Children's home run by Care 4 Children Holdco Limited in Stockport

Information about this children’s home

The home is one of a large number operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who may have emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home’s manager registered with Ofsted in August 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection date: 24 September 2019

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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. 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: 1240803 2

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The care of children

Young people receive their care from a consistent team of staff who know them well and understand their needs. Young people describe positive relationships with staff and recognise themselves the good progress that they have made.

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The care of children

Social workers and families of young people speak highly of the home and describe significant improvements in young people’s overall well-being. One parent said, ‘They really take care of him and I know that they make sure he has everything he needs. The way he talks about the staff is really positive.’

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The care of children

Staff ensure that young people have access to appropriate healthcare support. The manager recently worked closely with a number of external agencies and resolved some difficulties a young person had experienced in accessing orthodontal care. However, guidance about the administration of young people’s ‘as and when required’ medications requires improvement to ensure that staff fully understand when to administer them.

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The care of children

Young people are engaging in education and attend school regularly. One young person is currently looking at options for further education and staff have supported him to gather the necessary information to help him decide. Throughout periods of school closures due to the pandemic, staff ensured that young people were enabled to continue their education at home.

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The care of children

Families say that staff support contact well and often travel considerable distances to enable young people to visit them. The families of two young people who are due to return to their care feel strongly that these positive outcomes are as a result of the care and support that they have received at the home.

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The safety of children

Assessments demonstrate that risks to all the young people’s safety and well-being have reduced over time. In particular, young people have significantly reduced high- risk behaviours, such as going missing from home and involvement in criminality. As a result, two young people are soon to return to the care of their families.

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The safety of children

While young people have made very good progress in this area, processes for risk management do require some improvement. Not all risks are clearly identified or assessed. In some examples, risks are assessed but guidance about how to manage them lacks clarity. This means that staff may not be clear about the actions they must take to protect young people from harm.

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The safety of children

Young people are developing safer behaviours over time. This is reflected in the reduction of significant incidents that have taken place in the home. However, guidance regarding young people’s individual behaviours and strategies to manage them requires some improvement. Clear strategies will help to ensure that staff are able to respond to behaviours in a consistent and confident manner. Assurance visit report: 1240803 3 Incidents that require staff to physically intervene do not happen on a regular basis. However, records of such incidents vary in quality, and in some examples do not provide sufficient information. Furthermore, they are not always monitored effectively, and de-briefs with staff and young people are inconsistent. This means poor or unsafe practice may not be identified or addressed.

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The safety of children

A requirement was made at the home’s last inspection in relation to safer recruitment. It was confirmed that this requirement has been addressed and that recruitment practices have been improved. This helps to promote young people’s safety and well-being.

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Leaders and managers

There is an experienced manager in place who registered with Ofsted in August 2020. The manager, although relatively new to the home, has built positive relationships with the young people, their families, staff and external professionals.

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Leaders and managers

Social workers express confidence in the home and confirm positive partnership working. Young people’s care and progress are continuously reviewed, although recording and care planning require some improvement for this process to be fully effective.

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Leaders and managers

Internal monitoring requires significant improvement. Currently, processes to monitor quality and safety across the service are not used effectively. This means that necessary improvements are not always identified promptly, or are identified but not acted upon. For example, the standard of accommodation and cleanliness of the home has been allowed to decline to an unsatisfactory standard over time. Failure to assure quality means that young people’s welfare is compromised.

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Leaders and managers

An independent person carries out a monthly visit to the home to assess standards. These visits have taken place consistently throughout periods of government restrictions due to the pandemic. However, reports of the visits, as well as the manager’s six-monthly review of quality, have not always been sent to Ofsted.

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Leaders and managers

There has been failure to provide Ofsted with an updated statement of purpose for a significant amount of time. In addition, it was identified that some significant incidents have taken place in the home that Ofsted has not been notified about. Failure to provide notifications and updated information impacts the regulator’s ability to monitor and therefore does not promote young people’s welfare.

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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 Assurance visit report: 1240803 4 registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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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—

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Requirement Due date

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;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm;

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that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(b)(d)) 11/12/2020

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The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(b)(2)(g)(ii)(h)) * 11/12/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) 11/12/2020 Assurance visit report: 1240803 5 which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision.

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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—

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details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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a description of the measure and its duration;

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details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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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”)—

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has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and 11/12/2020 Assurance visit report: 1240803 6 within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

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The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 11/12/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit 11/12/2020 Assurance visit report: 1240803 7 (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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children are effectively safeguarded; and

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the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to—

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upon request, the local authority for the area in which the home is located;

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the registered provider and, if applicable, the registered manager; and

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the responsible individual (if one is nominated).

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(Regulation 44 (1)(4)(a)(b)(7)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

*This requirement is subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendations

 Please see regulation 23. Medicines prescribed for ‘as and when required’ use must be administered in line with a clear, individualised protocol. Records must be kept of the administration of all medication, which includes occasions when prescribed medication is refused. Regulation 23 requires the registered person to Assurance visit report: 1240803 8 ensure that they make suitable arrangements to manage, administer and dispose of any medication. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, Page 35, paragraph 7.15)  Staff should have clear guidance about how to respond to each child’s individual behaviour to enable them to manage conflict, maintain constructive dialogues and react appropriately and consistently if challenged by a child in their care. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, Page 39, paragraph 8.14)  For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the

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Recommendations

needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. Children’s homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations (alarms, food hygiene etc.) and be maintained in a good state of repair. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, Page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care 4 Children Holdco Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1 Stuart Road, Bredbury Park Industrial Estate, Bredbury, Stockport SK6 2SR

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Stephanie Hewitt

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Inspectors

Marie Cordingley, Social Care Inspector Chris Scully, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: 1240803 9 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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