Children's home run by Meadows Care Limited in Rochdale

Inspection report children’s home: SC064836 1 SC064836 Registered provider: Meadows Care Ltd

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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 is one of a number of children’s homes operated by a private company. The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children or young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. If required, children and young people can access the organisation’s school and therapy department.

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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

Date of last inspection: 26 September 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/09/2017 Full Good 26/01/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 15/06/2016 Full Good 22/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC064836 2

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Recommendations

 Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from internal monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people develop positive, reciprocal and trusting relationships with staff. They describe how this helps them to settle in and feel safe. Collectively, the young people are very positive about the care they receive and their experiences of living at this home. One young person said, ‘I’m really happy here. It’s much better than the last place I lived. All the staff are friendly and caring and I feel so much safer here.’ Young people who are new to the home are warmly welcomed, and are cared for by supportive and nurturing staff. Where possible, young people visit the home before moving in. This enables them to meet with staff and other young people and to ask questions about what the home is like. Young people confirmed that they were welcomed to the home and given lots of information about what they can expect. This helped the young people to settle in and feel safe. The manager and staff team place great value on education. This means that young

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

people receive education that meets their individual needs and helps them to reach their full potential. Staff demonstrate commitment and skill in ensuring that young people maintain contact with their families. They welcome parents to the home and often transport young people to their home area. Parents report high levels of satisfaction with the care afforded to their children. One parent said, ‘Staff are fantastic. They are caring and friendly. Because of staff, my child is more settled; she is getting the help she needs. As a parent I feel reassured because my child is happy and safe.’ The staff team successfully enhances young people’s enjoyment of life by encouraging their positive engagement in activities. Young people enjoy activities together, such as trips to the beach and amusement parks and bowling. Staff also ensure that young people can pursue their own individual talents and hobbies. This means that young

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

people participate in community-based activities, such as going to the gym and joining local groups and clubs. These opportunities enable young people to develop new skills, make friends and become more confident. Inspection report children’s home: SC064836 3 Young people’s health and emotional well-being continue to improve. Staff have an excellent understanding of children and young people’s specific health needs. They make sure that children and young people are healthy, and that they always get the medical advice, treatment and psychological support that they need. The home environment provides young people with a safe place where they can relax and unwind. A high standard of accommodation is provided for young people.

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

The young people currently living at the home benefit from effective support, help and protection. Young people feel safe and have a strong sense of personal safety. Staff have a good understanding of young people’s specific needs and vulnerabilities and take appropriate action to address them. The safety of young people is consistently at the centre of staff’s practice. Earlier in the year, the home had to deal with a series of challenging behaviours, which tested the skills and resources of the staff. It is to their credit that they have managed unsettled times with professionalism, confidence and resilience. Since the last inspection, one young person demonstrated a high level of missing from home behaviour. The manager took appropriate action by escalating his concerns to the placing authority and identified that they could not keep the young person safe. Records demonstrate that when a young person does go missing, staff search the local area, try

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

to maintain contact and take every possible action to ensure that the young person returns home as quickly as possible. The manager has missed an opportunity to ensure that young people’s known risks are identified in their individual risk assessments as their needs and vulnerabilities change. For example, little consideration has been given to group-based exploitation and understanding associations young people have in the community. To date, this has not impacted negatively on the safety and welfare of young people. That said, it is an area of practice that could be strengthened. The young people currently living at the home are visibly relaxed in the company of staff and share mutually respectful banter with one another. Staff have good insight into young people’s specific needs and consistently foster positive qualities, which helps the young people to feel good about themselves and promotes their self-esteem. As a result,

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

the home is currently very settled, with all three young people making good progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led and managed effectively by a skilled, competent and experienced registered manager. In addition, the home benefits from the support and expertise of an experienced team leader who deputises in the manager’s absence efficiently and effectively. The manager clearly understands the strengths of the home. He is ambitious and is committed to service development. Alongside senior leaders, the manager has worked hard to improve the stability of staffing. As a result, young people benefit from consistent care from staff they know and trust. Learning and development opportunities for staff are good. The manager ensures that Inspection report children’s home: SC064836 4 staff have appropriate training that stretches and challenges their care practice. Staff say they feel well supported by their manager and describe him as approachable and available. Consequently, staff morale is high. Staff say that they are encouraged to be reflective practitioners. This helps them to learn

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

when things have not gone to plan. One staff member said, ‘I love coming to work, this is a really close team. We all pull together during difficult times and we are encouraged to talk about it, and voice our opinions. We have team debriefs and group supervisions, and this helps us to learn and move on positively.’ The manager ensures that supervision is undertaken with all staff. Supervision is seen to be supportive for staff, with a focus on the welfare of the young people they care for. Young people’s case records are well maintained. Records are sufficiently detailed and well written and are presented in a way that is helpful to young people both now and in the future. The manager provides good management and clear reporting of significant incidents. The necessary professionals and agencies are notified, and records demonstrate that clear actions are taken and that there is reflective learning from incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Quality assurance systems have been developed to ensure that young people continue to enjoy high standards of care. However, some internal monthly monitoring reports contain conflicting information and do not provide sufficient evaluation of the information collected. The manager has acknowledged the shortfall and has taken some action to ensure that future reports provide accurate information. The manager has addressed all the requirements and recommendations from the last inspection. This demonstrates effective management, and willingness to learn from inspection activity to improve the service.

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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: SC064836 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Meadows Care Ltd, Egerton House, Wardle Road, Rochdale OL12 9EN

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Inspector

Ceri Evans, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC064836 6 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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Inspector

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