Children's home run by Pebbles Care Limited in Leeds

Inspection report children’s home: SC439535 1 SC439535 Registered provider: Pebbles Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to five children with social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2013.

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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: 20 January 2022

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/01/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/02/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good 04/09/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 23/10/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff build trusting and nurturing relationships with children. These relationships support children to make progress in different areas of their lives. Children are aware of the home’s complaints procedure and are able to use it effectively. Children are now opening up more about their feelings. For one child, their progress has been remarkable. They have started to articulate their wishes and feelings more. As a result, the interaction in the home is relaxed and warm. This means that children feel secure and develop a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children join the home, they are appropriately supported. Children receive clear verbal and written information about the home’s aims and objectives, informing them of expectations and the support available to them. When making any decisions about admitting new children to the home, the manager takes into account the existing dynamics in the home and the needs of children who already live there. This contributes to each child’s stability in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s education is well supported. Staff take children to and from school and encourage them to attend daily. Where there are barriers to children’s learning, staff are confident to advocate for children so that they get the right educational support. Staff have a good knowledge of children’s educational targets and goals. They support children to complete their homework and to revise for exams. Good support for children’s education has helped them to make consistent progress. This ensures that children achieve positive educational outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are generally healthy. They are registered with community healthcare professionals, including doctors, dentists and opticians. Staff encourage children to choose a balanced diet and to take regular exercise. These positive healthy choices ensure that children’s health is promoted.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home offers children a wide range of activities and social opportunities. Children actively engage in sporting and leisure pursuits. They enjoy playing football, rounders and going for walks. This helps children to develop self-confidence and boost their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has recently been refurbished to a good standard, with new soft furnishings and a new bathroom. The garden is now well maintained. It provides a suitable and homely environment for children to live in. This helps children to feel comfortable and develop a sense of pride in their surroundings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family relationships are very important in this home. Children are supported to see their families. Staff transport children and advocate for them to have increased family time when it is safe to do so. This helps children to maintain close connections with the important people in their life. Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 4

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

A significant improvement since the last inspection has been the implementation of a new risk assessment tool. Staff now evaluate the effectiveness of the risk assessments on a regular basis. These documents are clear and detail current risks to children’s safety, and include strategies to manage and reduce these risks. This ensures that staff provide children with consistent care and support.

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

Since the previous inspection, there have been no missing-from-care incidents and no use of physical restraint. This is because expectations and rules are very clearly put in place, and children are content to accept these. This happens because staff use verbal praise and other incentives to celebrate children’s positive behaviour. This helps children to recognise and respond to appropriate boundaries. As a result, children are genuinely engaged and interested in making better lives for themselves.

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

Effective and consistent safeguarding practice means that children are better protected from the risk of harm. Digital technology is managed safely within the home. Children have many conversations with staff about a variety of topics to address individual risks and concerns. Consequently, the children begin to understand how to keep themselves safe.

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

Staff recruitment is effective and helps to prevent the employment of unsuitable staff. Leaders and managers complete all necessary employment checks and verification processes for new staff. This helps to ensure that children are effectively safeguarded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably qualified and experienced for the position held and is supported by an experienced deputy manager. Since the last inspection, the staff team has remained stable, with only a few employees joining the team. New staff have been appropriately supported to undertake their induction, which has meant that they are equipped to effectively support the children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report a very supportive culture and structure. This is achieved through regular team meetings and supervision. Supervision is of good quality and reflects the progress of the children. This reflective supervision provides staff with the knowledge that they need to enable them to care for the children effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

In the main, staff benefit from training that reflects the children’s individual needs. However, leaders and managers are not always able to deliver care as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. Staff have not completed the necessary training in order to deliver a therapeutic model of care. This means that the home is not operating in line with its objectives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Key documents held in the home are mostly of good quality. However, some records are not signed and dated. This does not mirror the good practice carried out by staff Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 5 on a day-to-day basis. This does not currently affect the day-to-day care received by the children. However, it may have an impact on children should they at any time wish to view their records.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager undertakes robust monitoring of the home. She has comprehensive systems in place to assist with this. Monthly visits to the home by an independent person further underpin the monitoring of the home. The manager acts on any recommendations made. This practice ensures that children receive care from staff members who are continually improving their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager completes twice-yearly quality of care reports and forwards copies of these to Ofsted. However, the recent report does not fully evaluate the impact of the service on the progress and experiences of the children. This represents a missed opportunity to analyse the effectiveness of the standard of care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Family members and external professionals are positive about both the care that the children receive and their communication with the home. Staff share regular updates on the progress that children make. One parent said, ‘They are absolutely brilliant, and I have no concerns about the care they provide.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose; and

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)) 15 August 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that case records are kept up to date and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should undertake a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2)

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 7 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: SC439535 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pebbles Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 The Calls, Leeds LS2 7JU

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Inspector

Evelyn Chafota, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC439535 9 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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