Children's home run by Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 1 SC357468 Registered provider: Timeout Children’s Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is one of several children’s homes operated by a private company. The home is registered to provide care for one child who may have emotional and/or social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

If required, children and young people can access the organisation’s school and therapy department.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since July 2019.

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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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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/05/2019 Full Outstanding 12/06/2018 Full Good 11/09/2017 Full Good 31/01/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 3

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outstanding

Staff have worked determinedly to ensure that children can build secure relationships with the adults working with them. This has been achieved through a holistic focus on the complex needs of children. The children have had very traumatic experiences and are supported by therapeutic carers and in-house therapists who use a range of strategies to help them. There is very effective planning and innovative key working based on the therapeutic model. The model is well embedded in practice and has been extremely successful, ensuring a very consistent approach to supporting children. As a result, children have made exceptional progress and have memorable experiences in all aspects of their life.

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outstanding

Staff have worked exceptionally well with the school to ensure that children settle well and maintain full attendance despite some challenging behaviours. This includes working with children in the home environment to promote learning and ensuring a multi-agency approach. Effective communication has been key to the achievements sustained in school. Children have made friends at school and are now able to work in a classroom environment developing their literacy skills. This has been a significant achievement for children. One education professional commented, ‘[Name of child] is constantly beaming now. Worlds apart from the start…much healthier, settled and happier.’

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outstanding

Robust, strong partnerships with health providers ensure that the health needs of children, both emotionally and physically, are being well met. Staff have provided particularly good support to children for recent dental surgery and have worked with multi-agency partners to significantly reduce incidences of enuresis. Close working with the in-house therapists has helped children to sustain their greatly improved and positive health outcomes. A therapist acknowledged the unprecedented complexity of children at the home and the commitment of staff, commenting, ‘I couldn’t think of a better team for her to be with.’

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outstanding

The range of opportunities within the school, in house and in the wider community have resulted in children beginning to enjoy, achieve and progress. Children have learned how to play. Children have experienced going on holiday for the first time in their lives and have been encouraged to go swimming, to do gymnastics and to take up horse riding. Importantly, children have been able to make friends. To ensure that children have a good understanding of their ‘story’ and progress, staff have created some fabulous memory books. These child-focused records reflect and highlight all positive aspects of children’s lives and their activities. Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 4

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outstanding

Staff have a very comprehensive understanding of safeguarding issues and respond exceptionally well to identify and reduce risks. This means that children are kept safe. Key-working sessions with children include personal safety and this has been very effective, with a reduction in inappropriate behaviour and children’s better understanding of safety.

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outstanding

Safeguarding concerns are responded to and resolved very quickly with appropriate referrals and involvement of safeguarding professionals. When allegations are unfounded, the manager has skillfully identified learning points to further improve practice and better safeguard children.

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outstanding

The therapeutic model of practice ensures a consistent approach to behaviour management, which is focused on the understanding of past traumatic experiences of children. Crisis management risk assessment is detailed and strategies updated regularly. This ensures consistency of practice among the staff team to help children feel safe. Physical interventions and incidents involving children have reduced over the past year as staff work collaboratively and with great sensitivity. Comments from children through professionals include, ‘Since being at [name of home] it has been unbelievable.’ One child also said, ‘This is the place where you keep me safe.’

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outstanding

Contact for children with their families is arranged sensitively, balancing the needs of children and families. When necessary, contact is arranged in accordance with court direction. Where face-to-face contact has not been possible, especially during periods of lockdown due to COVID-19, staff have ensured that families receive information and photographs to keep them up to date.

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outstanding

Responses and planning for managing concerns related to COVID-19 have been very comprehensive. Government guidance has been followed and staff have been supported well in their roles. Importantly, staff recognised the effect the pandemic has had on children’s emotional and physical health, well-being and progress. They ensured that in-house activities and activities in the community were maintained to significantly limit the effect of lockdown on children’s progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is highly motivated and inspirational in her approach. She is committed to ensuring that the culture in the home is very child focused and that children, regardless of their starting points, make exceptional progress and have extremely positive experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is remarkably good at motivating staff in their professional development and confidence. She mentors staff to chair team meetings and to present development workshops to the rest of the team and across the wider organisation. There is an embedded culture of continuing development through training, to ensure that staff have the skills to support children to progress and Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 5 flourish. Training and development needs are a strong focus of supervision and in the twice-yearly carer performance reviews. Learning from research is strongly promoted and evidence was seen of staff implementing research successfully, for the benefit of children, during key-working sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A key strength of the home is the promotion, by the manager, of highly effective multi-agency working, which has resulted in children progressing and developing extremely well from their baselines. The work undertaken is reported by professionals as being ‘fantastic’. Some of the comments received from professionals during the inspection were:

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

‘Since being at [name of home] it has been unbelievable.’ ‘The progress has been amazing at [name of home.’ ‘[Name of staff] has been really good. She has ‘superpowers’, but all staff are amazing.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Supervision and team meetings are used very effectively and are tremendously supportive of the staff. Records evidence highly reflective practice. Supervision and effective communication through team meetings have been indispensable to the care of children at the home. As a result, staff have been able to ensure consistency of practice to the children, who at times present with very challenging behaviour because of their past traumas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has a deep understanding of the service and has highly effective processes for monitoring the standard of care and identifying areas for development. Feedback from professionals and staff is routinely collated to inform quality assurance. Reports demonstrate reflective analysis and evaluation of practice. Quality assurance reports are comprehensive, and the use of graphs clearly illustrates the positive outcomes and exceptional progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Case recording is excellent and is extremely child centered. Recording is key to good communication in ensuring consistency in the therapeutic approach to the care of children at the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 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: SC357468 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Timeout Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 2, Mill Fold, Ripponden, Sowerby Bridge HX6 4DH

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Dominic Macauley

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Inspector

Fiona Millns, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC357468 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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