Children's home run by 5ab Care Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2597747 1 Registered provider: 5ab Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home, which is run by a private company, provides care for up to three children with a range of autism spectrum disorders and learning disabilities. The home registered with Ofsted in October 2020 and has not previously been inspected.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2020.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 2597747 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This is the first full inspection since the home registered in October 2020. The first child moved to the home in March 2021. Since then, three children have lived at the home. One child has moved back to his family and currently there are two children living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are happy at the home. One child described the home as ‘nice and beautiful’. The children have developed a sense of belonging and strong relationships with the staff. The staff show understanding, kindness and patience when supporting the children. This helps the children to feel valued and respected. Children have fun, play and laugh, and engage in a range of fun activities with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a range of beneficial activities. One child attends a football club and a tennis club. Being part of a community group increases the child’s self-esteem and encourages social interactions outside the home. Staff offer a variety of activities which encourage the children to develop new interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been significant delays to one child’s education placement. This delay has been beyond the manager’s control. The manager has placed a strong emphasis on this shortfall when raising it with the child’s placing authority. The staff supported the child to engage in his education virtually. However, the child has missed the daily routine of attending school. This has caused the child frustration about his situation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well met. Staff provide children with a variety of home- cooked, healthy meals that have improved the children’s diet and weight. The children attend their health appointments. Their self-care skills and sleep routines have improved with guidance and support from the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress in their independence and life skills, from their unique starting points. Children develop skills such as cooking and general independence in tasks around the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff seek the children’s views. For children who are non-verbal, staff use each child’s individual communication methods. Staff are attuned to understanding the children’s wishes and individual style of communicating.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a spacious, modern and clean home. Their bedrooms are decorated to their liking. However, communal areas and the garden lack a homely and inviting feel for the children.

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

Children are safe at the home. The manager has ensured that staff have appropriate training and understand the safeguarding procedures. Staff confidently raise Inspection report children's home: 2597747 3 safeguarding concerns and are well equipped to manage safeguarding incidents. This helps to keep the children safe.

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

Staff use good relationships as a basis for managing behaviours and reducing risk. They rarely use sanctions but when they do, these are meaningful, natural and link well to the incident. There have been no physical interventions.

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

The recruitment processes for new staff are good. The manager gains the children’s views and observes potential staff interactions with children to inform the selection of new staff. This full involvement of children shows that staff value and respect the children’s views.

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

Staff support the children when they are anxious or frustrated. Individual behaviour support plans inform the staff of effective strategies to implement. The children generally respond well to staff prompts and suggestions. However, there is a lack of clinical support for staff to discuss the impact of incidents with the children. This means that staff may find it difficult to manage their own feelings following incidents.

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good

The manager registered when the home opened and is working towards a level 5 qualification in health and social care. The manager provides a positive role model for the staff and adopts a child-centred approach. This enables children to have positive experiences.

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good

Internal monitoring requires some improvement. The manager’s monitoring fails to identify that some records have not been updated. These records include behaviour support plans and the children’s risk assessments. The manager has not provided the staff with clear expectations of children’s daily routines. Therefore, the children are not provided with clear expectations from the staff.

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good

The manager’s review of the safety of the home’s location has failed to include information that has become known since the home opened. This includes a very busy road at certain times of the day. However, there is minimal risk to the children due to the high staff supervision levels. Despite several shortfalls, these do not negatively affect the care for children.

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good

The staff speak highly of the manager and the organisation. Staff are well supported by the manager. The staff are flexible, willing and enthusiastic. There are sufficient staff for the children, and extra cover is provided when needed. This ensures that children are provided with consistent care from a stable staff team.

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good

Staff receive training that enables them to care for children in line with the home’s statement of purpose. In-depth induction for new staff enables them to understand the systems and policies that underpin the care that they provide. Inspection report children's home: 2597747 4 Staff team meetings and supervisions are regular and effective. These meetings encourage staff to reflect on their practice. Supervision provides a range of learning goals and this supports the staff’s professional development and progress.

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good

The children’s records provide children and their professionals with the information that they need. Staff keep memorabilia for the children from the point of their move to the home. The children take these with them when they leave, providing them with thoughtful memories of their home. Inspection report children's home: 2597747 5

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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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children; and

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Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(ix)(x)) 30 October 2021

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; 30 October 2021 Inspection report children's home: 2597747 6 understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff understand each child’s daily routine;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff update children’s risk assessments and behaviour support plans following incidents;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff implement the children’s plans and risk assessments;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that monitoring systems identify trends and patterns.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all areas of the home, internally and externally, are homely and welcoming. (‘Guide to children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that the home’s location risk assessment includes all identified risks and is regularly updated. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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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: 2597747 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 71 Knowl Piece, Wilbury Way, Hitchin, Hertfordshire SG4 0TY

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Inspector

Natalie Burton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2597747 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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