Children's Home run by Aspire Child Care Ltd in Rochdale

Inspection report children's home: SC413779 1 SC413779 Registered provider: Aspire Child Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This is a privately operated children’s home. The provider states in their statement of purpose that they provide care for two children with social and emotional difficulties. The manager has been registered since 2010.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, Ofsted suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 24 February 2020

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/02/2020 Full Outstanding 11/09/2018 Full Good 08/08/2017 Full Good 08/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good relationships with staff, friends and family. The children have lived in the home for several years and have developed a real sense of permanence and belonging. One child said, ‘Staff are really nice, they've really helped me and supported me. I feel that they really care.’

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have supported one parent to build a relationship with his son. As a result, the child is going to live with his parent soon. Staff recognise that the child is both excited and anxious about this. A clear transition plan and planned celebrations mean that he feels more supported.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is central to the culture in the home. The managers requested additional tutoring to enable children to catch up after the COVID-19 restrictions. As a result, both children have made huge progress with their educational achievements. One child has recently completed his GCSEs along with several vocational courses. This opens opportunities for the children’s futures.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health. Staff support them to attend health appointments. When appointments have been cancelled due to COVID-19, staff have re-booked them. Staff have made referrals for additional health services when needed, including sexual health and substance reduction services.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise that it is important to prepare children for their future. Children are supported to develop their independence through encouragement and rewards. As a result, children can travel independently, save regularly and complete housework.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is clean and tidy. Children enjoy spending time in their bedroom, which they have personalised. However, locks on internal doors make the environment feel less homely and prevent children from having free access to all areas of their home.

p.3

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

Children are safe and they feel safe. Both children feel listened to and have trusted adults they can speak to. Children are supported if they raise concerns. Staff are fully aware of the events in the children’s lives. Safeguarding concerns are reported and managers work with families and other professionals to minimise risk.

p.3

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

Children are invested in their plans and have been very settled. Although staff are trained, no physical intervention has been used or needed. Children in the home get on well and there have not been any incidents of violence or aggression. One child said, ‘I think of [name of other child in the home] more like a brother.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 4 Children have friends in the community who they spend time with. On the rare occasion when one child returned later than planned, staff reported him as missing to the police. A return-to-home interview was not completed to seek his views and the manager did not evaluate the records. This was a missed opportunity to reflect on staff practice and recording.

p.3

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

Risk management plans are updated regularly, but they do not provide clear strategies for staff to follow. This has not had a direct impact on the children as the staff team is small and consistent. However, unclear plans have the potential to mislead newly recruited staff.

p.4

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

The staff team is experienced and has worked with the children since they moved in. Although staff have received some training recently, they do not have all the research-informed training required to meet the needs of the children. This reduces their ability to see and interrupt potential risk.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably qualified and experienced. She is dual-registered and works closely with the deputy manager to run two children’s homes in the area. Children, professionals and families speak highly about the care provided. One social worker said, ‘It has been a really positive three years and transition for [name of child]. There has been consistent care the whole time.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff team are passionate about encouraging each child to progress. As children are very settled in their home and risks are low, only one staff member works in the home each day. This has been agreed by the placing authorities, but a risk assessment has not been completed to formally assess the impact on the children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have remained consistent throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Recruitment of more staff and a new responsible individual is ongoing. Managers have worked closely together to make sure that the children are not affected by this. Children commented that they like having the same people around every day.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Communication with families and professionals is good. One parent was supported to attend their child’s meetings virtually to ensure that she did not miss them due to local restrictions. One parent said, ‘I think they are doing a smashing job and the welfare of my child is very important. I think they are brill.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has completed a review of the quality of care provided. However, she has not requested feedback from children, families and professionals to inform her review. Clear action plans have not been made to further develop the service. This means that the service’s progress has become stagnant. Although the manager has updated the statement of purpose for the home, she has not sent it to Ofsted. This reduces the regulator’s oversight of the home and was a previous requirement. However, this does not have any impact on the children. Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 5

p.4

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.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

p.5

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))

p.5

Requirement Due date

This is a repeat requirement. 30 September 2021

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every six months.

p.5

Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

p.5

Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

p.5

Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(c))

p.5

Requirement Due date

This is a repeat requirement. 30 September 2021

p.5

Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

p.5

Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

p.5

Requirement Due date

is necessary and proportionate; 30 September 2021 Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 6 is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

p.6

Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to removing internal locks on the doors of communal areas.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

p.6

Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii))

p.6

Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to managers ensuring that risk management plans provide clear direction on the steps staff are to take to keep children safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

This also relates to staff receiving training required to meet the needs of the children currently living in the home. 30 September 2021

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority provides an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview.(‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)  The registered person should ensure that evaluation of missing incidents is undertaken to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.31) Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 7  The registered person should formally assess the impact to children and potential risk if it is likely that there might only be one member of staff on duty at any time. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page

p.6

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: SC413779 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aspire Child Care Limited

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 15 Jutland Avenue, Rochdale, Lancashire OL11 5DP

p.8

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christine MacKay

p.8

Inspectors

Sylvia Eboigbe, Social Care Inspector Judith Birchall, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC413779 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.

p.8

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9