Children's Home run by Eagle Children’s Home in Wolverhampton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 1 SC356565 Registered provider: Eagle Children’s Home Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by an independent provider. The home provides care for two children aged between six and 18 who may have social, emotional and mental health difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2008.

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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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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 8 April 2021 to carry out a monitoring 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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/07/2019 Full Good 24/07/2018 Full Good 02/05/2017 Full Good 08/02/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a well-maintained and homely environment. Children have access to nicely decorated communal areas, which encourages them to socialise with each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager works with parents and social workers to complete detailed assessments prior to children moving in. This helps staff understand the children’s vulnerabilities and to build relationships with them. The staff know the children well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children’s placement plans are detailed. Staff follow these plans alongside the home’s model of care to ensure that they are working consistently with children. One child said, ‘The staff here know how my brain works. That really helps me.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in education and their attendance is good. Staff help children with routines so that they are prepared for the school day. This shows children that staff see education as an important part of their life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children enjoy a range of activities both in and outside the home. Staff provide daily routines, such as going to the gym and to swimming sessions. One child is a keen footballer and staff take him to the city’s football stadium. Staff involve children in organising activities through planned meetings. This helps children to make choices and have their say.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff monitor progress and celebrate achievements with children. Staff use charts to record and map children’s progress towards their agreed targets. Staff share this information with children, which helps them to understand the progress they are making.

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

The staff have received appropriate safeguarding training and know how to report concerns. Staff understand their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding children.

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

Children have detailed risk assessments which help staff to understand triggers and behaviours. Staff update these assessments when incidents have occurred. This helps staff work consistently with children.

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

The staff use appropriate sanctions, which are agreed by children. Children are involved in creating their own contracts. This helps children to understand how staff will help them when they feel upset. One child said, ‘If I get things wrong, I tell the staff how to help me.’

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

Staff spend time with children and help them to learn about their vulnerabilities. Staff use meetings with children to discuss a range of topics, such as staying safe in Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 4 the community or when using social media. This helps children to keep themselves safe and make positive choices.

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

Staff help children to maintain relationships with family and build friendships. Staff take children to their friend’s birthday parties. This helps children to build attachments and to feel valued and part of their community.

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

On occasion, appropriate physical restraint is used to keep children safe. However, staff do not provide debriefs for children after the event. This means children are not helped to reflect or talk about their experiences of restraint.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and has suitable qualifications to manage the home. Staff said the manager is supportive and approachable.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a stable and consistent staff team who know and understand the children’s individual needs. The staff work well together, which helps the children experience a positive and supportive environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision and appraisal sessions. This helps staff to reflect on their practice and identify areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works well with other agencies to ensure that children’s needs are met. When needed, she advocates on behalf of children and challenges professionals to ensure they receive appropriate support. She confidently challenges plans when they are not in the best interests of the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has systems in place to monitor practice of staff and progress of children. The manager summarises any incidents in the home, using this information to learn from and improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have access to a wide range of training opportunities. Staff say that the training has helped them to be better equipped to meet the children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

In some instances, staff are not easily able to locate assessments and documentation about children in a timely manner. This is because case files are not structured and organised in a clear way. This has not directly affected the quality of care provided to children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 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(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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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

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about a child’s care and welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help children to express their views, wishes and feelings. (Regulation 7 (1)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to children receiving a debrief from staff after any incident of restraint. 25 March 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children’s case records are accessible to those who need to view them. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 6

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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: SC356565 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Eagle Children’s Home

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Millicent Vernon

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Inspector

Mandy Start, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 8 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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