Children's home run by Meadows Care Limited in Rochdale

Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 1 SC372117 Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and run and is registered to provide care for up to three children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since 2016.

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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: 1 November 2021

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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: SC372117 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/11/2021 Full Good 15/04/2019 Full Good 24/09/2018 Full Good 30/01/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from individualised care, support and stability which contribute to them making good progress overall.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has been supported to move into appropriate semi-independence accommodation. This transition was planned effectively by staff and has been very successful. One child has moved into the home. His move followed careful assessment and matching of needs with those of the other children living in the home. He was able to visit before moving in and was provided with all the necessary information, including a children’s guide, about the home. He confirmed that he felt welcomed to the home and is happy and settled.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care plans are detailed. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of the needs of the children and ensure that care plans are fully implemented. The organisation’s therapy team provides additional support to children, devising individual therapy plans which link well to the main care plan. Therapists meet on a regular basis with the manager. When there are additional or emerging needs, the manager is proactive in accessing appropriate services to meet these.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Healthy eating is promoted well. A dietician recently attended a team meeting to provide additional guidance for staff to further enhance their ability to support children to eat healthy, nutritionally balanced meals. Staff also encourage children to attend and take part in exercise and activities to support healthy living. Children contribute their ideas to menu plans and engage with meal preparation. This helps them to develop skills in preparation for leaving the home and moving on to adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, the manager and staff have continued to work in partnership with schools to support children to engage and achieve well in their education. As a result of this, children’s attendance at school has, in the main, increased, although there has been some fluctuation in this recently. One teacher said: ‘The home provides us with regular reports and regularly consults with us. This enables us to work cohesively to support the child’s academic progress.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children are fully involved in their care. This is achieved through regular individual consultation as well as children’s meetings.

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

Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding and ensure that they follow all relevant procedures to keep children safe. They understand each child’s specific needs and vulnerabilities. Detailed risk assessments are in place for each child, which are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that they reflect current risks and the action required to minimise these. As a result, children say they feel safe and Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 4 well cared for. Children say they are able to speak with staff about any concerns or worries they have, and staff will support them with advice and guidance. Professionals spoken with also confirm that safeguarding measures are strong and that children are safeguarded effectively.

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

Incidents of children going missing from the home are minimal. Staff follow appropriate procedures to promote and support children’s safety.

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

Children say that the staff are fair and help them understand when their behaviours are not appropriate. One child said: ‘Staff support me when I am upset or unhappy about something. They don’t make me feel bad when I make mistakes and they encourage me to make decisions which are right for me.’ As a result of this support and guidance, children make good progress in all areas of their life. One social worker said: ‘Since moving into the home, [name of child] has made significant progress, become far more confident and is thriving. Staff really place the children at the centre of all practice, and this has helped provide a stable and secure base for this child.’

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

Children are protected by a range of environmental health and safety risk assessments. Regular checks in the home make sure it remains a safe environment for children and staff. Children are aware of the procedure to follow in the event of a fire. They take part in regular fire drills to underpin the importance of safe evacuation of the home.

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

The home follows safer recruitment and selection procedures to make sure that people employed are suitable to work with children. Visitors to the home are also checked, and these measures further safeguard children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has the necessary qualifications and experience to fulfil her role. Her practice is child-focused, and she ensures that children are fully consulted and involved in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides strong and effective leadership and has implemented comprehensive monitoring systems, ensuring the home is operating in accordance with the aims and objectives identified in the home’s statement of purpose. She is fully involved in children’s care planning and has an excellent understanding of their progress. The manager ensures that any additional resources needed to support children are made available, contributing to their ongoing development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children benefit from having a consistent team of staff who receive regular training, supervision and support. In addition to all mandatory training being undertaken, bespoke training is arranged to enhance the knowledge and skills of staff to meet the individual needs of children. Staff are highly complimentary about the support they receive from the manager who, they say, leads by example in ensuring children receive high-quality care. Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 5 Staff work closely with the organisation’s therapeutic team to ensure that their approach to children’s care is consistent and underpins the individual therapy children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

One independent reviewing officer said: ‘The outcomes for [name of child] were excellent. The manager, staff and therapy team supported him exceptionally well. As a result of the care and support he received, he made really good progress. His transition into semi-independence was supported exceptionally well, with staff advocating on his behalf to ensure his wishes and views were heard.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has taken suitable steps to address the requirement and recommendations made at the previous inspection. Children’s attendance at education has improved, although this has recently fluctuated. Therefore, a recommendation has been made to ensure that consistency in education attendance is maintained. Improvements to the kitchen and bathroom have been completed, ensuring that the home provides comfortable, homely and well-maintained accommodation for the children living there. Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children are in full-time education when they are of compulsory school age, unless their personal education plan contained in the care plan or other relevant plan states otherwise. The home must aim to support full-time attendance at school unless the child’s relevant plan indicates this is not in their best interests. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.14)

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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: SC372117 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Egerton House, Wardle Road, Rochdale, Lancashire OL12 9EN

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Inspector

Sarah Oldham, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC372117 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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