Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report children's home: 2624054 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to three children with emotional and behavioural difficulties and associated complex needs. It is part of a larger organisation and one of several homes in the group.

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Information about this children's home

The home registered with Ofsted in March 2021. One child currently lives at the home.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has recently applied to register with Ofsted.

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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: none Inspection report children's home: 2624054 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have been effective in helping the child to make progress in many areas of her life. Care is specific to her and staff understand her needs. She said that they know her well and that she feels well cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the importance of education. They supported the child to sit exams that she would not have otherwise taken. They have encouraged her continuing education with support in applying for college courses and apprenticeships. The child said that she is proud of herself.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child benefits from staff who are committed to ensuring that her day-to-day needs are met. Staff recognise the value of a change of environment, such as going for a drive. They promote a range of activities to ensure that the child is engaged, making progress and having fun.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have good relationships with a range of people, which in turn benefits the child. Professionals are complimentary of the staff and express confidence in the care that is provided.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise the value of continued family relationships. They have welcomed the child’s family to the home and facilitated an activity outside of the home. This emphasis on keeping family ties and good communication supports the needs of a child who lives far from her home area.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the views of the child, which are gained in several ways. Regular house meetings and extensive one-to-one sessions provide opportunities for her to give her views, make suggestions and contribute to plans for the home. The child confidently expresses her views outside of these meetings. This further demonstrates the relaxed and open culture within the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have been effective in managing the transition of the child to the home. She was welcomed and encouraged to choose items to personalise her room. Such has been the impact of this welcome, that she has said she would like this to happen for any new child.

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

Clear safeguarding procedures are in place and staff know them well. Assessment of risk is clear, and staff follow these assessments closely. Staff demonstrate good safeguarding practice, and this is at the centre of the work that they do. Managers make staff aware of assessments that have been updated, and this prepares them for working effectively with the young person. Inspection report children's home: 2624054 3 Staff have a good understanding of the child’s needs and have received training specific to these needs. This helps to ensure that the child receives the best possible care and that staff do this in a safe way.

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

A good missing from care procedure is followed when the child goes missing. When this happens, staff are persistent in ensuring her safe return and employ a range of effective strategies to safeguard the child. There is good joint working with local agencies, including the police. This means that any missing episodes are relatively short. In addition to the current procedure, an external agency has recently been commissioned to ensure that return home interviews are prompt and within timescale.

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

Staff use a variety of methods to help the child feel safe. These include consistent approaches to how staff communicate and empathise with the child. This supports good relationships within the home and ensures that the child feels safe and well cared for. Furthermore, staff ensure that clear and consistent boundaries are in place. These boundaries offer consistency to the child and these further support her to feel safe and well cared for. All of this is underpinned effectively by detailed behaviour support plans.

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

Staff know what to do when there are safeguarding concerns and how to report these. If there is a concern about a manager, they know where to take this concern. Detailed recording of incidents means that staff are aware of what has happened and how to respond. It also provides the regulator with clear information on how the incidents have been managed.

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

Good health and safety practices are in place and a strong monitoring procedure means that the child becomes increasingly safe. However, the home’s policies do not make the procedure for emergency evacuation of children clear, should this ever be needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager shows a good understanding of the needs of the child. She has ensured that processes are in place to check the progress of the child. These range from one-to-one sessions with a key worker to consultation for monthly quality of care monitoring.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has high expectations for the child and ensures that she is supported by staff with the same expectations. The dedicated staff team is committed to supporting the child to make progress. For example, the child was encouraged to volunteer at a local animal sanctuary. This has resulted in the child feeling that she is cared for and respected.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel helped and supported with their learning and development. The manager is committed to their continued development. Consequently, they continue to nurture the skills and knowledge to provide good standards of care. A detailed Inspection report children's home: 2624054 4 induction plan is in place that includes shadowing, familiarising with policies and mandatory training.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers provide a good standard of staff supervision. Supervision is reflective and, where required, clinical supervision is also provided. Staff find supervision beneficial and say that it helps with their development. This has led to a staff group committed to continuous development that benefits themselves and consequently any child that they care for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers work to address areas of weakness through the regular team meetings that are attended by all staff. Staff are expected to contribute and, as a result, confidently make suggestions for improvement. The involvement and contributions of the staff are also a strength, and this is recognised by leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers work to ensure that information about the safety of the area is well known and shared. The local area assessment is updated as required and is shared with local partners as well as the child’s social worker. This promotes good partnership working.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff are committed to the child’s involvement in the development of the home. Her opinion is gathered in a range of ways. For example, she has submitted questions for staff interviews and has been involved in changes to the layout of the home. This allows her to be invested in the continued growth and development of her environment. Inspection report children's home: 2624054 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. This particularly relates to including in policy information on evacuation of children in the case of an emergency and ensuring children have a plan as required. ('Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards', page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: 2624054 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Inspector

Vevene Muhammad: Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2624054 7 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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