Children's Home run by Next Stage 4Life Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report children's home: 1254555 1 Registered provider: Next Stage 4 Life 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 home is operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for two young people up to the age of 18. The registered manager has been registered since 21 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 1254555 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/03/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 10/05/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/02/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 13/11/2017 Full Good Inspection report children's home: 1254555 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 privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises-

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a) (b) (c) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the use of bedroom door alarms and the locking of the kitchen door should be based on a recorded assessment of young people’s need for such measures of control. 05/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1) (a) (b) (c)).

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that copies of education and healthcare plans and local authority pathway plans are on file. 05/08/2019 Inspection report children's home: 1254555 4

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Recommendations

 Ensure that at least once a year a review is completed of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies to managing these. Providers should refer to the non-statutory advice about the location assessment process (Children’s homes regulations amendments 2014: Advice for children’s homes providers on new duties under regulations that came in to effect in January and April 2014). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people do not always express positive views about the care that they receive. However, young people struggle to identify what they do not like or how this could be improved. Young people’s views appear to be reflective of their frustrations with not being able to live with their families, rather than the day-to-day care that they receive in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Observations during the inspection and feedback from staff and other professionals indicate that young people are happy and settled in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, no new young people have moved into the home and no one has left. This has contributed to the stability of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people have good relationships with staff. Increasingly, young people seek out staff support when they are anxious or they are having a difficult day. This is a significant change for young people and reflects their improving maturity and trust in staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to give young people the opportunity to have their say. Key work sessions, young people’s meetings and external advocates ensure that young people’s voices are listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people are encouraged to participate in a range of activities from attending music festivals to having music lessons. Staff support young people to explore their interests, have fun and socialise. This helps young people’s self-esteem and confidence to improve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage young people to develop and maintain friendships with others. Overnight stays with friends ensure that young people have the opportunity to engage in age-appropriate activities and create good memories. Inspection report children's home: 1254555 5 Staff support young people to explore their identities. Young people feel comfortable to ask staff questions and seek advice. This is because staff have created a safe environment in which young people feel secure and at ease.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good links between the staff and the child and adolescent mental health service mean that care planning is well informed. As a result, staff are well equipped to meet the evolving emotional health needs of young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise the importance of young people attending school. Staff have worked hard to overcome the barriers to young people being able to access school. This has been successful. Both young people are making progress. One young person is currently sitting her exams. This is a significant achievement for that individual.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Young people benefit from living in a home which is decorated to a high standard. The homely environment is a calm and welcoming space for young people to spend time in. Young people are currently in the process of switching bedrooms and choosing how to decorate their new rooms. This reflects the autonomy that young people are given to promote their sense of ownership and belonging.

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

Young people feel safe and are safe. This is because staff are successful at balancing the need to protect young people with providing them with the opportunity to safely make mistakes and learn the skills to keep themselves safe in the community.

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

Safeguarding arrangements are enhanced by staff obtaining input from partner agencies. Because of this, risk management planning is well considered.

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

Currently, staff use bedroom door alarms to monitor young people’s night-time movements and lock the kitchen door at night to prevent unauthorised access. There are specific safeguarding concerns which have required the use of such measures of control. However, while young people have not complained about this, and these safeguards are proportionate, there is no formal assessment to reflect staff’s decision-making.

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

Staff are successful at promoting young people’s good behaviours. A mixture of spontaneous rewards and short-term incentives helps to give young people achievable targets to work towards. Young people are responsive and engage with these well. This has contributed to improvements in young people’s behaviours.

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

Young people have increasingly developed their ability to regulate their emotions. This, alongside staff’s success at de-escalating situations, means that physical restraints are not required.

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

Young people rarely leave the house without authorisation. However, staff are proactive in planning for such an event. A grab bag with a high-visibility jacket, torch and key information sheet, ensures that staff are ready to respond quickly to any missing incidents. Inspection report children's home: 1254555 6

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate and enthusiastic. Her energy is infectious, and she acts as a positive role model for staff and young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager leads a child-focused team that places young people at the centre of everything it does. Staff are proud of young people’s achievements and continue to work tirelessly to support young people to maintain and develop their successes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Following a period of change, the staff team is now more stable. Staff have a mixed level of experience and knowledge. Collectively, they have the skills to meet the needs of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported by a management team that is approachable and helpful. Staff benefit from appropriate training and access to regular supervisions and team meetings. This support provides the foundations for a harmonious team that works consistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have good links with a range of partner agencies. Good communication helps to promote a collaborative approach to prioritising the needs of young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A newly appointed independent visitor has enhanced the quality of external monitoring available to the registered manager. This complements the registered manager’s own audit systems. Because of this, the registered manager has a realistic understanding of the home’s areas of development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Specifically, the registered manager recognises that the quality of case records could be improved to better reflect the care being provided to young people. This administrative weakness has not had a direct impact on the care being provided to young people.

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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 Inspection report children's home: 1254555 7 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: 1254555 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Next Stage 4 Life Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Regency House, 45−53 Chorley New Road, Bolton, Lancashire BL1 4QR

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Inspector

Paul Robinson, social care inspector Inspection report children's home: 1254555 9 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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