Children's Home run by Esland North Limited in Nottinghamshire

Inspection report children's home: 1229229 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

The home provides care for up to two children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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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 17 November 2020 to carry out a monitoring 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

Date of last inspection: 10 September 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 1229229 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/09/2019 Full Good 16/10/2018 Full Outstanding 11/10/2016 Full Outstanding Inspection report children's home: 1229229 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good care and support from a committed staff team. There is a real sense of emotional warmth and understanding shown to the children by the staff. This enables them to build trusting relationships with staff. Children make good and consistent progress because of the therapeutically informed approaches to their care. As a result, they are happy and settled.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living at this home. They have fun with the staff and can also talk to them about their worries. A particular strength is helping children to understand issues of gender and sexuality. Children are treated with dignity and respect in terms of their unique experiences and identities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to express themselves and explore their interests. This enables them to have new experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are good arrangements in place for children to spend time with their families, who are often living some distance from the home. Maintaining family contact and links with those close to the children contributes to the stability of the children’s placements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff ensure that children attend education. The manager matches children well to suitable education providers provisions, which helps children make progress. Children have good attendance at school, and they are motivated to learn. Children’s health needs are also met well. Children are supported to attend medical appointments to maintain their physical and emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff develop carefully considered plans for children who are coming to live at the home and those who are leaving. Children are welcomed in a planned and sensitive manner. Children who leave keep in touch and receive good support with any difficulties they experience. For one child, the support offered was essential in addressing child protection concerns at her new home. The manager ensured that the concerns were escalated which resulted in the child being safeguarded effectively.

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

The manager and staff understand the risks and vulnerabilities of children well. Risk assessments are thorough and contain pertinent information which enables staff to take effective action to keep children safe. The manager understands the importance of ensuring that all assessments are reviewed regularly to maintain consistency in practice.

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

Children have trusting relationships with the manager and staff. Children know they will be listened to. Children say that the staff are ‘incredible’. For one child who is Inspection report children's home: 1229229 4 new to the home, this has been invaluable in helping her to settle. Another child said that this is the best home she has lived in and she feels safe.

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

Staff use their skills and training well to keep incidents to a minimum. The therapeutic approach to managing behaviour is effective in helping children regulate their emotions. This keeps children safe from harming themselves and others.

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

Children rarely go missing from the home. When this happens the manager and staff work effectively with the child’s family and safeguarding agencies. They work to ensure the child returns home safely. This prevents children from coming to harm through exploitation or criminal activity.

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

The manager and staff have good links with important safeguarding agencies. They regularly share information regarding incidents and safeguarding issues. Professionals have confidence in the ability of the home to keep children safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a strong leader. Her passion and drive have been instrumental in making improvements following the last inspection. This has raised the standard of care children receive, particularly in relation to safeguarding.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has recruited a diverse staff team, which enriches the quality of care. Some of the staff are new. Consequently, the manager is working to further embed the ethos of the home with these staff, to ensure the consistency of care continues.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff enjoy their work. They see themselves as a ‘work family’. The staff have confidence in the manager and recognise how the home has improved under her leadership. The staff benefit from regular supervision and training. This helps them to remain focused on the children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers understand the importance of providing the team with the skills and knowledge they need to provide consistency of care to children. However, the staff team are yet to achieve the required qualification, the Level 3 Diploma. This is due to a combination of organisational changes and the employment of new staff. There is a plan to rectify this shortfall.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager takes pride in how they, as a team, involve children in their care planning. They regularly consult with children, where they can, and act on what children say. Children’s lives have improved because of the care they receive, and they have considerable trust in the manager and staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has invested significant time and energy into the home. She shows exceptional commitment. As a result, the home has become more stable. Leaders have identified that the manager’s focus can now be channelled into developing the team. This will enable the manager to focus on the wider aspects of the managerial role which also need her attention. Inspection report children's home: 1229229 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 registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Reg 32 (1)(2)(a)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to managers taking necessary action to ensure that staff who are out of timescales with the Level 1/10/2022 Inspection report children's home: 1229229 6 3 Diploma qualification complete this as soon as possible. Managers need to ensure that new staff complete their Level 3 qualification within timescales.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children are consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 22, paragraph 4.11)  The registered person should ensure that children are encouraged by staff to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’ supporting them to view and contribute to the record in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. (Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards, page 58 paragraph 11.19)

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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: 1229229 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Suites 1 & 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 0RN

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Inspector

Laura Walker, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 1229229 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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