Children's home run by Wakefield Council

Inspection report for children’s home: 2544274 1 Registered provider: Wakefield Metropolitan District Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A local authority owns and manages this home. It provides care and accommodation for up to two children whose plan is to live in a medium-or long-term residential setting.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 31 January 2022 and holds suitable qualifications for the role.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 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: 2544274 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/02/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2544274 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are well supported and said that they are happy living in the home. They form close and trusting relationships with staff and are able to express their feelings. Staff also use technology to connect and communicate with children effectively. The use of social media applications help children to articulate their wishes and feelings using a communication tool that they readily embrace. As a result, children are confident and comfortable to express their opinions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prioritise children’s learning. They work well with allocated teachers and education providers to ensure that children’s individual needs are understood. Where barriers to learning occur, staff work closely with schools to support children to re-engage with education and identify helpful solutions to problems. This helps children to see the value of education and develop aspirations for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are met. Children are encouraged to choose a healthy and varied diet. Staff use creative ways, such as cutting food into fun shapes, to tempt children to eat nutritious food. As a result, children enjoy eating vegetables and fruits. Staff support children to make and attend all routine and necessary medical appointments. This helps children to stay healthy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have worked hard to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions on children by arranging activities for them. Children have played football in the park with other children in the community. With the easing of the restrictions, children enjoyed day trips to the coast and to theme parks. In addition, staff nurture children’s talents in music by encouraging them to present at a local radio station. This broadens their experiences and helps improve their overall well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children stay in touch with their families and friends. Staff support children to maintain and strengthen these relationships, and they ensure that visits are safe. Children are encouraged to form new friendships and invite these friends to the home. This means that children develop their sense of identity, self-worth and belonging.

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

Staff know and understand the risks to children’s safety. Comprehensive risk assessments and detailed risk management plans support staff to keep children safe. These documents outline concerning behaviours and identify clear strategies for staff to use to ensure that children are better protected from harm. This ensures that staff are aware of the actions to take to safeguard children effectively.

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

Children are supported to understand boundaries and acceptable behaviour and, as a result, the use of physical restraint is rare. Staff meet regularly with children to Inspection report for children’s home: 2544274 4 discuss very difficult topics sensitively. Good collaborative work occurs with the police, social workers and teachers in order to ensure that children quickly receive the support that they need. This means that children are able to recognise risks to their safety and begin to learn how to stay safe in the future.

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

The manager ensures that staff recruitment procedures are followed. Suitability checks, including the verification of previous employment references, are completed before staff work with children. This means that children are supported by staff deemed suitable to do so.

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

The manager is aware of how to deal with allegations against staff and follows the safeguarding procedures to inform the local authority designated officer. This ensures that children are effectively safeguarded in these circumstances.

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

All staff complete safeguarding and child protection training as part of their induction. The home provides additional training to staff to equip them to understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities. As a result, the staff demonstrate a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities to safeguard children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. She is supported by a deputy manager and a team of staff who are committed to helping children and improving their life chances and opportunities. This means that children in the home are supported by staff who strive to ensure that their experiences are positive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported by the management team. They benefit from regular one- to-one reflective supervision and annual appraisals. The quality of formal supervision consistently focuses on children’s progress and experiences, and how staff manage to support this. This provides an opportunity for staff to explore ways that help them to support children better.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager regularly reflects with children and staff after incidents. Daily records are clear and easy to follow. However, some records do not show their author or when they were completed. This means that children’s case records may not be an accurate reflection of their time in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and the deputy manager welcome external scrutiny from the independent visitor. The independent visitor provides challenge to the management team and holds them to account for addressing areas of improvement. The management team shares this feedback with staff in team meetings. This ensures that staff learn from this assurance process, and this helps them to improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff work closely with other agencies to support children. The manager challenges other professionals when children’s care falls below acceptable standards. This ensures that children receive the support they need in a timely manner. Inspection report for children’s home: 2544274 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, Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 8 April 2022

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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: 2544274 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Bond Street, Wakefield, Yorkshire WF1 2QW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Cheryl Whitehouse

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Inspector

Evelyn Chafota, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2544274 7 regulates and inspects 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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