Children's home run by New Horizons NW Limited in Sefton

Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 1 SC473475 Registered provider: New Horizons NW 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. It provides care for up to five children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties and/or learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since September 2019.

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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: SC473475 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/04/2021 Full Good 04/06/2019 Full Good 24/10/2018 Full Good 08/08/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress from their individual starting points. They are supported by a consistent staff team. This helps them to form positive and trusting relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are committed to ensuring children are warmly welcomed and cared for at this home. One member of staff said, ‘[Name of children’s home] is a family. The children are always put first. It is a very happy home.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most children attend school or college regularly and are making good progress. One child is currently refusing to attend school. However, the manager is challenging the relevant authorities to make appropriate alternative provision for this child. In addition, staff encourage the child to take part in daily online learning prepared by the school.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are learning new skills that will support them to live more independently when they are older. One child is being supported to adopt regular personal hygiene routines and he now brushes his teeth every day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children in a caring and nurturing way. Children are given lots of reassurance and demonstrations of affection. This helps children to feel valued. Staff use soothing strategies to help children to settle at bedtime and to ease their anxieties. One independent reviewing officer said of one child, ‘Staff give her consistent support. This has built her confidence to start asserting her own personality.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are maturing and growing in confidence. One child is being supported to explore issues concerning their identity. The child has trusting relationships with staff and can talk to them freely about their feelings and emotions. However, the child’s identity is not well documented in their care plan. This does not promote a consistent response from staff. A recommendation is made to ensure that care plans reflect children’s identities and their educational needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well met. Staff ensure that children have access to support from community and/or specialist health services and that children attend their appointments. Furthermore, when staff identify that a child requires more specialist support, they take appropriate steps to arrange access to this. Staff are tenacious in pursuing the right support for children.

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

Children receive a high level of supervision and support. This is in line with their assessed needs. However, with careful planning, some children are being supported Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 4 to start taking age-appropriate risks and become increasingly independent in the community.

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

Staff have a good understanding of children’s behaviours and individual vulnerabilities. This helps them to identify when children’s behaviour changes and to spot potential new risks. Staff confidently manage complex and challenging situations and take appropriate actions to keep children safe.

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

The manager is quick to identify emerging risks for children and collaborates on a multi-agency basis to safeguard children. For example, when risks associated with one child going missing from the home started to escalate, the manager was proactive in taking steps to minimise the risks. She alerted relevant professionals to the concerns about the child’s welfare and the risks associated with the location of the children’s home. This meant that action could be taken quickly to safeguard the child.

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

Most children rarely go missing from this home. When children do go missing, there are clear procedures in place for staff to follow. This helps staff to respond effectively to locate and safeguard the child.

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

Children receive help and support to manage their behaviours and emotions safely. Staff establish clear boundaries and challenge poor behaviours. Staff encourage children to take responsibility for their behaviours and remind children of the possible consequences of poor choices.

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

Staff support children to have positive relationships with each other. When arguments do occur, staff offer mediation to help children resolve issues and repair their relationships. These are important opportunities to teach children conflict resolution and self-management skills.

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

Staff are skilled at de-escalating challenging situations. However, there have been occasions when staff needed to physically intervene to keep children safe. After any restraint, children are offered the opportunity to talk about how this made them feel and share any concerns they may have. However, due to their age and their additional needs, some children do not engage well with the current format of these discussions. A recommendation is made that a more child-friendly approach is adopted to encourage greater engagement.

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

The registered person ensures that robust checks are in place when recruiting new staff. For example, any gaps in the applicant’s employment history are thoroughly explored. This helps to ensure that only suitable people are recruited.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This home benefits from strong and visible leadership. The registered manager has a clear vision for the home and is committed to ensuring that children are provided with the right support to help them to succeed. Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 5 The manager has an in-depth understanding of children’s individual needs and the progress they are making. She is aspirational for children to lead fulfilling and independent lives. Furthermore, the manager presents a strong challenge to placing authorities, schools and health professionals to secure the services and support the children require.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. New staff benefit from additional supervision during their probationary periods. This helps them to understand their roles and responsibilities. Managers use supervision to monitor and discuss staff performance, ensure staff understand children’s care plans and as an opportunity to identify areas for staff development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff receive a comprehensive training and induction programme before working at the home. This is complemented by an ongoing training and development programme that is aligned to the needs of the children living at the home. Staff value this training and told the inspector that it equips them with the skills they need to work with vulnerable children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, the manager has made improvements to internal monitoring systems. This helps her to review the quality of care provided by the home. However, omissions in management oversight were noted during the inspection. For example, some children’s care planning and risk management documents contained conflicting information and/or out-of-date information. A recommendation is made to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that Ofsted and other relevant professionals are notified about significant events that occur at the home. However, on several occasions, there have been delays in making these notifications. Unnecessary delays hamper the regulator’s ability to review the information and the action the provider has taken in a timely manner. A requirement has been made to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are enthusiastic and demonstrate a good understanding of the children’s needs and how best to support them. Staff are positive about their roles and the support they receive from their managers and the wider team. One member of staff said, ‘I feel everybody in my team and the young people are like family. I love going into work and, most of the time, it doesn’t even feel like work. I feel supported not only by the management but also everyone I work with.’ Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 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 registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 26 June 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s care plans reflect children’s identity and their assessed additional needs. Children’s care plans should give clear instruction to staff on how children’s needs should be met. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should use internal monitoring systems to ensure that information in children’s care plans and risk management documents is up to date and does not contain conflicting information. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24) Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 7  The registered person should ensure that discussions with children following any physical intervention are conducted in a child-centred way that considers their age and additional needs. In addition, children should be encouraged to add their

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Recommendations

views and comments to the record of restraint. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.60)

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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: SC473475 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Horizons NW Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: New Horizons (NW) Ltd, Unit 12, Riversway Business Village, Navigation Way, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston PR2 2YP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Natalie Waterhouse

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Inspector

Sophie Thomson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC473475 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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