Children's home run by Next Stage 4 Life Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 1 Registered provider: Next Stage 4 Life

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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 children’s home is one of a number of homes operated by a small private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: Not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 2

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home requires improvement to be good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people are not attending education regularly or achieving their targets as set out in their education plans.  A young person’s statutory health assessment report has not been obtained by the staff to inform future planning. In addition, a young person is not engaging in therapy, despite the staff efforts to promote this.  Management arrangements have been inconsistent. This has led to a lack of communication and direction to the staff.  A strategy meeting was not convened with the police following a young person being missing from the home for a number of days.

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Key findings from this inspection

 A new manager is in position who is enthusiastic and committed to developing and improving the home. He has a wealth of experience and skills.  The staff team is very nurturing. Staff are committed to making a positive difference to young people’s lives.  Young people are building positive relationships with the staff.  The staff are proactive and facilitate young people seeing their family members regularly.  Young people who are new to the home have an effective introduction. This helps them to prepare for the change in their lives. Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 4

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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

In order to meet the health and well-being standard, the registered person should ensure that children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)).

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Requirement Due date

In particular, they should ensure that young people’s medical information is gained, and that specialist therapy is accessed by young people. 30/09/2017

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard, the registered person must ensure that staff help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1)(x)). 30/09/2017

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos and delivers the outcomes, set out in the statement of purpose. (Regulation 13 (2)(a)).

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, management arrangements should provide clear leadership to the staff and young people’s outcomes should be achieved. 30/09/2017

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Recommendations

 Ensure that where a child runs away for lengthy periods of time, the registered person, in consultation with the child’s placing authority, should convene a risk management meeting to develop a strategy for managing risks to the young person. The strategy should be agreed with the child’s placing authority, the local Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 5 authority where the home is located and the local police. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.33)

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improvement to be good

Young people who come to live here have complex emotional and behavioural needs. The staff team members work together to help young people settle into the home and work towards their potential. However, not all young people are attending education regularly or achieving their targets as set out in their education plans. Although staff are aware of the importance of education and try to improve attendance, the strategies in place are not effective. This is an area that requires improvement to be good.

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improvement to be good

Young people’s health needs are generally well met. Staff support young people to register with appropriate healthcare services and they attend appointments with young people. However, when a young person attended their statutory health assessment, the staff had not secured the report to inform the young person’s care plan. Therefore, a complete picture of the young person’s health outcomes is lacking. A qualified therapist is accessible and provides advice to the staff, which they benefit from. However, despite the efforts made by the staff to encourage a young person, they have still refuse to engage.

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improvement to be good

The relationships between young people and the staff continue to develop. A social worker said, ‘They [Staff] are nurturing and caring and that is what stands out.’ The staff have been successful in engaging young people in activities, such as gardening, meals out and shopping. This helps to improve young people’s self-worth and confidence. Young people are taking pride in their personal appearance, using cosmetics and enjoying buying new clothes. These are positive steps forward.

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improvement to be good

Young people understand their rights as individuals. They know how to make a complaint and have used this successfully to resolve their dissatisfaction. This demonstrates that the procedure is effective. Moreover, young people have weekly meetings in which to raise their views and opinions, such as what activities and holidays they would like to take part in. They also have visits from advocates who educate them in their entitlements. These practices enable young people to have a real say in their daily lives.

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improvement to be good

Young people who are new to the home are welcomed sensitively. There are detailed care plans for staff to follow to meet the needs of all young people. A social worker said, ‘I am impressed with the commitment of the staff and them wanting to get it right for [name of young person].’ Staff provide young people with a welcome pack. This clearly explains the running of the home and young people’s rights and responsibilities.

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improvement to be good

A placement has ended in an unplanned way, but the welfare of the young person Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 6 remained at the centre of care planning with the staff and partner agencies. The staff continue to provide outreach support to the young person to promote the future success of the new placement.

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improvement to be good

The staff support young people to stay in touch with their family members and have a good understanding of their background histories and relationships. They provide reassurance to young people and a listening ear for their feelings and emotions. They also arrange practical support and transport and accompany young people to see those who are significant to them.

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improvement to be good

Incidents of missing from care have increased for one young person in the home. Throughout these incidents, staff have taken action to look for the young person and have informed all relevant agencies. However, a risk management meeting with the local authority and the police was not convened to develop a strategy for managing risks to the young person. This was a missed opportunity to ensure that all actions were taken to promote the continued safety and welfare of the young person.

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improvement to be good

Serious incidents are notified to Ofsted and the appropriate agencies to share information and protect young people. There has been an increase in these incidents recently, resulting in a young person being arrested by the police. These incidents are reviewed by the manager and used to review practice and learning in the home.

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improvement to be good

The staff work with partner agencies to identify, measure and reduce risks to young people. Risks assessments are in place and are reviewed and agreed by the social worker for their continued benefit. Moreover, the staffing levels are high to promote the safety of young people.

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improvement to be good

The staff use incentives, such as earning extra pocket money to encourage young people to behave respectfully and appropriately. In addition, sanctions are restorative in nature and are used to encourage young people to take responsibility for their negative actions. Physical interventions are rarely used; there has been one since the home opened in April 2017. This is reviewed to ensure that the restraint is appropriate. All the staff are trained in a certified model of physical restraint.

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improvement to be good

The physical environment of the home is safe and secure and protects young people from hazards. This is accompanied by health and safety risk assessments and routine maintenance checks. Furthermore, a fire risk assessment and evacuation plans are in place to safely guide young people in the event of a fire.

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

The home was registered in April 2017. Since the time of registration, there have been Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 7 two managers in place. They have both since left the home. The most recent manager left in July 2017. This has caused instability for the staff team that has lacked direction and a consistent management approach. This has caused uncertainty for young people and has meant that there has been poor communication on occasions. That said, the staff team has tried hard to pulled together to try to support and guide young people.

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

A new acting manager is in position and he is due to make his application for registration to Ofsted in the coming weeks. He is suitably qualified and has a wealth of experience in working with young people who have emotional and behavioural needs. He is enthusiastic and passionate about providing a high standard of care and experience to young people. He has the support of two deputy managers.

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

The acting manager is keen to improve the service to young people. A development plan sets out the areas for improvement, such as strengthening internal monitoring systems, improving communication systems with the staff and developing feedback systems with partner agencies to improve practice in the home. Significant incidents are reported to the appropriate authorities to ensure that information is shared to help and protect young people.

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

The staff members spoken to commented that they enjoy the work they do and were all complimentary of the new acting manager. They have guidance, policies and procedures to support their care practice. They also have regular supervisions, team meetings and appraisals to further ensure their competence in delivering sound care to young people.

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

The acting manager ensures that the home is maintained to a high standard and that it looks and feels like a family home. It is spacious to allow young people privacy away from others. Each young person’s bedroom is personal to them and reflects their interests and tastes. Any wear and tear is reported to the maintenance team. This is addressed to ensure that young people live in a good living environment.

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

External monitoring systems are good and provide an independent report of the quality of care and safety of young people. The manager promptly addresses any areas for improvement. Additionally, Ofsted surveys are completed by the staff and show high levels of satisfaction with their roles. Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 8

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the differences made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and young people and their families. In addition, the inspectors have tried to understand what the children’s home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people whom it is trying to help, protect and look after.

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Information about this inspection

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 children’s home: 1256904 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Next Stage, 28 Manchester Road, Westhoughton, Bolton BL5 3QJ

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Inspector

Caroline Jones, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1256904 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 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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