Children's Home run by HeadStart Residential Care Ltd in East Sussex

Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 1 Registered provider: Headstart Residential 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

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children including children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 4 September 2018 when the home opened.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 15 to 16 November 2018

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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: Not applicable as this is a newly registered children’s home

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 2

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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 children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who develop positive relationships with them; engage with them; and take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person keep the children’s guide and the home’s complaints procedure under review and seek children’s comments before revising either document. (Regulation 7 (1)(a) (b)(c)(2)(c)) 28/02/2019

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)) 28/02/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and 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)) 28/02/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 3

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2).

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Recommendations

This is with specific reference to safeguarding, in relation to the children’s needs.  For chi needs o environ legislat as far a (‘Guide 15, par

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Recommendations

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Recommendations

Homes th restraint i to this, in the childre 9.44). Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has a welcoming feel with the children being involved in the choosing of furnishings. Children choose the decor for their own bedrooms, and this reflects their individual preferences. Staff have developed positive and nurturing relationships with the children and demonstrate an empathic understanding of their needs. This has helped the children to feel able to share any worries they may have. One child described the care provided by staff as ‘fantastic’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a thorough understanding of the children’s emotional needs. Consequently, the children receive effective support that has resulted in their improved understanding of their own emotions. Through this support, which sometimes includes access to specialist therapeutic services, children learn to regulate their behaviour and develop greater emotional resilience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the importance of learning well. According to their age, children are encouraged to attend education or to seek work experience. Staff recognise the impact of previously disrupted education on the children’s ability to engage in learning. This was particularly important for one child who has recently begun attending school on a full- time basis. Staff also encourage the children to have individual hobbies, which helps them to develop their interests and their sense of identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the children to learn life skills, which is important to support their transition into adulthood. This support was clear for one child who had chosen to leave the home, prior to the planned ending, to live with their father. The staff team and the child’s social worker worked in partnership to ensure that appropriate support was in place. This was strengthened by the work that staff had undertaken with the child on helping to maintain family relationships.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding issues and the individual identified risks for each child. This translates into effective plans in place with strategies to reduce these risks. There is a comprehensive assessment of potential risks, which is regularly updated in respect of each child as an individual. However, this has not been reviewed in respect of the way in which the individual risks for a child may have an impact on other children. This will be important when matching new children, prior to their planned move into the home.

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

Sound staff recruitment practice contributes to the home’s safeguarding culture. Following their recruitment, staff are provided with regular child-focused supervision, which is effective in supporting them in their roles. However, there is not a specific time within individual staff supervision meetings dedicated to reflect on safeguarding as a topic. Safeguarding training for staff has been developed, and further specific training is Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 5 planned, to ensure that staff remain up to date in their knowledge. This training includes opportunities for staff to reflect on their safeguarding practice, which is important.

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

Staff provide children with appropriate and meaningful support when safeguarding issues are identified. The management team works well with the police and children’s services while supporting the child. There is tenacious follow-up work by the registered manager where needed, which is fully supported by the relevant agencies. Staff support the children to share any concerns they may have on a day-to-day basis. This practice helps to promote and sustain a positive culture of safeguarding in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is experienced and committed in her role. She is very ably supported by the deputy manager, who is also suitably experienced. Together, they lead a passionate and enthusiastic staff team, which is child centred. The management team has an empathic understanding of the children’s needs. The shared values of the management team are evident in the way in which staff care for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel very well supported by the management team and the responsible individual. The individual learning and development opportunities provided are very much appreciated by staff. The high value and support that the registered manager places on the staff are reflected by the high quality of care that the staff provide for the children. The registered manager has a good understanding of the strengths of the staff team as well as the areas for development. The monthly monitoring of the home by an independent visitor helps to inform this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

As the home develops, a number of documents and procedures now require review. These include the statement of purpose. The registered manager has recently revised the procedure for complaints, but the new document does not provide clarity for the staff when they are responding to possible complaints made by children. The corresponding information in the guide provided for children does not fully reflect the revised complaints process. Currently, these shortfalls do not represent a risk of harm for children; neither do they adversely affect the quality of the care provided.

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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. Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 6 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

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Information about this inspection

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: 1275500 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Headstart Residential Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Aequitas, Unit 1, Swanwood Park, Gun Hill, Heathfield, East Sussex TN21 0LL

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Inspector

Maria Lonergan, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1275500 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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