Children's home run by Oldham Children’s Social Care in Oldham

Inspection report children's home: SC387671 1 SC387671 Registered provider: Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a local authority children’s home. It offers short breaks to a maximum of seven children.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider states in their statement of purpose that they provide care for children with learning difficulties and physical disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since November 2021.

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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 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 the setting in September 2020 to carry out an assurance 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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC387671 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/06/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/03/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness 04/04/2018 Full Good 16/08/2017 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC387671 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The short-break service provides good-quality care for children who have complex needs and disabilities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from well-planned stays and they are suitably matched together, taking into consideration their individualised needs. Children are introduced to the service through a series of tea visits. This ensures that children are gaining confidence in their new surroundings and building relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager ensures that children have privacy within the home. However, there is a key fob system in place which means children are unable to access all areas of the home. This does not provide a welcoming feel and means not all children are able to leave rooms independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in new experiences such as theme parks, museums, craft and sensory activities. A professional said, ‘This is enhancing children’s opportunities.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s cultural identity is promoted. This helps children have a sense of belonging and identity. Additionally, achievements and rewards in the home are celebrated in creative ways, for example through the expression of art. This helps provide children with good memories of their time spent in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good-quality key-working sessions take place that demonstrate children are making progress in their independence skills. They are learning skills in cooking, dressing, setting the table and washing dishes. Children are regularly consulted during each stay. This is captured at the end of each short break and shared with parents and their social workers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although children do not reside permanently at the home, staff regularly visit educational settings and take part in children’s reviews. This effective partnership working ensures that they are fully aware of children’s educational needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Improvements in the administration of medication procedures mean there are robust checks in place to ensure all children receive the correct dose of medication. Medication is stored in a safe place and records are detailed. When there are queries, staff ensure that these are followed up with parents or seek advice from all relevant healthcare professionals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has recently introduced new consultation forms for children, known as ‘We are listening,’ forms. Children are supported to write down their wishes and feelings and take part in monthly meetings. These arrangements take into consideration children’s individual communication needs. For example, one child had recently requested some new items to be purchased, with the use of smiley faces. This gives children a variety of ways that their voices can be heard. One child who Inspection report children's home: SC387671 4 was supported by staff told the inspector he likes staying at the home, using gestures.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to a spacious living environment and are provided with a range of specialist equipment. However, some areas of the home require attention. The kitchen worktops and cupboards require updating. New furniture in the dining area and lounge would also help to provide children with a more homely environment. The manager has identified this and is putting in place a programme of work to address these issues. A recommendation has been made to address this.

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

There are effective safeguarding arrangements in the home. There are safe care practices in place during times of personal care, to ensure all children are provided with privacy and dignity. Parents say staff ensure that their child is well looked after and is kept safe.

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

Risk assessments are clear and regularly reviewed. These include all children’s known risks, and staff have a good understanding of the children they support.

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

Recruitment procedures and robust checks are safe and effective. All staff are checked before starting work in the home. These background checks ensure that only suitable adults are employed to work with children in the home.

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

Positive behaviour is promoted. Staff are suitably trained in positive behaviour support. Staff use a range of de-escalation techniques. As a result, the use of restraint is minimal and used only when necessary to keep the child and others safe. Furthermore, sanctions are rarely used due to the needs of the children, and incidents in the home are infrequent. When incidents do occur, they are well managed, and records are detailed.

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

Staff can demonstrate what action they would take if there was a child protection concern. Investigations into allegations are clearly documented and appropriate action is sought from relevant safeguarding agencies.

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

The manager has ensured that fire practices in the home are safe. Each child now has a personal emergency evacuation plan that provides staff with details on the support a child requires in the event of a fire. All staff are suitably trained in fire safety and children regularly take part in fire evacuations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has a new manager who registered with Ofsted in November 2021. She is suitably qualified and experienced. She is supported by a deputy manager who has been at the home for some time. Both are passionate and child centred. The registered manager has made several improvements to children’s plans and the home’s records, and she recognises the importance of developing the service. Staff say the new manager has brought consistency and more stability to the team. Inspection report children's home: SC387671 5 External monitoring is carried out by an independent visitor. Their reports are helping the manager make improvements in the home. The manager has recently introduced a new monthly monitoring system which is helping her to have improved oversight of documentation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has produced a report about the quality of care at the home, which identifies the strengths and areas of development. However, this does not include direct feedback and/or opinions about the quality of care provided in the home, from children, their family, stakeholders or staff. This does not give an opportunity to capture feedback from all to improve the quality of care provided.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are supported by a nurturing and dedicated staff team who know the children well. Staff say the team is diverse in its mix of skills and this helps to improve outcomes for children. Furthermore, staff communicate effectively, through robust handovers and regular team meetings. This ensures that all children’s needs are fully understood.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is effective partnership working with a range of professionals, in particular the community nursing teams and dieticians. They provide advice and guidance to staff to ensure that they support children in all aspects of their health and dietary needs. Occupational therapists provide detailed individualised moving, and handling plans to help staff meet the children’s complex needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from good quality supervision that takes place regularly. Staff are given opportunities to discuss and reflect on their performance and set objectives to improve their development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is positive feedback from families and professionals. One parent said, ‘One of the team’s strengths is that not only do they care for my child, but staff also look after the extended family, checking in on everyone.’ Another parent said that there is good communication, and the home caters for all her child’s needs. Inspection report children's home: SC387671 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 privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 21 January 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and 21 January 2022 Inspection report children's home: SC387671 7 any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (5))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of their children and is a homely domestic environment. This relates to updating the home with new dining furniture, updating the living room sofas and installing a suitable kitchen. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: SC387671 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council, Civic Centre, West Street, Oldham OL1 1UT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Nicholas Whitbread

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Inspector

Judith Birchall, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC387671 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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