Two residential children’s services run by Kibble in Renfrewshire have received high grades following unannounced inspections by the Care Inspectorate.
Forest View, which includes Ness and Tay houses at Kibble’s Lochwinnoch campus, received the highest possible grade of six, or “excellent”.
Cochrane House, which supports secondary school-aged young people at Kibble’s campus in Paisley, received a grade five, or “very good”.
Both inspections were unannounced.
The Forest View inspection took place from 29th June to 1st July 2026. At the time, five children were living in Ness House and three in Tay House. The two adjoining homes provide residential care for primary school children aged between five and 12.
Inspectors described Forest View’s performance as “sector leading” and said children experienced “outstanding outcomes” through the care provided.
The report found staff had an excellent understanding of children’s communication needs. For some children, the support had enabled them to speak and use words for the first time to express choice.
Inspectors also found detailed risk assessments had contributed to significant reductions in distress for some children.
Family members told inspectors they had complete confidence and trust in the service. They described the warmth, love and affection shown by staff as second to none.
Inspectors also heard examples of brothers and sisters living together for the first time in many years as a result of the service’s work to keep families together.
Ness and Tay recently became the first residential services at Kibble to achieve Autism Accreditation from the National Autistic Society.
Sandy Mayhew, Executive Director of Community-based Services at Kibble, said: “What inspectors saw during the visit is what happens here every day: skilled, caring teams creating safe, nurturing environments where children and young people feel supported and encouraged to thrive. Whether it is a child using words to express choice for the first time, settling into school life, or sitting down to dinner with brothers and sisters after years apart, these moments show what this work really means.’’
Cochrane House was inspected during an unannounced visit from 8th to 10th June 2026. The service can accommodate up to ten young people of secondary school age, usually between 12 and 18.
Inspectors gave the service a grade five, “very good”, for supporting children and young people’s rights and wellbeing.
The report found young people felt safe emotionally and physically and highlighted positive relationships between young people and staff.
Inspectors also found young people were well informed about their rights and felt confident raising concerns. All young people had access to independent advocacy.
The service had also met both areas for improvement identified during its previous inspection in November 2024. These related to care planning and risk assessments, and ensuring appropriate staffing levels and skills were available.
However, inspectors identified areas where further work was needed.
All young people were subject to overnight checks. Inspectors said these were necessary for some but the service should review the practice to ensure checks meet individual needs and do not affect young people’s privacy and dignity.
The report also found delays in accessing education timetables for some young people newly admitted to the service. Kibble agreed to review this.
Staff and young people also told inspectors that the quality of food provided by the kitchen could improve. Inspectors said individual preferences were recognised and young people had access to additional food bought by the service, with sufficient food consistently available. Kibble also agreed to review this.
Inspectors said meaningful family connections were a strength. Some young people told them the support they received meant they were seeing their family regularly for the first time in years.
Damien McGrogan, Executive Director of Secure and Intensive Services, said: “I am delighted that the inspection has recognised the dedication, professionalism and compassion of our staff team and most importantly, the young people themselves, whose voices and experiences continue to shape and strengthen our services.
“This highly commendable report reflects our ongoing commitment to providing safe, nurturing and high-quality care for the young people we support across all of our services.”
The reports also state that neither Forest View nor Cochrane House has had a complaint upheld since its previous inspection.
The results follow other inspections of Kibble services this year. Kibble Education and Care Centre and Levernbridge were both rated “very good” earlier in 2026, while Miss Elizabeth Kibble House was recognised through the Promise Assurance Inspection.
Mark Macmillan, Chief Executive of Kibble, said: “Every child deserves to feel safe, valued and hopeful about their future. For many of the young people we support, early experiences of trauma and adversity have made that much harder, which is why compassionate, trauma-informed care is at the heart of the work we do at Kibble.
“These inspection results reflect the skill, dedication and care of our teams, and their commitment to helping young people build confidence, strengthen relationships and move towards positive futures.’’
The inspection reports are available in full from the Care Inspectorate.