Children's home run by Restorative Social Care Services Ltd

Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 1 Registered provider: Restorative Social Care Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to three children, irrespective of gender, with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since June 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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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: 4 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: 1263673 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/02/2020 Full Good 04/09/2018 Full Good 09/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive experiences of living at the home. Staff take the children on a variety of activities, such as theme parks, to the cinema and on walks. Staff are positive role models for the children and provide them with care that makes the children develop trust. This allows the children to form positive attachments with the adults around them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The condition of children’s bedrooms is not of concern. The children chose the decor of their bedrooms and have personalised items, such as televisions and computers. One bedroom did have Christmas decorations on the floor, which have been left there for a considerable amount of time. This does not reinforce a positive message to the child about keeping their bedroom tidy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are attending and making progress in education. When children struggle in school, meetings between the education provider, social workers and the staff are held to discuss the child’s plans. This multi-agency approach ensures that children’s plans change in line with their needs. As a result, children are receiving a tailored timetable to help them cope better in a school environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to attend their routine appointments. Children are generally fit and well and are supported by staff to eat a balanced diet. Staff ensure that relevant referrals are made when children struggle with substance misuse. Staff are consistent in their approach to substance misuse and carry out one-to-one work with children. This has helped to educate children and to raise their awareness.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the children’s independence. Through direct work and consistency, children are now able to travel independently to college on public transport. This provides the child with skills that they can use throughout their life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is promoted by the registered manager and staff. This allows the children to spend time with the ones that mean the most to them. One child’s parent said, ‘[child’s name] independence and maturity levels have significantly improved since living at the home.’

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

Some risk assessments are well documented and do provide staff with the relevant actions to take to keep the children safe. Nevertheless, the substance misuse risk assessment for one child does not give staff clear actions to follow should a child be under the influence during the night, or in their bedroom for long periods of time. This leaves the children at risk of harm.

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

Serious incidents are managed well. They receive a multi-agency response, and referrals are made to relevant agencies to support the child’s safety plan. All Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 4 professionals are working in line with a plan to keep the child and other children safe.

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

Physical interventions are not a regular occurrence in the home. Forms reviewed are well documented and include debriefs with staff and children. This provides staff with an opportunity to learn from the incident and to discuss potential triggers. Children also reflect on the incident and are offered medical assistance following a physical intervention. This re-enforces a safety message to the child involved.

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

Missing from home incidents receive a multi-agency response. Although there is a high number of missing episodes since the last inspection, all have been well co- ordinated with other professionals and, where needed, meetings have been arranged to discuss the child’s safety plan.

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

As a result of careful planning and consistent work from staff, one child has built positive relationships with staff and is investing in their safety plan. Consequently, the missing from home incidents have significantly reduced. A child exploitation worker said, ‘From [child’s name] starting point in the home, their missing from home incidents have significantly reduced. We all work together to keep [child’s name] safe.’

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

Sanctions are proportionately used and are of a natural consequence. Staff use a restorative approach with the children. This helps the children to understand how their behaviour effects them and others.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This was a blended full inspection consisting of on and off-site work over two days. The registered manager led this inspection virtually.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is supported by a dedicated deputy manager. They are both widely respected by staff and other professionals. Together, they create a culture where there are high aspirations for the children to succeed in life.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is aware of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. Despite identified shortfalls, the registered manager does have a monitoring system in place that he and the deputy frequently complete. Shortfalls identified are addressed without delay. This means the home is evolving to meet the child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff spoken to at the inspection all said that they receive reflective and frequent supervisions. Leaders and managers discuss a personal action plan with each staff member. This ensures that staff are developing in their role. Training is discussed as part of the staff supervision. However, some staff are still not trained in substance misuse. This does not raise staff members’ responsiveness around a specific subject which would benefit the children’s awareness.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is safer recruitment trained. This ensures that candidates appointed to work in the home are fit for purpose. The recruitment process is in- Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 5 depth and well organised. There is a structured induction programme for new staff working in the home. This ensures that staff are aware of the home’s processes before they commence in their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is a good advocate for the children. Where necessary, he will challenge other professionals. This ensures that the children receive the care they deserve. Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 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 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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)) 11 February 2022

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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. (Regulation 13 (1) (2)(c)) 11 February 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that, for children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. In particular, to ensure that children’s bedrooms are clean and tidy. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 7

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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: 1263673 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Restorative Social Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 8 Victoria street, Greetland, Halifax, West Yorkshire HX4 8DF

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Inspector

Gemma McDonnell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1263673 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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