Children's Home run by Bright Futures Care Limited in Warrington

Inspection report children's home: 2593530 1 Registered provider: Bright Futures Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children. The provider states in the statement of purpose that it provides care for children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2020.

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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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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 for children's home: 2593530 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are cared for by a consistent and enthusiastic staff team that knows the children well. The inspectors observed positive and familiar relationships between staff and the children, with children relaxed and at ease in the company of the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has been completely refurbished to a high standard. It is well presented, comfortable and homely. Each child’s bedroom has en-suite facilities, which ensures that their privacy is maintained and respected. Children spend time in the community with staff bowling, swimming and trampolining. Children were observed enjoying the specialist swing in the garden.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have individual health passports which identify and support their individual health needs. Staff monitor children’s health and emotional well-being and liaise with relevant services, such as child and adolescent mental health services, when required. Staff support children to attend their medical appointments, and their health needs are well managed and understood by staff. However, when children receive first aid from staff, this is not always recorded within the home’s central accident records.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good progress has been made from children’s individual starting points. Children who have previously spent long periods of time not in education have been supported to re-engage with school. They are supported during their school day by staff from the home. The staff team works closely with children’s teachers and professionals to ensure that it understands the child’s needs and that any issues are addressed. However, the registered manager has not ensured that all children have a current educational health and care plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children spend time with people who are important to them. Staff closely monitor children when they return home from their time away. When appropriate, the registered manager shares any concerns with the placing authority to ensure that these arrangements are beneficial for children. Where children’s family live a considerable distance from the home, staff support contact arrangements flexibly. One child’s parent said: ‘I’ve had to let him go to get him back. The engagement and communication from my son I am getting now I haven’t had for years.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Every child has an individualised copy of the children’s guide. Staff support their understanding of this with additional pictures and symbols. Children’s views, wishes and feelings are gathered in individualised weekly consultation forms. Staff use photographs to record children’s experiences and make ‘memory folders’. This means that children have a clear record of their time in the home. Inspection report for children's home: 2593530 3

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

Children benefit from high levels of staff supervision to ensure that they are kept safe from harm. Individual risk management plans are detailed. They cover the risks associated with children’s daily routines as well as any other specific risks. They provide staff with clear guidance on how to manage and minimise these risks. Although staff the inspectors spoke to have a good understanding of the children’s vulnerabilities, it is not clear that the risk management plans have been read and understood by all staff.

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

Positive behaviour support plans identify specific behaviours individual children may display. The plans identify clear strategies for staff to use to support children in managing their individual behaviour. This includes the child’s preferred sensory and communication needs. Staff receive ongoing support from a specialist service to ensure that children’s specific needs are met and are kept under review.

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

All children have personal emergency evacuation plans. The plans are specific to the individual needs of the children. The plans include the actions staff are to take to ensure that children are supported to leave the building safely in an emergency. However, it is not clear that these plans have been read and understood by all staff.

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

Staff have used physical intervention on occasions to manage children’s behaviour safely. The registered manager has a strong focus on understanding the reasons for children’s behaviours and reducing the need for physical interventions. As well as being reviewed by the manager, incidents are reviewed by the organisation’s positive behaviour support team. This level of review and scrutiny supports the staff team to reflect and consider any other strategies that can be used to prevent further incidents of children being restrained.

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

Initial matching assessments are robust. The registered manager consults with the child’s family and involves other key professionals to ensure that they have a good understanding of the child’s needs. Staff spend time with children prior to them moving into the home, and children visit the home before moving in permanently. This means that children move into the home in a planned and considered way. The social worker for one child said: ‘Introductions to the home were done at the child’s pace. The preparation work was unbelievable.’

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

Children living in this home do not go missing due to high levels of staff supervision. There are plans in place with actions for staff to follow if children were to go missing.

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

Staff recruitment procedures are in place to safeguard children. However, one staff recruitment file had shortfalls regarding a reference that had been undertaken after commencing employment. Furthermore, copies of relevant qualifications were not on file for some staff. Inspection report for children's home: 2593530 4

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child-centred and knows the children well. She is working towards achieving the relevant qualification to underpin her knowledge of the role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children, due to their individual needs, receive high-level supervision, and restrictions are placed on where they can go unsupervised. Staff are supported to do this by court orders for individual children. However, the registered manager has not ensured that the correct legal documentation is in place for two of the children in a timely manner. Consequently, one child has been living with high levels of restrictions without a court order for a period of nine months.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff spoken to were complimentary about the support they receive from managers. However, records do not demonstrate that the frequency and quality of formal staff supervision are consistent. Furthermore, staff appraisals had not been undertaken with a number of staff. These are necessary so that the registered manager can continually evaluate staff practice to improve children’s care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff have undertaken a wide range of training to ensure they have the skills required to meet the needs of children living in the home. The registered manager has recently undertaken additional training to further develop her understanding of positive behaviour management. She has shared this learning with the staff team to ensure that staff practice is consistent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are used to reflect on the care and support given to children. Staff have an opportunity in these meetings to reflect on their day-to-day practice and how this can be improved. This ensures that children receive consistent care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager undertakes a monthly review of the service. She understands what is working well and is able to identify areas for development. These reports contribute to the quality-of-care review, which includes actions for the home to improve over the next six months. Inspection report for children's home: 2593530 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, 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.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that any delays in ascertaining the relevant permissions to deprive children of their liberty are escalated in a timely manner. 5 January 2021

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Requirement Due date

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

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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 the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff have read and understood all children’s relevant plans. 5 January 2021

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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

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(d) 5 January 2021 Inspection report for children's home: 2593530 6 The registered person must ensure that a clear record of references undertaken is available and evidence of qualifications relevant to the role is held on staff files.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff receive regular practice-based supervision and that their performance is appraised annually. 5 January 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they have up-to-date copies of educational, health and care plans for all children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.3)  The registered person should ensure that any first-aid treatment is recorded within the home’s accident records. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34, paragraph 7.12)

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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: 2593530 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Bright Futures Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bright Futures Care Ltd, Asher House, Barsbank Lane, Lymm WA13 0ED

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Rachelle Russell

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Inspectors

Genevieve O’Reilly, Social Care Inspector Anthony Kyem, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2593530 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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