Children's home run by PBS Care Homes Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 1 Registered provider: PBS Care Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to four children with emotional, social and special educational support needs, including learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting in January 2021 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 3

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Staff

Managers and staff know children very well and have positive relationships with them. Professionals and children’s relatives said that staff are advocates for the children. They said that staff make things happen for children and fight their corner. One relative described their child’s move to the home as a ‘wow moment’.

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Staff

Children lead healthy lifestyles that include exercising and a balanced diet. Staff support children to reduce their food-based anxieties. Families and professionals said that this is a particularly strong area of progress for one child. Leadership staff actively ensure that children do not miss their healthcare appointments. Staff know the children’s healthcare needs very well.

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Staff

When practical, children continue to attend their existing education provision when they move to the home. They have benefited from this consistency. For one child who recently moved to the home, the deputy manager was tenacious in helping to identify an education provision. Staff encourage, praise and celebrate children’s progress and attainment in education.

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Staff

Children learn skills during their education that promote independence and help shape their futures. The staff actively encourage children to develop these skills when they are at the home. Staff understand the importance of supporting older children to prepare for adulthood, work experience and greater independence.

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Staff

Staff ensure that children enjoy regular and varied activities. Children are regularly asked in key-work sessions and children’s meetings what they would like to do, and how they felt about previous activities. Children’s special education and sensory needs are considered when planning activities. The staff structure time with children to encourage them to think about healthy use of electronic devices.

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Staff

The home is purpose built and designed to provide multiple individual spaces for children to personalise and feel settled in. The large en suite bedrooms help children to gain independence in daily living and personal care skills, while maintaining their privacy and dignity. Children said that they value their privacy, but also enjoy the opportunity to spend time with other children and staff at mealtimes and during activities.

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

Managers and staff understand safeguarding, bullying and exploitation risks to children and how to reduce the potential impact of this. Staff understand the risks posed to children when they use the internet and electronic devices. Staff help children to stay safe through good levels of supervision and talking with them about safety in key-work sessions. Staff ensure that children understand the reasons why Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 4 staff have consistent boundaries and expectations. Staff know how to report concerns and the importance of this.

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

Risk assessments clearly identify any actions that staff need to take to help keep children safe. Learning from incidents is used to further develop care plans and is discussed with staff in meetings and supervision sessions. This has led to a reduction in incidents of self-harm and missing-from-home incidents for one child.

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

Children have developed positive and respectful relationships with each other. Staff are diligent in encouraging these relationships while recognising the importance of individuality. Expectations of behaviour at the home and towards each other are made clear for children. During the inspection, inspectors observed children being kind to each other and enjoying time spent as a group.

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

The home is modern and purpose built with safety and security features. However, during the inspection, three doors with fire-closing devices required minor adjustments to ensure that they work as intended. The regular checks of fire safety equipment do not include checks of fire doors. The provider took immediate action to rectify this on the first day of the inspection.

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

Care plans emphasise the importance of de-escalation techniques to avoid incidents. Historically, the number of restraints has been very low, but this increased recently after a child moved into the home. Appropriately trained staff use restraint techniques when necessary and in line with the child’s agreed care plan. Records demonstrate that, after these incidents, extensive review takes place involving all those involved. However, staff debrief meetings are not always held within the required 48-hour time frame.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and qualified for the role. The home’s leadership staff work closely together and have invested in self-development and further qualifications. There is a strong sense of teamwork and all staff said that there is an open and supportive atmosphere.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff said how much they enjoy working at the home and that they are enthusiastic in supporting children to enjoy their lives and make progress. Relatives and professionals spoke about the positive impact on children and families because of the effort and dedication of managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers work hard to ensure that children maintain relationships with their families. A child’s relative said that the caring approach by managers has been important to them and their wider family, and has made them feel cared for, too.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers know the children’s needs and how to support them. The manager considers in detail referrals for children to move into the home and the impact that new children may have on the children already living there. Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 5 Staff have the skills and experience required to support the children well. Training takes place regularly, but this has been limited to online training for much of it due to restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring and assurance systems have been developed since the home opened. Managers have developed a culture of continual learning and are keen to seek feedback to help the service to improve and grow. Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 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

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(1) applies to the home—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person must ensure that the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b)) 12 November

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii)) 30 November

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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 for children’s home: 2562677 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: PBS Care Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 14 Southwold Crescent, Benfleet SS7 5SW

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Inspectors

Jamie Cousins, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2562677 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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