Children's Home run by Sunflower Children Care Services in Leicestershire

Inspection report children's home: SC449099 1 SC449099 Registered provider: Quantum Care UK Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home is owned and run by a private provider. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children with social, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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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: 12 February 2020

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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: SC449099 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/02/2020 Interim Improved effectiveness 04/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 31/07/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/09/2017 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC449099 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children develop and progress in this home. This is because the management team and the staff team have a shared goal. They want to enable all children to reach their individual potential.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff team provides structure, routine and consistent boundaries. This provides the basis for children being able to thrive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education placements meet the learning needs of children. A headteacher said: ‘This home provides excellent support to children.’ The home enables children to succeed. For example, one child has made remarkable progress towards her GCSE examinations and has excellent predicted grades.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s emotional well-being is a priority. A therapist provides advice to staff. This enables staff to understand the underlying causes of children’s complex behaviours. Direct work with children supports them to understand their emotions and manage behaviours.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Multi-disciplinary work ensures children have their needs assessed, monitored and reviewed. A social worker said: ‘They do not lose focus on the care planning. This supports the child’s wishes, individual progress and long-term needs.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children enjoy positive relationships with staff. One child said: ‘They are all nice and friendly. I would talk to them if I was worried.’ Another child said: ‘I would give my favourite staff 10 out of 10. I trust him and feel safe.’ This shows children feel safe and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are rewarded with high levels of praise and encouragement. Staff offer incentives which enable children to be rewarded with gifts of their choice. This shapes positive behaviour and supports improved self-esteem.

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

Children state that they feel safe at the home and feel that they can connect with a trusted adult.

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

Children become increasingly safe because of the support they receive. For example, one child’s risk of going missing has reduced from high to low. Staff teach children how to keep themselves safe. This means children can take safe, managed risks. This leads to increased independence.

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

The managers and the staff team have demonstrated resilience throughout a challenging time. For a short time, the dynamics between children led to disruption in the home. The staff remained child centred in their approach. Close partnership Inspection report children's home: SC449099 4 work with social workers led to prompt action to settle the situation. Children confirm they are happy and settled.

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

Physical intervention is rarely used. Recent incidents required the use of physical intervention. Some new staff involved in these incidents had not had restraint training. The manager took prompt action to provide a refresher course in restraint training.

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

Records of physical interventions are not always clear. The multi-purpose incident form has not been used effectively to record restraints. The forms do not include the manager’s review of the effectiveness of physical intervention. This means it is not clear if the manager has identified and challenged any inappropriate practice.

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

Safeguarding protocols and procedures, including whistle-blowing, are well understood and implemented by staff and managers. This keeps children safe.

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

Clear records show that any safeguarding concerns are referred to the appropriate agencies, including the designated officer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, there have been changes in the leadership, management and staffing. Management arrangements are strong and have secured improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is very experienced. She is completing the mandatory management qualification. A deputy manager provides management support. They are an effective team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is child focused and passionate about her role. She leads by example. Staff respect her and they confirm they feel well supported.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is enthusiastic and cohesive. The manager has a focus on supporting staff in their professional development. This enables them to develop the skills and knowledge to provide effective, high-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Partnership work is very strong. Professionals are unanimous in their praise for this home. They confirm there is strong communication and collaborative work and state that children develop and progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Case records are very good. Regular management review ensures that standards of recording remain high. Quality assurance systems are highly effective and enable children’s progress to be tracked. But children do not routinely read or contribute to their case records. This limits their ability to understand and contribute to their care. Inspection report children's home: SC449099 5 Internal and external quality assurance provide detailed analysis of care provision, giving a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. Robust plans are in place to drive continual improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has improved the interior of the home. It is comfortable, vibrant and homely. The building does, however, need further improvement. The provider has approved a programme of refurbishment for the home. The work is due to be completed in the summer of 2021. This means that children will benefit from an improvement in the quality of the home environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There were two requirements made at the last inspection. These have been met. Inspection report children's home: SC449099 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all their staff have been adequately trained in the principles of restraint and any restraint techniques appropriate to the needs of the children the home is set up to care, for as defined in the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)  The registered person should ensure that records of restraint enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)  The registered person should ensure children are actively encouraged to read

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Recommendations

their records and to add further information to them. They should be regularly reminded of their rights to see information kept about them and be given information about how they might be supported to access their records in later life. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.6)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, 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: SC449099 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Quantum Care UK Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fifth Floor, 80 Hammersmith Road, London W14 8UD

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Inspector

Amanda Ellis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC449099 8 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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