Children's Home run by Quality Protects Children Ltd in Sheffield

Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 1 SC066010 Registered provider: Quality Protects Children 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 managed by a private provider. The home is registered to provide care for up to four children who may have social, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2018.

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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 September 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on the Ofsted 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: Requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: None Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/07/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 06/02/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 29/05/2018 Full Good 19/06/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good relationships with staff. They are able to form positive attachments that help them to feel safe and secure. Children develop a sense of belonging within a homely and caring environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are cared for by staff who understand them well. Staff recognise how children’s backgrounds and experiences may influence their actions and emotions. Children said that they liked living in the home and feel comfortable in the company of staff. Consequently, children are able to speak openly and honestly with staff when they are feeling sad or upset. This helps them to learn to manage their frustrations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Living at the home means that children have positive daily experiences. This is because staff nurture children’s interests. One child has a keen interest in boxing and is now attending boxing summer camp. Another child is part of the ‘Children in Care’ council and voices the views and options of other children in the care system. These activities give children confidence and develops their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work with education specialists and children’s social workers to address the barriers to learning that the children face. Currently, children receive one-to-one tuition to help them to re-establish a structured learning routine. With the encouragement of staff, children are able to recognise the importance of education and how this supports their future aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to attend their routine health appointments and are encouraged to eat a healthy diet. Staff support the children’s emotional well-being with reflective key-work sessions around how children feel. Together, they look at alternative ways to manage these feelings. A social worker said, ‘They look at [Child’s name] feelings and emotions and they are creative with how to encourage [Child’s name] to express these.’ Children have quick access to mental health services to support their mental health needs. One child can independently access the service when they feel that they need additional support. This approach encourages the child’s independence and allows the child to be a part of the care that they receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to move towards adulthood and independence. Programmes are in place to support their transition into semi-independent living. Photographs show one child taking part in a variety of tasks, such as building flat-pack furniture, cooking, cleaning and painting fences. This prepares the child for their future and provides them with skills to help them in their adult life. Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 4

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

Children’s risk assessments are detailed and provide staff with clear actions to follow when children are at risk of harm. The registered manager reviews and updates these risk assessments following incidents. This provides staff with up-to-date information which helps them to determine the severity of the risks to children’s safety and how to manage and reduce these. Consequently, children become increasingly safe.

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

There is a multi-agency response to missing from home incidents. Staff are aware of the protocol in place and adhere to this process. After any incident of a child going missing from the home, they benefit from return home interviews with an independent person. This is further supported by key-work sessions with staff to determine any triggers to these incidents. This reinforces a safety message to the children and shows the children that the staff care about them. This forms the basis of good and trusting relationships between children and staff.

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

The use of physical restraint is rare and only used as a last resort to protect children and others from immediate harm. In these circumstances, staff ensure that documents of these incidents are detailed and include all necessary and relevant information. Children and staff take part in debrief sessions after each restraint. These provide an opportunity to discuss and reflect on the incident, and to look at any areas for learning that will help to reduce the number of incidents.

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

Children live in a well-maintained and welcoming home. All health and safety and fire safety checks are up to date, and managers oversee these through internal audits. This ensures that the children are living in a safe home.

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

Leaders and managers are trained in the safer recruitment of staff. This is a set of practices that are applied when recruiting staff. This ensures the suitability of staff to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The responsible individual does not make regular visits to the home. This does not allow the children to build relationships and does not set a good example to staff working at the home. The responsible individual cannot oversee the management of the home without making frequent visits.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is established in his role. He is enthusiastic and has high aspirations for the children. His management style is active and he leads by example. Leaders and managers in the home have positive relationships with the children and staff and this creates a stable home for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is supported by the service manager, who has helped with streamlining documents. This ensures that children’s records and case files are of good quality. The registered manager and service manager have a good grasp of the children’s needs. They work with social workers and mental health therapists to Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 5 improve positive outcomes for the children, and to ensure that the care that children receive supports their development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported in their role and benefit from regular and reflective supervision. This encourages the staff to share their practice. This promotes staff development and better care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Allegations against staff are taken seriously and investigated through consultation with the designated officer for the local authority. A recent investigation did not conclude with a formal outcome. This was because the member of staff left their employment. However, the registered manager made sure that all relevant actions were completed to help to protect children from harm now and in the future.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is aware of the home’s strengths and the areas for development. The manager will only accept new children to the home if their needs are compatible with the children already living in the home. One social worker said, ‘The home is really good at matching children together. It really takes account of all the children’s needs.’ This approach increases the likelihood of children enjoying a stable placement. Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 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

have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which the responsible individual is nominated. (Regulation 26 (7)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the responsible individual must demonstrate their management and oversight of the children’s home. 30 August 2021

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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: SC066010 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Quality Protects Children Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hill House, Archway Road, Huyton, Liverpool L36 9XB

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Inspector

Gemma McDonnell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC066010 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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