Children's home run by Octagon Care Ltd

Information about this children’s home

This privately run children’s home offers care and accommodation for up to four children or young people who may experience emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The registered manager has been in post since the home opened in August 2019.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection date: 5 February 2020

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection judgement: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this visit

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), Ofsted suspended all routine inspections in March 2020. As part of a phased return to routine inspection, we are undertaking assurance visits to children’s social care services that are inspected under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF).

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Information about this visit

At these visits, inspectors evaluate the extent to which:

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Information about this visit

 children are well cared for  children are safe  leaders and managers are exercising strong leadership.

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Information about this visit

This visit was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000, following the published guidance for assurance visits.

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Information about this visit

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s social care system has delivered child-centred practice and care within the context of the restrictions placed on society during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Findings from the visit

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance visit. Assurance visit report: 2548528 2

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The care of children

Young people say that they feel happy and safe living at this home. Those young people spoken to during the visit talked with fondness about the staff. They talked about how they trust staff and feel cared for by them. One young person said, ‘Staff are great. They are approachable and fair. If I need help, they are there for me. This is a great place to live.’

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The care of children

Staff have continued to promote and support family contact. Restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic have been carefully considered. Plans have been amended to ensure that everybody has been kept safe with minimum disruption to family relationships. A parent said, ‘They have adapted to the restrictions and when visits have not been possible, I have been encouraged to call at any time.’ The parent went on to say, ‘[Name of young person] is very well looked after. He is settled and happy and sees this as a home from home. It is a fantastic place.’

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The care of children

Young people say that they can talk freely to staff, who are interested in what they have to say. The culture in the home encourages young people to feel valued and respected and be confident that they can influence their plans and how their home is run.

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The care of children

One young person has continued to attend mainstream school without disruption. The timing of admissions for two young people has meant that the sourcing of formal education placements has been a challenge. Work is ongoing in this respect, with the manager working closely with virtual heads and education professionals. In the interim, young people are being offered learning opportunities in the home. One young person said, ‘I have missed a lot of school before coming here. I have started doing some school work with staff while they look for a school for me.’

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The safety of children

Staff understand how to manage risk and keep young people safe. Any specific actions are detailed in the young person’s plans and risk assessments, and these are routinely implemented by staff. However, one risk assessment is not sufficiently explicit about how young people should be monitored when they return home and are suspected to be under the influence of cannabis.

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The safety of children

Risk-taking behaviours, such as cannabis misuse, are challenged and addressed by staff. Staff work closely with substance misuse services to reduce risk while supporting a harm reduction programme. The substance misuse worker said, ‘They are doing what they need to support [Name of young person]. It is my view that they are doing all that they can and are taking the right action to manage and try to reduce the risks associated with cannabis misuse.’

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The safety of children

Clear protocols are in place for staff to follow if a young person leaves the home without permission. These have been implemented effectively on eight occasions during the reporting period. Assurance visit report: 2548528 3 Staff take a proportionate and considered approach to applying the rules and boundaries. Positive behaviour is acknowledged and rewarded, and any issues of negative behaviour are resolved through negotiation and compromise. A young person said, ‘It’s a nice place to live. You can’t do what you want but it is not too strict. The rules are fair.’

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Leaders and managers

The management of the home is stable. The registered manager, who is also the owner of the home, has recruited an experienced team of staff who know the young people well. A social worker said, ‘[Name] is a very responsible manager and I feel that staff follow a similar suit and manage situations in [Name’s] absence. [Name] runs a tight ship and is eager to improve.’

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Leaders and managers

The manager and staff have made every effort to overcome the barriers brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Care has continued to be delivered in a way that recognises and responds to each young person’s individual needs. When change has been necessary, it has been implemented in a way that has considered and minimised the impact on the young people.

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Leaders and managers

Staff speak highly of the support and guidance they receive from the registered manager. They spoke about receiving regular, purposeful supervision that focuses on improving practice as well as working towards their own professional goals. All staff are of the view that any discussions of this type are about improving things for the young people.

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Leaders and managers

Staff confirm that they have been supported to keep up to date with mandatory training during the pandemic. Due to restrictions, access to face-to-face training has been limited. The manager is aware of the need to source training in working with children and young people with sexually harmful behaviours. This needs to be expedited as restrictions are lifted.

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Leaders and managers

The manager has good oversight of the running of the home. However, the management monitoring reports, completed in line with regulation 45, do not fully evidence young people’s feedback on the quality of care.

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Leaders and managers

The manager has taken suitable action to address three of the four requirements and the two recommendations made at the last inspection. However, it is still not custom and practice to verify references. This means that the manager is not making suitable enquiries about why employment ended for staff who have previously worked with young people. Assurance visit report: 2548528 4

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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, the 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

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, if a person has previously worked in a position involving work with children or vulnerable adults, references must be verified with the employer to clarify the reason why the employment or position ended.

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Recommendations

 Children must be consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. (Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 22, paragraph 4.11)

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Recommendations

Specifically, the registered manager should encourage children to contribute to the six-monthly review of quality of care.

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Recommendations

 Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. Where there are safeguarding concerns for a child, their placement plan, agreed between the home and their placing authority, must include details of the steps the home will take to manage any assessed risks on a day-to-day basis. (Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 24, paragraph 9.5)

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Recommendations

Specifically, ensure that risk management plans provide explicit guidance for staff about how they should monitor any child who returns to the home and is suspected to be under the influence of cannabis, and, maintain a detailed record of any action taken. Assurance visit report: 2548528 5  The registered person should support staff to be ambitious for every child in the home and to gain skills and experience that enable them to actively support each child to achieve their potential. (Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 52, paragraph 10.5)

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Recommendations

Specifically, ensure that all staff are trained in working with young people who may display sexually harmful behaviours.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Octagon Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 4 Briony Close, Royton, Oldham, Lancashire OL2 5AL

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Inspector

Paul Scott, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: 2548528 6 to 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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