Children's home run by CF Support Services Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 1 Registered provider: CF Support Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run home provides care for up to two children who are in the care of the host local authority and who are unable to live in either a mainstream residential care setting or a foster placement. This is the home’s first full inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager since October 2020. The acting manager is applying to Ofsted for registration.

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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 on 18 March 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 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 for children's home: 2575713 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress relative to their complex starting points. The child who was living at the home during the monitoring visit in March 2021 has now moved on, and two children have moved in. One of these children is currently being cared for at an alternative address by the home’s staff. This is a temporary arrangement and is due to the child requiring a placement out of the local area.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work in partnership with professionals to ensure that each child’s move into the home is well planned. The children are encouraged to visit the home before moving in, and staff visit the child. A social worker said about their child, ‘The staff gave a very good welcome and the child’s family were included in the whole process.’ This has enabled the child to settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities and staff support them with their hobbies. One child has enjoyed fishing and horse riding regularly. A child who has previously shown an interest in music is being encouraged to start writing lyrics again and a trip to a music studio is being arranged.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children, prior to moving into the home, struggled to engage with education. The acting manager and staff are ambitious for the children and engage well with the children’s education providers. Progress has been made in this area. The child who has now moved on successfully returned to school while they were living at the home. The child who is currently living in the home has recently started part-time education with a tutor.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff spend time getting to know the children well. Regular conversations with children enable them to discuss their feelings and share their views. Each child receives care that is centred around their specific needs. This has included important confidence-building with one of the children in respect of their sexual identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles and the staff encourage balanced diets. Staff ensure that a child’s culture and religious needs are catered for. One of the children is used to enjoying a Caribbean food diet. Staff have embraced this and are cooking his favourite dishes daily for him.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage and support children to maintain good relationships with people who are important to them. This includes inviting family members to the home to spend time with the children. Currently, the acting manager is in the process of working with a child’s social worker to enable the child to have visits from their friends. This proactive planning positively supports children to continue developing their strong friendships. Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 4

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

The child spoken with during the inspection said that they feel safe and like the staff. Good relationships are developed by the staff spending individual quality time with the children. Building trusting relationships with children enables staff to have good-quality conversations about risks. This helps children to understand any factors that may hinder their progress.

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

Detailed individual risk assessments provide staff with the necessary strategies to minimise potential dangers and protect children. These assessments are comprehensive, updated regularly and recognise improvements in behaviour. The acting manager ensures that staff are aware of any new guidance to follow to reduce risks further.

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

The staff are skilful at de-escalating difficult behaviour. There has only been one incident requiring physical intervention. Following this incident, the acting manager ensured that the child’s views were obtained and that staff were debriefed. This enabled a period of reflection and helped to develop strategies to reduce the likelihood of a similar incident occurring.

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

When a child goes missing from the home, staff follow procedures well. They are proactive in locating the child and work in partnership with police to ensure the child’s safe return. Staff speak with the child to help them recognise the dangers of going missing. Independent return home interviews have been completed on some occasions. However, these have not been consistently requested.

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good

There has been no registered manager in post at the home since October 2020. A manager was appointed and then withdrew their application for registration following the registration interview in March 2021. An acting manager has been in post while the provider unsuccessfully attempted to recruit a permanent manager. A deputy manager was recruited in July 2021 and oversight of the home by the acting manager and the deputy has provided consistency and stability. The acting manager is in the process of applying to register with Ofsted.

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good

The staff have undertaken the organisation’s mandatory training and those staff eligible are undertaking a suitable level 4 qualification. However, none of the staff currently hold a relevant qualification. The responsible individual advised that all staff will be supported to gain the necessary qualification.

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good

Staff work in line with the ethos of the home as detailed in the home’s statement of purpose. This is to provide a safe and supportive environment that enables children to move on to semi-independent living. The acting manager has regularly reviewed and updated the statement of purpose. However, the updated versions have not been submitted to Ofsted as required. Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 5 Improvements have been made to the quality of supervision and support of the staff. The acting manager provides regular supervision sessions which aid staff to reflect on their practice and increase their skills. Monthly staff meetings enable staff to share and develop their practice further. The staff speak highly of the acting manager and say that they feel valued and listened to.

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good

Good, transparent relationships with professionals have been developed. Detailed reports about the children are sent to social workers regularly and incidents are reported without delay. A social worker said, ‘Communication has been brilliant. I would not hesitate to place another child at this home. This is a good provider who works in partnership.’

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good

The acting manager has met the two requirements set at the monitoring visit in March 2021. Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 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

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 staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff are suitably qualified and that the manager in day-to-day charge of the home promptly and successfully submits an application to register with Ofsted. 31 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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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)) 31 January 2022

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Recommendation

 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. Homes should take account of information Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 7 provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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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: 2575713 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: CF Support Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Three Rivers Business Centre, Unit 11 Felixstowe Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP10 0BF

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Joanne Henderson

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Inspector

Lynne Drage, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2575713 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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