Children's Home run by Steps Support Residential Limited in Newcastle upon TyneOfsted inspection, 16 Sept 2026

Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 1 Registered provider: Steps Support Residential 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

A private provider operates this home. It provides care for 1 child who may have learning disabilities and/or social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager left the service in June 2026. An interim manager is in post who plans to apply for registration with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection 1 child was living in the home and the inspector spoke with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: Ofsted inspected this setting between 3 and 4 June 2026 and judged the home to be inadequate. Following the inspection, Ofsted issued compliance notices under Regulation 12, the protection of children standard and Regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. A monitoring visit took place on 9 July 2026, to consider actions taken in response to the compliance notices. It was agreed that all of the steps in the compliance notices had been met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/06/2026 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 3

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Summary of findings

The child trusts staff and said that they feel happy and safe. The relationships between the child and staff contribute to the child’s sense of stability and belonging. The child is making progress from their starting point and staff celebrate their success. A new management team is driving improvement and progress. Staff morale is good and they benefit from them being provided with consistent leadership. This helps staff to feel valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming and inviting and reflects the child’s likes and personality. The child’s bedroom is personalised and there is ample communal space for them to spend time with friends and family. Their artwork is proudly framed and displayed in the home, along with a variety of photographs of positive memories.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the child well and provide them with consistent nurture and care. The child has trusting relationships with staff and these relationships support the child’s investment in the home. Staff are immensely proud of the child’s progress, and the child knows that staff enjoy spending time with them. This helps the child to have a sense of belonging and a feeling that staff care about them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s physical and mental health is a priority. Staff recognise early indicators of distress and take action to help the child. Staff ensure that the child’s needs are understood and that they get appropriate specialist treatment when needed. The child recognises and appreciates this and said that they feel that they can trust staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s views influence practice and they say that they feel listened to. They are encouraged to express how they feel and to say when they are not happy. Staff respond to the child’s views, and if the child’s requests are not in their best interest, staff ensure that they understand the reasons for this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the child to develop the skills they need to maintain relationships with people who are important to them. Staff also have a positive relationship with the child’s family and friends. Their feedback is consistently positive, stating that staff know the child’s unique personality and humour.

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

Staff work in line with up to date and thorough risk assessments and have a good understanding of the child’s complex needs. Staff involve the child in all aspects of their planning and decision making. This gives the child influence over their own life. Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 4 The routine and structure that staff implement, provides the child with clear expectations about their behaviour. Staff hold difficult conversations with the child to help them to develop resilience, and staff encourage the child to make positive behaviour choices. Incentives and positive rewards are used to motivate the child. These provide the chid with consistency and helps them to understand expectations of them.

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

Staff know what to do when the child leaves the home. They follow the child’s plan and always keep them in view. The vigilance and consistency of staff practice contribute to the child’s safe return. This positive practice means that incidents of the child going missing have significantly reduced and they are safer as a result.

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

The child is aware of how to make a complaint and is confident to do so. Complaints are taken seriously and thoroughly investigated. The child is updated about the outcome so that they know that they have resolution to any concerns that they raise .

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

Not all staff understand what constitutes a physical intervention and therefore they do not record always record these incidents. This limits managers’ evaluation of staff’s practice and any potential learning and development. This also potentially prevents appropriate support for the child and staff, and the opportunity for them to reflect on how they feel.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The interim manager is enthusiastic and well supported by an experienced responsible individual. Together, they have implemented a thorough set of new policies and procedures to guide and develop staff practice .

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s consistent leadership approach gives staff clear direction in their roles. Staff morale is good and they said that they enjoy working together. They feel supported by the management team and take pride in the quality of the care they provide. This creates an environment that supports the child’s wellbeing and provides them with positive daily experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers regularly review staff development Staff either hold the required qualification, or they are making progress towards attaining this. Staff follow a programme of mandatory and bespoke training and they are encouraged to invest in their own learning and development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have developed an improvement plan for the home. The manager has effective monitoring and review processes in place and carries out regular audits and assessment of the care provided. The manager has a good understanding of the home’s strengths.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have strong working relationships with partner professionals. These are open and transparent, and the lines of communication and information sharing are clear. The manager provides evaluative summaries of the child’s progress and professionals’ feedback is consistently positive. Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 5 Staff have regular reflective supervision sessions and their induction is generally thorough. However, new staff do not receive additional supervision, as detailed in the home’s policy. This limits the opportunities for reflective discussions to support new staff need as they develop and familiarise themselves with their role. Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 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, 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 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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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; 1 December 2026 Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 7 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)(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the formal supervision of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. In particular, they should ensure that newly recruited staff have supervision in line with the home’s policies. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Information about this inspection

The 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: 2858011 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Steps Support Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 38 Hawthorn Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE3 4DE

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Inspector

Lisa Gordon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2858011 9 and inspects 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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