Children's home run by Oaktree Childcare Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 1 Registered provider: Oaktree Childcare Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and operated by a private provider. It provides care for up to two children who may have emotional or behavioural difficulties, or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has applied to register with Ofsted.

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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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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 22 July 2020 to carry out a monitoring visit. The report is published on our website.

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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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/07/2019 Full Outstanding 17/07/2018 Full Good 03/10/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There was one child living at the home. The child who lives in the home has developed secure and trusting relationships with staff. As a result, his emotional well-being has improved and he is making good progress. The child describes the home as the best he has lived in, and says that he feels safe and listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff have a clear understanding of children’s needs and know about the things that are important to them. Staff encourage children to express their views and ensure that their views are considered when planning their care. Collaborative working with social workers and the in-house therapist results in care plans that are supported by trauma-informed research.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager works closely with external professionals to ensure that children are enabled to maintain valued relationships. Staff regularly travel a considerable distance to help the current child to spend time with his family. A child’s family member spoke very positively about this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child who lives in the home is engaging in education and developing aspirations for the future. Staff encourage him to pursue his interests and try new experiences. He enjoys positive activities with staff daily. At the time of the inspection, he was busily preparing for the arrival of a new pet. He appeared to be enjoying this very much.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop skills for independence. Individualised plans identify strengths and needs and highlight areas where further support is required. This helps to ensure that children are well prepared for their transitions from the home.

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

Children are kept safe by staff who know them well. Staff provide children with a comfortable and safe place to live. The child said, ‘This is the only home I have felt like I don’t want to go missing from.’

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

Children rarely go missing and, if this does happen, staff are proactive in their response. They follow the child’s missing-from-care protocol and report to all the relevant agencies in a timely manner. Any child who goes missing from care receives a debrief to help them reflect on their experience.

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

Risk assessments are updated to reflect new information. Chronologies in children’s files are well written and help staff to identify patterns or themes. This helps staff to identify triggers and manage risk effectively. In a small number of examples, information was not always clear. Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 4 Direct work sessions with children are meaningful to help them learn from their experiences. The staff’s therapeutic approach supports positive relationships with children. Consequences are rarely used as a response to negative behaviours, but when they are, they are proportionate. Furthermore, physical intervention has not taken place at this home, which demonstrates that staff are able to manage children’s behaviours effectively.

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

Structured and personalised responses mean that behaviours that are hard to manage have reduced to a minimum for one child. This child is progressively learning how to manage his anxieties and worries.

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

All staff are safely recruited, which reduces the risk of children coming into contact with unsafe adults. Staff are trained in safeguarding, which helps to ensure that they can identify and respond to concerns effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is new to his role and has recently applied to register with Ofsted. He advocates well for children and his passion for improving children’s outcomes is sincere. The manager has challenged external professionals effectively to ensure that children’s voices are heard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works well with other professionals and family members. A family member spoke highly of the manager’s communication and approach and said that they feel well informed of the child’s needs and progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they feel supported by the manager. Staff are clear on their responsibilities and all have key roles identified. Supervision takes place regularly and is reflective. For new staff coming into the home, supervision is more frequent to ensure that they feel supported as they develop in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Training is good. Team meetings take place regularly and are productive for staff. The manager used a team meeting to deliver in-house training for staff, which was relevant to a child moving into the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Effective systems are in place to monitor standards of quality and safety. This allows the manager to identify areas for development swiftly and respond accordingly. Some minor recording shortfalls were identified during the inspection, which the manager promptly addressed. Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful and clear recording. Information about the child should always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that information is clear to enable staff to continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: 1253975 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Oaktree Childcare Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ground Floor, Seneca House, Links Point, Amy Johnson Way, Blackpool FY4 2FF

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Inspectors

Marie Cordingley, Social Care Inspector Rachel Springford, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1253975 7 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

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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