Children's home run by Reflexion Care Group Limited in Shropshire

Inspection report children's home: SC366093 1 SC366093 Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children who have experienced adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The current manager was registered with Ofsted in April 2019. The manager has a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, Ofsted 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: 24 September 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC366093 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/09/2019 Full Good 14/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/07/2018 Full Good 07/11/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children's home: SC366093 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to build a sense of belonging. Children are encouraged to personalise the home and their personal space. For example, one child’s bedroom is decorated with artwork from his favourite football team, and a framed replica shirt hangs on his wall. Pictures of children enjoying activities are transferred onto canvases and proudly displayed around the home. This allows children to take a sense of pride in their home and helps to strengthen their well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive a good level of support from a consistent and committed staff team. Children informed the inspector that they have trusted adults who they can speak to if they feel worried or upset. The inspector observed one child playing football in the garden with members of staff and the manager. He was working on improving his skills before his planned football training activity that evening. This level of encouragement and support helps children to feel confident about their relationships with staff and supports their progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are ambitious for children and support them with educational targets. Staff support children to attend school through incentive schemes. For example, one child is encouraged to receive a positive report from each lesson, to achieve additional time on his games console. Due to this, the child’s school attendance has increased to over 95% for the most recent school term.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend weekly therapy sessions to promote their well-being. The organisation’s clinical team support staff through a range of training, and regularly attending team meetings when children’s progress and health are discussed. This helps staff to provide consistent care and a nurturing environment for the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to maintain positive relationships with people who are most important to them. One social worker told the inspector, ‘Before [child] came to this home, she had several breakdowns and could not build relationships, the home helped [child] with all of this.’ One child’s family relationship progressed so well that she was able to return permanently to her family home.

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

Staff keep children safe. Children informed the inspector that they feel safe. Risk assessments are regularly reviewed and adapted to help the staff to manage and reduce risks. One social worker told the inspector, ‘They have a great understanding of [child]. They are really in tune with his different moods and emotions.’ This demonstrates that staff understand children’s needs and are clear about how to respond and protect them. Inspection report children's home: SC366093 4 Staff de-escalate incidents well which means that the need to physically intervene, to keep children and others safe, is low. The manager reviews how members of staff handle challenging incidents, to help to continually improve practice. For example, when the manager noticed a potential trigger for one child, that related to finishing times on his computer, staff were asked to bring in prompts to allow the child time to process the information.

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

Children live in a safe and well-maintained home that protects them from harm or the risk of harm. However, staff use bedroom door alarms to monitor children’s movements in the home during the night. When a member of staff was asked about how the decision was reached, regarding when they are used, they replied, ‘They are used in every home, it is company policy.’ This means that there is no assessment as to whether the use of door alarms remains proportionate and appropriate for individual children.

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

Since the last inspection, two new staff members have joined the home. Staff are appropriately vetted and assessed through safe recruitment procedures before any appointment is confirmed. These procedures make sure that children are protected by preventing unsuitable adults from working with them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably qualified and leads a consistent staff team. The manager keeps children at the heart of all that he does. The manager is ambitious for the children and this ethos is reinforced by the entire staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff enjoy working at the home and helping children to make progress and achieve the best possible outcomes. Staff and managers have a good knowledge of the children’s starting points and what they have accomplished since moving to the home. Staff understand each child’s likes and dislikes and this helps them to provide individualised care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions are regular and of good quality. The sessions help staff with their professional development and reflection on their practice. The manager uses team meetings as an additional tool to aid staff development. For example, staff are encouraged to participate in quizzes that test their knowledge of the children and their progress. This helps staff to develop their knowledge to ensure that the care children receive remains high quality.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that staff are well trained. Most of the staff hold a level 3 diploma in residential childcare. One member of staff is currently working to achieve this award and two other members of staff are due to start soon. In addition, all staff receive a wide range of training that reflects the needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Management oversight and monitoring processes are good and help to ensure that standards of care are maintained. The manager incorporates behavioural analysis reports into his auditing tool. This enables the manager to track patterns and trends and gain further insight into the strengths and areas of development for the home. Inspection report children's home: SC366093 5 However, during one incident the manager failed to notice that a child had been given a consequence that had not been recorded into the home’s recording system. This action included a room being locked and the children not being able to use the room.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff have developed positive relationships with children’s families and professionals to ensure that children’s needs are met. One social worker said, ‘The home has worked so well with the family, it may now be a possibility for [child] to move back home in the future. This is something that would never have been considered previously.’ This partnership working results in the children receiving good quality care that meets their individual needs Inspection report children's home: SC366093 6

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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 registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the use of door alarms on children’s bedrooms and children having access to all appropriate areas of the home. 23 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure; 23 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC366093 7 a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

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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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to recording consequences that have been implemented for children.

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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: SC366093 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Reflexion Care Group Ltd, Black Birches, Hadnall, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY4 3DH

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Inspector

Kev Brammer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC366093 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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