Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Wolverhampton

Inspection report children's home: SC390576 1 SC390576 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A large provider of children’s services operates this home. The home provides care for up to four children who have experienced childhood instability, resulting in trauma and associated complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in July 2020 and holds a level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare.

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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 December 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: SC390576 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/12/2019 Full Good 10/04/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness 12/07/2018 Full Outstanding 12/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC390576 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from good quality care from enthusiastic and caring adults. Honest and nurturing relationships with staff help children to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Teachers are overwhelmingly positive about the support given to children to attend school and achieve. Strong advocacy by staff and good communication with teachers support children to receive the educational support that they need. One child is being supported by staff and teachers to move schools so that his individual leaning needs can be best met. For another child, child-focused and responsive partnership working between teachers and staff has helped him to maintain his school place, despite some very challenging circumstances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are aware of children’s health needs and, with the encouragement of staff, children attend routine health appointments. This helps children to maintain good health. Direct work with children about health and personal hygiene supports children to lead healthier lifestyles. For example, the stability of daily routines combined with a natural and reassuring approach by staff has helped one child to lose a significant amount of weight.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

During national restrictions on social contact, staff creativity helped children keep in touch with people who are important to them. For example, one child enjoyed a picnic in the garden with family members. Staff attentiveness to prioritising children’s relationships with others supports children’s good emotional health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to continue with existing hobbies and to try new pursuits. Staff notice children’s interests. As a result, one child is growing tomatoes and there are plans in place for another child to join the Fire Cadets. Another child has a talent for art and is designing a poster for the organisation. Children have enjoyed riding new bikes as well as playing board games and taking walks with staff when community activities have been closed during the pandemic. Staff took the opportunity to take children to a theme park and the fair when restrictions were eased.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has recently been redecorated and has a relaxed and airy atmosphere. Children’s pictures on display give the house a homely feel and make it an inviting place for children to live.

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

Children say they feel safe living at the home and that they have been helped by staff to understand how to keep themselves and others safe and well during the pandemic.

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

Good relationships with staff, incentives that encourage positive behaviour and clear expectations about behaviour mean that challenging situations are infrequent. Inspection report children's home: SC390576 4 There is rarely a need for staff to restrain a child to keep the child and others safe from harm.

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

Children have individualised plans that give staff guidance on how to reduce risks posed to or by a child. Staff are alert to the signs that children may be subject to sexual or criminal exploitation. For one child who was at risk of exploitation, the diligence of and understanding by staff helped to identify potential risks. Effective communication with the child’s social worker and the police supported a review of the care planning arrangements to promote the child’s safety.

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

Direct work with one child has raised his awareness of the dangers of being in gangs. When children have expressed discriminatory attitudes, staff act quickly to enhance children’s understanding of equality and diversity through discussion and supporting them with online learning. This increases children’s understanding and appreciation of difference.

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

The home is well maintained, with new carpets having recently been fitted throughout the house. However, the increased thickness of the carpet means that doors to the lounge and chill out rooms remain ajar when opened and do not self- close into the door frame. The door to the kitchen has no self-closing mechanism in place. This could pose a safety risk in the event of a fire. A referral was made to the fire authority during the inspection. A fire officer gave the registered manager advice on risk reduction measures while adjustments are made to the doors.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite some staff changes, children have benefited from thoughtful care from a core group of consistent staff who know the children and their needs well. A member of staff told the inspector that ‘the home is a happy environment.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak highly of the manager and describe a positive culture within the team. Staff that are new to the home have an induction which allows them some time to get to know the children and the routines of the home. Staff are well supported and have regular opportunities, through supervision and team meetings, to reflect on their practice and professional development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Relationships with social workers and teachers are strong and allow for professional exchange and challenge. Communication is timely and staff work well with key agencies to support children’s safety and welfare. For example, a teacher described how staff had helped the school to make a referral to the youth offending team to avoid a child being unnecessarily criminalised.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager routinely monitors the quality of care, and this helps her to understand the home’s strengths and areas for development. The registered manager has reviewed the statement of purpose. However, some of the language used is not child focused and a lack of attention to detail means that information about the model of care is incorrect. This could be misleading to persons who need information about the home. Inspection report children's home: SC390576 5 Records are generally detailed. However, it is not always clear who has written records of physical intervention. In addition, the staff involved in the restraint do not always sign the document to confirm that it is agreed record of events. This limits the usefulness of records to the registered manager’s oversight of behaviour management practice. Inspection report children's home: SC390576 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d)) 31 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)) 28 August 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all records required by regulation are kept and that these records are up to date and signed and dated appropriately. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, p 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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: SC390576 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspector

Alison Cooper, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC390576 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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