Children's home run by Inspire Children’s Services Limited in St. Helens

Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 1 SC422481 Registered provider: Inspire Children‟s Services 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 part of a private organisation.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is registered to manage two of the organisation‟s children‟s homes. The manager has been registered to manage this home since May 2018.

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Information about this children’s home

There were no children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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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

Date of last inspection: 25 October 2017

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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: SC422481 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/10/2017 Full Good 17/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 01/12/2016 Full Good 14/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 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 ensure that 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 a description of the measure and its duration, and 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”) has spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35(2)(a)(iv)(b)(i)(ii)) 02/11/2018

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Recommendations

 The registered person must specify the procedures to be followed and the roles and responsibilities of staff when a child is missing from care or away from the home without permission. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 45, paragraph 9.28)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress in all areas of their lives. Since the last inspection, one child has moved on successfully to a larger children‟s home. This move was possible due to the progress that the child had made. This progress was achieved due to the care and support that the child received from the manager and staff in this solo placement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions into the home are managed well. Careful matching and detailed transition plans support children to move into this home successfully. The strong, supportive and nurturing relationships that the small staff team build with children help the children to feel safe and supported. This enables children to make progress in all areas of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Another child who moved in and out of the home during this inspection period also made Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 4 good progress in achieving their targets and goals. The progress that the child made in developing their independent living skills, gaining a wider understanding of their health and social needs and being able to independently manage their education needs at college, recently supported them to move on to semi-independent living.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are actively encouraged to consider their health needs and choices. Children‟s health needs are clearly recorded in their healthcare plans. When children are reluctant to attend appointments or take their prescribed medication, staff spend time with them in order to educate them on the consequences of their choices. If children continue to refuse to engage with the healthcare plans, staff are proactive in seeking out further information and support from the relevant health agencies.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported well to maintain positive and close bonds with those who are important to them. Staff promote and facilitate children spending family time together with siblings, in accordance with the placing authorities‟ care plans. This supports children to gain a positive sense of self, maintain family links and understand their identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children‟s experiences and opportunities have been enhanced. Where appropriate, children are supported to have unsupervised time in the community with their friends, which helps to build their confidence and self-esteem. Staff also encourage children to engage in structured and positive activities in the home and the local community. This ensures that children benefit from the same experiences and opportunities as their peers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager ensures that children remain central to their care planning. Children‟s views are regularly sought, and the manager and staff support and advocate for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home provides children with a warm and caring environment. New bedroom furniture has been purchased and redecoration is underway. Further work is planned for the garden, to allow this space to be used better, and a new fence panel means that this area is more secure.

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

The manager and staff are fully aware of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. They take swift action when children raise any concerns, which promotes the welfare and safety of children.

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

A number of allegations have been made in respect of the conduct of staff. On all occasions, the manager has taken appropriate action to safeguard children at these times. The manager has notified and worked collaboratively with the relevant external agencies, such as the placing social worker and the designated officer, and he has completed any internal investigations sufficiently.

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

The staff team focuses on de-escalating any heightened behaviour in the home. Staff Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 5 make suitable attempts to manage children‟s challenging behaviour. However, following several assaults on staff members, the police have been used to support staff. This has been necessary when these situations have become unsafe for staff and children. The manager and staff promote and advocate for the use of restorative measures in these instances. This allows children to understand that their behaviour has consequences, while preventing children from being criminalised.

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

Physical intervention is used as a last resort to support children who put themselves or others in danger. This care practice is carried out by suitably trained staff, who support children sensitively at these times. Good management systems ensure that these incidents are reviewed and evaluated quickly. Additional independent oversight of the incidents where the manager has been involved further promotes the safety of the children and staff involved.

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

The manager ensures that all significant events that relate to the welfare and protection of children living in the home are shared with the appropriate authorities, including HMCI as required.

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

Children are supported to take age-appropriate risks and are encouraged to broaden the experiences and opportunities they have within their peer groups. Staff value the importance of children developing positive peer friendships, and promote and encourage these in a safe and planned way. This enables children to develop their social skills while becoming part of their wider local community in a safe and managed way.

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

Children have been reported missing from home on several occasions since the last inspection. Although the manager ensures that children have risk assessments that identify all the known risks to their safety, these plans do not provide staff with sufficient detail or direction on how they must respond to children at these times. This means that before the present manager took over the responsibility of this home, staff had not consistently gone out to look for children at these times. The manager is clear that this practice is not acceptable, and accepts that the current risk assessments need to be improved to enhance children‟s welfare and safety.

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

Staff make suitable attempts to encourage children to develop socially acceptable behaviour. When children‟s behaviour falls short of what is expected and acceptable, consequences and sanctions are used. Inspectors found it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of the behaviour management strategies used in the home, as the records were incomplete. For example, the records of the sanctions did not always include any comments from the child on how the sanction had supported them to think about and modify their behaviour, as required by regulation. Furthermore, the sanctions used did not always relate to the behaviour displayed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has the knowledge and experience to undertake his role. He is currently working towards the required management qualification. Staff state that although the manager is responsible for two children‟s homes, he is always accessible and available to Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 6 offer support and guidance. The staff‟s annual appraisals identify the achievements and strengths of staff and provide some understanding of their future development needs and plans. This ensures that staff have the skills and knowledge to care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a varied training programme that is tailored to the individual needs of the children at the home. Staff confirm that they are supervised regularly and feel well supported by their manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has a good understanding of the children‟s needs and is fully involved in the implementation of their care. He is well supported by a very competent deputy manager who shares his motivation for achieving good outcomes for the children. Together, they lead a small team of caring, qualified staff, who have high aspirations for children and provide children with positive experiences that help them to achieve good outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children‟s case records are clear and detailed. They provide a good insight into how children have been supported and helped by staff while they have lived in the home. Care planning is good. Children make good progress across all aspects of their development. The manager is clear about the progress that children make, as he routinely monitors and evaluates this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Sufficient internal and external monitoring systems support the provider and the manager to monitor the safety and the quality of care provided for children. The manager is quick to address any areas for improvement that have been identified during his own monitoring, through external monitoring, or through inspection activity. In doing this, the manager has taken suitable action to address the one requirement and four recommendations made at the last inspection.

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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: SC422481 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Inspire Children‟s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 3, Craig Court, Standish Street, St Helens, Merseyside WA10 1GJ

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Inspectors

Janine Shortman-Thomas: social care inspector Sarah Oldham: social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC422481 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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