Children's home run by Care and Management Services Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2596121 1 Registered provider: Care and Management Services 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 a group of four homes run by the same organisation. The home provides care and accommodation for up to two children who exhibit complex behaviours as a result of their childhood experiences.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the first inspection of the home since it was registered in September 2020. The manager has been in post since the home opened and she is registered 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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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: Not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: Not applicable Inspection report children's home: 2596121 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report children's home: 2596121 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children at the home are making good progress. One child has 100% attendance at school and has received awards for attendance and participation in class. This is a significant improvement when compared to the education experiences the child had before moving into the home. Another child has started an education placement. While waiting for this to begin, staff were proactive in completing workbooks with the child. This demonstrates that staff have a positive attitude towards education and are committed to preparing children for school. As a result of staff’s support, children go on to achieve positive educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience warm and nurturing relationships with staff. During the inspection, the inspector observed positive interactions between staff and the children. Staff genuinely care about the children and both were relaxed in each other’s company. This has provided children with a sense of belonging and security.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers consider the individual needs of the children. One child’s first language is not English. Staff use a number of approaches to communicate with the child and support the child’s learning. For example, picture cards and an app on a mobile phone to translate words, to ensure that the child is able to express himself. As a result, the child is able to express their wishes and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers are proactive in meeting the health needs of the children. Staff support children to attend their health appointments and to follow daily routines to improve their health. Staff have supported one child to attend daily physiotherapy sessions. This has helped the child to improve their mobility. They can now engage in activities that they may not have been able to when they first came to live at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have consistent input from the therapeutic team. This enables children’s needs to be considered and planned for. This therapeutic input helps staff to use appropriate strategies to support the children. Staff undertake direct work with children that is relevant to each child’s plans. This ensures that the children’s individual needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and the registered manager understand the importance of family relationships and promote these well. Staff support children to remain in contact with key members of their family. This promotes a sense of belonging within their families and a sense of identity.

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

Managers and staff have a clear understanding of the needs of the children and their risks. Risk assessments are detailed and are regularly reviewed and updated. Managers and staff regularly discuss children’s current risks and review their Inspection report children's home: 2596121 4 approaches to safeguarding children. This ensures that staff have a good understanding of the children’s needs and the strategies to use to keep children safe.

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

Staff are successful in supporting children to express their feelings and emotions in a positive way. Staff are clear on the steps to take that are most effective in supporting each child to calm when they are in a distressed state. After incidents, staff work directly with the children, to help them to reflect on their behaviors so that they learn to respond in a more positive way. As a result, incidents have decreased, and the children are more able to regulate their emotions.

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

Staff use physical restraint as a last resort. Debriefs are provided to staff and children, following incidents of restraint, and these are overseen by the manager. Records of these debriefs could be clearer. For example, in one record, the time of the debrief is not recorded and the language used does not provide a clear picture of the event.

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

Staff and managers involve the children in monthly fire drills. These drills involve different scenarios to ensure that children and staff are clear about how to respond in the event of a fire. Although staff are clear on how to evacuate in the event of a fire, the evacuation plan does not include all the information in the fire risk assessment.

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

Managers ensure that staff are recruited safely. However, managers need to ensure that they are able to view full security checks for all staff members, to satisfy themselves that there are no concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is passionate and enthusiastic about providing good quality care to the children. The registered manager is child-centred and is a positive role model to the staff team. As a result, children are cared for well and supported to achieve positive outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers communicate well with professionals. Manager’s share information and advocate for children so that appropriate decisions are made. This practice ensures that care provided to the children is in their best interests.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive training that is relevant to the needs of the children, including training opportunities in addition to the mandatory training. This training provides staff with the skills and knowledge to care for the children. This means that children receive safe and competent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers monitor the progress of children. As a result, managers are able to demonstrate the positive progress made by children or identify any gaps. This helps to ensure that support is put in place to help children progress. As a result, children are making progress in all aspects of their lives. Inspection report children's home: 2596121 5 Managers monitor the effectiveness of the service. Monitoring procedures are in place to consider the needs of the children and the home. However, the quality of care report does not provide feedback from children or external stakeholders, and the action plan is not clear. This could prevent the manager from making developments within the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers advocate well on behalf of the children, and children have an understanding of their current and future plans. However, the circumstances for one child have recently changed. Despite managers raising concerns that there is no longer a clear plan for the child’s future, the plan for the child remains unknown. This may cause the child to feel anxious about their future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that staff receive supervision sessions. These provide staff with the opportunity to review and reflect on their practice and children’s progress.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records of restraint are kept and should enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the Children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)  The registered person should ensure that recruitment practice adheres to regulations 31-33. In particular, managers need to ensure that they are able to view full security checks for all staff members, to satisfy themselves that there are no concerns. (‘Guide to the Children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should ensure that that they have a system in place which

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Recommendations

allows them to monitor the matters set out in the regulation at least once every six months. The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. (‘Guide to the Children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2)  The registered person should ensure that the review enables them to identify areas of strength and possible weakness in the home’s care, which will be captured in the written report. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next 6 months of delivery within the home and how those actions will be addressed. The whole review process and the resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.4)

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Recommendations

Inspection report children's home: 2596121 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: 2596121 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care and Management Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Park Business Centre, Hastingwood Industrial Park, Wood Lane, Birmingham, Warwickshire B24 9QR

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Inspectors

Melanie Griffin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2596121 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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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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