Children's Home run by Crystal Care Solutions Limited in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 1 Registered provider: Crystal Care Solutions Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children who may have emotional and/or social difficulties. Two children were being cared for at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in April 2021.

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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 15 and 16 September 2020, to carry out an assurance 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

Date of last inspection: 11 December 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/12/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The two children currently living at the home receive individualised care and support from a small, dedicated staff team. The children are beginning to build trusting relationships with staff and gain some stability in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who have left the home in an unplanned way have been supported to leave in a positive way by the staff team. Two children have moved to other homes within the organisation, supported by staff they know from this home. This has provided them with some continuity at a time of change.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children with a history of poor engagement with education are now engaging in formal learning. They are making significant progress in terms of attendance and achievement. They are eager to learn. This places children in a better position to plan for their future education, training and employment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have worked creatively to support children and stabilise their placements at points of crisis. One child, who has had a very high number of previous placement breakdowns, spent some planned time with staff at the organisation’s holiday home. This intensive support helped the child to build relationships with staff. This experience reinforced the commitment of the staff team to making the child’s time at the home successful. The child’s social worker said, ‘Staff have gone the extra mile to make sure [the child] has a positive experience and meets the goals we have set.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A child who has previously refused to take prescribed medication is now working with staff to address his health needs. Medication is now being taken by the child. This progress is underpinned by the child feeling that the staff are investing in him, and have his best interests at heart.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

As COVID-19 restrictions ease, the children are beginning to engage with a wider range of social activities. For example, the children have been fishing locally and have been trampolining. This provides them with constructive activities which support their links with the local community.

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

Children’s welfare is promoted by the strong safeguarding culture in the home. Complaints about the conduct of staff are addressed quickly, and there is good information-sharing with all relevant people. This helps children to understand that they are listened to and their views are considered in decision-making.

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

The risks that children may face are well understood by staff, and are recorded clearly in written assessments which are regularly reviewed. Children’s case records are comprehensive, and information is recorded in a timely manner. Some Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 4 information, for example strategies for managing children’s behaviours when they are distressed, is written in language which is at times jargonistic. As a result, children are not being supported to read and understand their records, and contribute effectively to their individual plans.

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

Recently, the use of physical intervention in the home has reduced. Physical restraint is rarely used. Recording of these incidents shows that the use of restraint is proportionate and appropriate. Intervention has taken place mainly to guide children away from situations, rather than to significantly restrict their movement. There have been a small number of incidents where the police have been called to manage the children’s behaviour. These appear to be isolated incidents rather than indicative of a wider culture in the home. As a result, children have a positive experience of care, which helps them to flourish.

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

Children’s rooms are sometimes searched by staff. These searches are appropriately assessed and recorded. When children’s property is removed, there is a clear rationale behind this and a plan is put in place for their property to be returned, if appropriate. However, there is a lack of consistency in the recording of children’s consent to room searches and children’s presence during searches. This means that staff are not always accountable and children are not always supported to have a clear understanding of the staff’s actions.

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

The environment of the home is good and provides children with a welcoming home. Damage to the home is quickly addressed. As a result, children are supported to feel valued. They develop an understanding of the positive effect of living in a homely and well-furnished home.

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

At the time of the inspection, the kitchen was being locked each night in response to an incident involving the children. Progress has not been made in addressing these behaviours in a timely manner in order to reduce risks. This practice is not supporting children to have a normal home life, and their liberty is being restricted.

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

Children do not currently have any lockable storage for their personal items or information. There is a risk that these personal items could be mislaid or damaged, and important personal memories which contribute to the child’s life story could be lost.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate about her role and committed to providing high-quality care for the children, which is driving improvement in the practice at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is currently caring for two children, rather than the four it is registered to care for, so there is a smaller staff team in place. Since the assurance visit, there has been a significant turnover of staff, including the registered manager. This has provided the organisation with the opportunity to rebuild the staff team and learn from previous experience in terms of staffing and the matching and admissions of Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 5 children to the home. This puts the staff team in a stronger position to develop further. The registered manager and deputy manager have been actively involved in the recruitment of staff. This ensures that those joining the team have the necessary skills and experience to make a positive contribution.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision, which is recorded to a high standard. Staff are supported to reflect on their role and how they are contributing to the progress of children. Staff are also challenged to improve practice where this is required. The quality of management oversight and the high aspirations the registered manager has for children and staff place the home in a strong position to continue to develop and improve.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose has not yet been updated to reflect the registration status of the manager, or the members of the current staff team. This also needs to be shared with Ofsted and other key stakeholders.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager, supported by senior leaders in the organisation, has made the decision to restrict the number of children living at the home. This has meant that children already living at the home have the best possible opportunity to establish themselves and build positive relationships with staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has built excellent relationships with nearby placing authorities, and has established good links with the local authority in which the home is situated. As a result, professionals who are external to the home have had positive experiences of working with the registered manager and staff team. Good- quality, regular information-sharing has contributed to the improvement of care planning for children. Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 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, The 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 registered person must 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. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 31 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child; and enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the kitchen is not locked at night. In addition, if any areas of the home are locked, this must be for a specific, time-limited period which is risk assessed and kept under review. 30 June 2021

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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, objective and clear recording. Information about the child must always be recorded in a Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 7 way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that usual practice is that rooms are only searched if the child has been informed or asked for permission, unless there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is a risk to the child’s or another person’s safety or well-being. Specifically, ensure that records show if the child has given consent and was present when the room was searched. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure that children are provided with appropriate

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Recommendations

furniture, such as a lockable cabinet or drawers, to securely store personal items, including any personal information. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.19)

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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: 2509670 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Crystal Care Solutions Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bank House, Market Square, Congleton, Cheshire CW12 1ET

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Inspector

Dawn Parton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2509670 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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