Children's home run by A&M Care Solutions Limited - T/A Metropolitan Care Solutions

Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 1 Registered provider: A&M Care Solutions 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

A private company operates this home, which provides care and accommodation for up to three children or young people who have learning difficulties. The home was registered by Ofsted in January 2019. This is the home’s first 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

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 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 registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only— employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

The requirements are that— the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(a)(b)(c)(d)) 30/09/2019

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children settle quickly and make remarkable progress in a short time. A social worker said: ‘He is a different boy now. Before he came to the home he wouldn’t respond to boundaries. He was climbing up everything and was withdrawn. We don’t see those behaviours anymore.’ A parent said: ‘The change in him is unreal.’ Children are making progress in areas such as personal hygiene, independence and social skills, confidence, communication and behaviour.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children appear happy and staff are building nurturing and warm relationships with them. A parent said: ‘They just get him. He is so happy.’ The children are provided with many opportunities to participate in activities in the home, and in local and wider communities. This helps children to develop self-esteem and confidence, independence and social skills. A child said that she used to be shy but now happily talks to staff and other trusted adults. She is also making good friends at school and in the local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have a good understanding of the way children communicate, and staff respond appropriately to them. Because children are understood, their behaviour has improved. Staff have introduced ear defenders for children with hypersensitivity to sounds. This has enabled them to access the community without becoming distressed or anxious.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children contribute to the running of the home by choosing decor and activities. They have grown vegetables in the garden and have helped to decorate the home. Bedrooms are highly personalised. For example, one child’s room has a forest theme. The natural soft greens and tactile wall art have helped the child to sleep better. The child’s mother helped with the design of the room and is very pleased with the outcome.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff already know the children very well and respond to their wishes, views and feelings appropriately. A social worker said: ‘Staff really care for the children.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff facilitate attendance at school and children successfully attend on a full-time basis. Staff closely liaise with school staff to ensure a consistent approach. Positive outcomes from this joint work have included a significant improvement in one child’s communication.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The health of children is highly promoted. For example, children who are significantly underweight are supported to attend their health appointments, and staff encourage them to eat and try different food. Healthy and nutritious meals are encouraged. Children are also very well supported to attend other appointments, such as the hairdressers or barbers. For some children, this is a new experience.

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

The support and care provided by staff helps children to feel safe. Staff have a good Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 4 understanding of the home’s child protection procedures and know how to keep children safe. Risk management is effective and helps to reduce risks for children, without preventing them from taking age-appropriate risks as part of the development of independent living skills. For example, staff support children to learn how to cook.

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

Children receive good help and support to manage their behaviour safely. Warm and supportive relationships help children to feel safe and secure. Clear and consistent boundaries also help children to feel safe and manage their own behaviour. Staff have a good understanding of triggers and respond with effective de-escalation techniques. Sanctions and physical intervention have not been used to manage behaviour at this home.

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

Staff have a good understanding of the risks associated with internet usage. They help children to be safe online with regular monitoring and discussion.

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

Vetting procedures are generally good and help to protect children from unsuitable adults. References are sought from the previous employer. However, if a person has previously worked in a position involving work with children or vulnerable adults, verification has not been sought of the reason why the employment or position ended.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an experienced and qualified registered manager. She has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and has clear plans to continually improve the experience of children. She is highly motivated and child-centred, qualities which are clearly passed on to her staff team. Staff feel very well supported by the management team and each other. They consistently describe themselves as being a family.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are very enthusiastic about providing high-quality care for children. They are experienced, qualified and highly motivated. They genuinely care about the children and want the best for them. Research-based therapeutic support is provided. For example, a child’s self-esteem and confidence are developed when staff demonstrate that she is always on their mind. They write letters to her to say how much they have enjoyed her company and how well she has done that day. Feelings charts are also used to help children to have a better understanding of how they feel and why they may feel that way.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training focuses on the therapeutic approach the manager has adopted and the needs of the children. For example, children have sensory needs and so staff have completed sensory modulation and deep-pressure training. This ensures that staff can meet the needs of the children effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager and staff work closely with other professionals and parents. Parents feel consulted about the care their child receives. Social workers agree that communication from staff is very good, and staff work collaboratively with them to provide consistency and stability for children. Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 5 A number of children’s records were not clear. For example, some risk assessments and body maps depicting bruising needed to be clearer. Also, the use of language within daily observation records does not always suggest that the child lives in a family-type home and may not be helpful to a child if they choose to read their records. Examples of poor use of language are: ‘unit shop’, ‘complete routines’, ‘had a wash down’ and ‘went on contact.’ However, there were also many records that did not use such language and were much more child-friendly.

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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: 2496764 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: A&M Care Solutions Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 16 Regent Street, Nottingham NG1 5BQ

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Inspector

Joanne Vyas, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2496764 7 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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