Children's home run by Searchlight Care Services Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 1 SC008273 Registered provider: Searchlight Care Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home that is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two young people who have experienced adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours and/or social or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The current manager has been registered with Ofsted since December 2019 and holds a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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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

Date of last inspection: 25 February 2020

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/02/2020 Full Good 27/02/2019 Full Good 26/02/2018 Full Good 21/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has left the home since the last inspection. This child moved to a new placement that was more suitable for their needs. There was one child living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child makes good progress because he benefits from well-planned care, which is adapted to his changing needs and priorities. Staff provide a stable and supportive environment and are enthusiastic about the child’s progress. This approach has led to a significant reduction in incidents in the home, specifically behaviour management episodes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of education for children and work quickly to identify suitable arrangements. Staff have developed strong links with the child’s teachers to ensure that there are good communication and a joined-up approach. This provides the child with support and consistency. Prior to living at the home, the child had not been attending school; he is now attending education on a regular basis.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has detailed health plans and is registered with the relevant primary healthcare services. The child attends his routine health appointments with good support and encouragement from staff. He has access to the services he needs to promote his physical, emotional and psychological well-being. The arrangements for the controlled storage and administration of the child’s medication are safe and effective.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child to keep in touch with his family. Because of this support, the child continues to maintain strong bonds with people who are important to him. During the pandemic, the staff supported the child to communicate with his family using electronic devices and telephone calls. When COVID-19 restrictions allowed, the child met face to face with family members.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding practice and the ways that they can protect the welfare of the child. There is good partnership working with agencies, such as the local authority, health professionals and schoolteachers, to ensure that there is a strong multi-agency approach to safeguarding children.

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

Staff ensure that risk assessments are comprehensive and realistic, and contribute to safeguarding the child in their care. A placing social worker told the inspector, ‘I have no concerns with [name]’s safeguarding whatsoever; the staff are doing a great job in keeping him safe.’ Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 4 The manager makes good use of opportunities to look at serious incidents when the child has displayed aggressive and challenging behaviours so that adjustments can be made to support him. Regular focused team meetings and one-to-one meetings with staff support them through challenging periods with the child. This allows staff to reflect on their practice and focus on building a trusting relationship with the child. Because of this, challenging behaviour has significantly reduced in the home.

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

The child lives in a physically safe environment. Regular health and safety checks on electrical, gas and fire safety equipment help to make sure that they remain in good working order. Staff carry out regular fire drills so that the child knows what he needs to do in the event of an emergency.

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

The child is protected by the organisation’s recruitment practice. This ensures that staff are suitably vetted before they start work in the home. This protects the child from unsuitable individuals gaining access to the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has an appropriately qualified registered manager in place. The manager has been registered with Ofsted since December 2019 and holds a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager sets high expectations for staff. He uses staff meetings and supervision well to communicate the positive ethos of the home. Staff report that they find supervision helpful and supportive. Annual appraisals are used well to ensure that staff are provided with reflection opportunities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have good access to training opportunities to ensure that they have the knowledge and skills they need for their work with children. Most of the staff have completed the level 3 diploma in residential childcare. The remaining members of staff are all enrolled on the course and are on track to complete the qualification in the required timescale.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff maintain good relationships with teachers, parents and the child’s social worker. The manager and staff challenge other professionals when necessary to secure appropriate services for the child. This collaborative approach helps to promote the child’s welfare.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff ensure that staff and children are not put at unnecessary risk from COVID-19. The staff follow the implementation of specific COVID-19 guidelines from their employers. There are clear and thorough protocols in place for hygiene, symptom awareness and testing measures. Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 5

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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: SC008273 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Searchlight Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Marcus House, Parkhall Road, Longton, Stoke-on- Trent ST3 5XA

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Inspector

Dave Carrigan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC008273 7 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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