Children's home run by Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 1 Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited 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. The home is registered to provide care for up to two children who may have emotional and/or social difficulties. The organisation provides individual therapy for the children in its care. If required, children can access the organisation’s school.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted on 16 April 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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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 22 October 2019

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/10/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 3

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outstanding

The children benefit greatly from the trusting relationships that the staff build with them. Children’s life opportunities are significantly enhanced by the quality of care that they receive. Children benefit tremendously from consistent and stable relationships with supportive and nurturing staff. This enables them to develop a strong sense of belonging.

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outstanding

Children have access to health services, including routine check-ups. Children receive therapeutic support from the in-house clinicians to ensure that they have excellent mental health and emotional well-being. This ensures that children’s identified trauma needs are effectively supported. As a result, the children living in this home benefit from improved mental health.

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outstanding

The children have excellent school attendance. One child in the home has significantly progressed from home tutoring to a school-based education, and is now on track to achieve their GCSEs, and is completing work experience. This means the child is motivated to learn and achieve, and that staff have been instrumental in ensuring they work effectively with educational professionals to improve the outcomes for the child.

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outstanding

Staff have supported the development of family time. For one child, this has progressed from being supervised by staff in the home and the local community to weekly unsupervised family time and monthly overnights stays with their family. This means the child has been supported effectively to maintain his identity and rebuild his relationship with his family.

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outstanding

The children engage in and enjoy a range of social and leisure activities. One child spoken to told the inspector, ‘I go out with my friends, I enjoy going for walks, going to the cinema, baking and cooking in my home. I’ve been on holiday to Blackpool, where staff supported me to be with my family, it was great.’ The staff are continuously giving the children opportunities to try new activities to build on hobbies and interests. This helps the children to build their self-confidence.

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outstanding

Staff prioritise the promotion of independence skills as part of everyday life for the children. One child in the home has developed excellent levels of life skills for their age, including independent travelling, cooking, shopping, budgeting, and self-care skills. As a result, the children become more confident in their abilities.

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outstanding

The home is maintained, decorated and furnished to a high standard throughout and is homely. One child told the inspector that he loves his home and that he has been consulted about what he wants in the home to make it better. Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 4 The staff’s knowledge of the children enables them to provide children with a high level of individualised care and support which is in line with the children’s care plans.

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outstanding

Professionals say that children have made excellent progress. This is reflected in children presenting with more positive behaviours, completing therapy, becoming more mature, increased self-esteem and positive engagement in education.

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outstanding

The children thrive in this home due to the therapeutic parenting and positive role modelling they get from staff. Staff set the right example to enable the children to learn how to keep themselves safe and become more socially aware. This has been highly effective in reducing challenging and risk-taking behaviour.

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outstanding

Children have positive behaviour programmes, rewards and incentives in place. These ensure that children have clear behavioural expectations, and they respond well to praise for their achievements as these are routinely celebrated by the staff.

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outstanding

There have been no physical interventions for nearly a year. The manager, staff, in- house clinician and social workers update risk assessments in partnership. This means that there is a therapeutic oversight of the children’s emotional well-being and their presenting behaviours.

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outstanding

Children respond positively to the consistent care, clear expectations, structures and boundaries that the staff provide through the secure base model of practice. This helps the children to feel safe and secure in their home environment. As a result, there has been a significant reduction in safeguarding incidents and risk-taking behaviours in the home.

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outstanding

Staff knowledge and experience of the children’s risk and vulnerabilities enable them to respond and follow procedure and protocols. When there are incidents, staff are very clear on the steps to follow to better protect the children.

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outstanding

Risk assessments are robust. All identified risks are clearly recorded in detail, they are reviewed routinely or after any incidents and have excellent management oversight. Identified risks are discussed with the children, including the consequence of any actions and how to help keep themselves safe.

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outstanding

The children engage in therapy and planned key-work conversations with staff to address any risk and vulnerabilities. This means that the children are making better decisions. An example of this is that there have been no incidents of children going missing from the home.

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outstanding

Staff carry out daily and weekly checks to ensure a safe home environment, as well as completing health and safety checks. This means that the children live in a safe home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 5 All safeguarding concerns have been effectively managed as the manager and staff are clear about the protocols to follow in the event of a safeguarding concern, or any allegation being made about the conduct of any staff member. This helps to better protect the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is suitably qualified and experienced. She is self-driven and is a highly effective manager. The manager is ambitious and innovative and provides visible leadership. This results in excellent staff morale and fantastic progress for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager demonstrates a clear understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. She has identified the need to continually improve staff training and development. This will ensure continued progression and improved outcomes for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has worked effectively to integrate new staff alongside the established and experienced core staff team. This has ensured the delivery of highly individualised consistent care, and ensures that children are provided with positive experiences by a diverse staff team. This has helped children to value equality and diversity.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There are robust monitoring systems in place, which enable the manager to have effective oversight of the home. These include the regulation 44 monthly visits, and the six-monthly regulation 45 report, which methodically and routinely evaluate areas for improvement. The home’s own quality assurance visits, monthly and quarterly audits further support the continual development and improvement in the quality of care provided in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is strong collaborative partnership working with professionals and families. This ensures that the children receive individualised care that is bespoke in meeting their identified needs. A professional told the inspector that the staff knowledge, professionalism, motivation and child-centred practice has led to significant progress for a child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager provides the staff with reflective supervision and supports the staff with continuous personal development. For example, the staff have monthly development days alongside monthly team meetings. This means that staff are motivated and are receiving the support they require to provide a high level of individualised care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is excellent communication between the staff and other professionals. Staff have daily handovers from one shift to another, daily handovers with school, weekly meetings with school and monthly focused meetings with the in-house clinicians.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff access mandatory and specialist training to help them meet the needs of the children. Such training has included autism spectrum disorder, suicide and self-harm Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 6 awareness, therapeutic attachment, and the secure base model. This helps to ensure that staff have the skills they need. However, the inspector identified that one member of staff had not completed all of the identified training in agreed timescales. To date, this has not had a negative impact on children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, and should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. In particular, the registered person should ensure that all staff continue to update their training and development needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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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: 2523037 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Timeout Children’s Homes Ltd, Unit 2, Mill Fold, Ripponden, Sowerby Bridge HX6 4DH

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Dominic Macauley

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Inspector

Noel Cooper, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 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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