

Concerns about adult practice are taken seriously. Children are encouraged to raise complaints if they wish to do so. Investigations are thorough and are reported to appropriate agencies within required timescales. Learning has been identified regarding the importance of restoring relationships. In response, relevant training has been arranged. Children are responded to sensitively.

p.5

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

This home is run by a dedicated and committed manager who knows the children incredibly well. All the children wanted to see the manager when they came home from school to tell him about their days. The manager has been the mainstay of the home. During difficult times, the manager has demonstrated commitment and love towards the children.

p.5

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

Improvements have been made in understanding the use of restraint and ensuring that children are spoken to following incidents in a timely manner. However, shortfalls remain in relation to return home interviews when children have been missing. Children are offered the opportunity to speak with someone when they return home, but leaders and managers have not demonstrated that this occurs consistently or whether there are more effective ways of understanding the reasons why children go missing. Similarly, notifications after significant incidents to Ofsted have often been delayed. Leaders and managers have not considered whether these delays have had any impact on children.

p.5

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

Management oversight reflects that processes have been followed and adults have acted professionally. However, reviews lack detail about what adults could have done differently. Actions highlighted by the independent person and previous inspections have not been addressed fully.

p.5

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

The manager is a strong advocate for children. He has challenged other professionals appropriately during meetings. However, this has not always led to effective action. There is a lack of urgency in ensuring that information is received in a timely manner or that matters are escalated swiftly.

p.5

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

Adults say they feel supported by their manager and one another. There has been a high turnover of staff, which leaders and managers have reflected on. A core team of adults has remained in place, providing children with consistency.

p.5

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

Guidance provided to the staff team on responding to serious incidents is clear. Adults understand the action they need to take when children go missing from the home. However, it is less clear how adults should respond to less serious issues, such as inappropriate language or unkind behaviour. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 6 Feedback from professionals highlights the progress children have made and how adults know children well. Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 7

p.5

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.

p.7

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—

p.7

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

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;

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

p.7

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)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h)

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, managers should seek to improve practice and to learn from incidents and apply this to practice in a timely and effective way Feedback from wider professionals, the independent person and children should also be used to drive improvements in the home. 6 November 2026

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— 6 November 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 8 a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.8

Requirement Due date

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

p.8

Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

p.8

Requirement Due date

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

p.8

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))

p.8

Recommendations

The registered person should lead a team that provides high-quality care for all children living in the home. Specific guidance on the care a child needs should be made clear to all adults in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.4)  The registered person should ensure that children’s memory books are kept up to date so that details of events and experiences are not lost over time. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

p.8

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: SC482275 9

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Group Limited

p.9

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Keys Group, Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen B63 4AH

p.9

Inspector

Nickie Doney, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC482275 10 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.

p.9

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.10

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.10