Children's home run by Arnfield Care Limited in Cheshire East

Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 1 SC020171 Registered provider: Arnfield 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 registered to provide care and accommodation for up to seven young people. This home is owned and operated by a private provider, with an on-site registered school.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/06/2017 Full Good 12/10/2016 Full Good 12/01/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 28/07/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 3

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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

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 31/05/2018

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (5))

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Requirement Due date

This is with regard to ensuring that supervision is at the frequencies set out in the statement of purpose. 31/05/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12 (2)(c) (the protection of children standard). When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1)(2)) 31/05/2018

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Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. This is with particular regard to ensuring a good standard of decoration and furnishings throughout the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce- related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1, paragraphs 19 and 20. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person is responsible for deciding what each six monthly monitoring report should focus on. This is based on the specific circumstances of the home at that particular time. The manager should evaluate and provide an opinion on care. Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 4

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Recommendations

The views of children should form part of this report. The purpose is to set actions and drive improvement. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.4)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This home provides young people with good day-to-day care and enjoyable experiences. They benefit from well-balanced lives, as staff support them to take part in a wide range of educational, vocational and social activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is a priority in this home. The provider has their own registered school on site. Depending on individual needs, young people can attend either the provider’s school or mainstream schools. Outdoor education includes climbing, kayaking and camping. All young people progress to achieve their individual potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are positive about staff and describe warm and trusting relationships. They feel valued and respected. Young people are nurtured, and they thrive because of the care they receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good health provision is central to care practice. The physical, emotional and psychological needs of young people are fully supported. Support for smoking cessation is effective. There are no young people in this home who smoke.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work effectively with partner agencies. They understand their role working in the wider multi-agency team of professionals. This ensures that all agencies work well together and progress care plans effectively.

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

Staff have an excellent understanding of all safeguarding issues. They know when to take action to protect young people.

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

There have been two allegations made against staff since the last inspection. The designated officer confirmed that the provider reports safeguarding concerns in line with procedures. The responsible individual is proactive in seeking advice and guidance.

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

Young people are rarely missing or absent from this home. When this does occur, staff follow appropriate procedures and are proactive in locating young people. The manager consistently ensures that local authorities conduct return home interviews. This means that staff can better understand the reasons for young people leaving the home. This enables staff to put plans in place to prevent young people from going missing from the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 5 Staff educate young people on the dangers of digital technology, social media and exploitation. Creative and innovative methods encourage young people to engage and learn about risks. This means that young people are empowered to take ownership regarding their actions. Consequently, young people keep themselves safe.

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

The manager ensures that the environment is safe. Fire evacuation arrangements are excellent. The locality risk assessment is detailed, up to date and describes local risks. However, this report needs to seek the views of relevant agencies.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has not had a registered manager in post since January 2018. This has had no impact on the day-to-day operation of the home, as the assistant manager has taken on full managerial responsibility. The new manager is applying for registration with Ofsted. She is appropriately qualified and very experienced in residential care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is liked and respected by her staff team and the young people. They commended her on her hard work to maintain high standards. She has been fully supported by the committed senior members of her team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been some staff vacancies. The manager and staff have worked hard to ensure that young people have been fully supported in this period. The home has now recruited new staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a clear understanding of young people. She has a clear view of their plans, needs and progress. The manager has systems in place to track the progress that young people make. This means that she can demonstrate how the home is having a positive impact on their development. This promotes improved long-term outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are some shortfalls in the management of this home. These are:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

 The statement of purpose is not up to date. It has not been submitted to Ofsted for a significant period of time. This means that the regulator is not clear on the operation of the home and staffing.  Supervision of staff is not consistent or at the frequencies set out in the home’s statement of purpose.  The maintenance and decoration of the home are not of a high standard throughout the home.  The manager would benefit from a workforce development plan to provide an overview of supervision, appraisal and training arrangements.  Internal monitoring reports need to include the manager’s evaluation of the service and the opinions and views of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

These shortfalls have no direct impact on young people. Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 6

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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: SC020171 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Arnfield Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Brookbank House, Wellington Road, Bollington, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 5JR

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Inspector

Amanda Ellis, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC020171 8 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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