Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited 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 home. It provides care for one child. The home cares for children with emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is experienced and registered.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the home’s first inspection since it was registered on 16 December 2021.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 3

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improvement to be good

The home is judged as requires improvement overall because of shortfalls in how children are safeguarded and in the leadership of the home. For example, staffing arrangements have not provided consistency or stability for the child.

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improvement to be good

The home provides a warm and welcoming environment. It has a family feel with lots of photos of the children on display. The child’s bedroom is also personalised with photos, giving them a sense of belonging. The child said, ‘It’s the first place I know I am loved and cared about, and that people want the best for me. I think of these people as my second family.’

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improvement to be good

The child is fully supported to share their views and opinions. They are encouraged to be involved in completing their own care plan and risk assessment. This ensures the child’s voice is heard and they are supported in line with their views and wishes. The manager regularly consults with the child to ensure that they can influence the day-to-day running of the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff have a nurturing, caring approach. They understand the importance of sensitively supporting children to explore their identity in a safe environment. This has led to the child flourishing and having a strong sense of who they are.

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improvement to be good

The child’s health needs are fully met. Managers strongly advocate for children so that they have access to the specialist health services that they need. One child required specialist dental work and the organisation paid for private dental treatment. This ensured that the child had access to the medical help they needed while registration issues at the dental practice were being ironed out.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff explore creative ways of ensuring children’s educational needs are met. The child has a bespoke education plan that is regularly reviewed and updated. The child’s attendance is excellent.

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improvement to be good

Daily records lack detail in relation to the achievements the child has made, memories created and their day-to-day experiences. This does not ensure the child will be able to reflect on their time at the home in years to come. However, the home keeps beautiful memory books that capture the child’s journey and achievements they have made since being at the home.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff team have a comprehensive understanding of children’s risks and vulnerabilities before they move into the home. A robust transition plan and risk assessments support the needs of the child. However, it was identified that a new Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 4 staff member did not know where ligature cutters were stored, in line with the child’s risk assessment. This has the potential to place the child at increased risk.

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improvement to be good

Missing-from-care protocols and safety plans are well written and provide detailed guidance to staff on how the child should be supported and safeguarded. However, despite clear direction, there have been occasions when staff have not reported the child missing in line with the protocol. This document is therefore ineffective and fails to ensure the child’s safety and well-being.

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improvement to be good

Safeguarding arrangements are not always effective. When a child raised concerns about the behaviour of staff, the home’s procedures were not followed. A staff member failed to follow the home’s internal protocol and informed the member of staff who was implicated. This poor practice has the potential to jeopardise safeguarding investigations and fails to protect children from potential harm.

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improvement to be good

A restorative approach is used in relation to behaviour management, supporting the child to learn and be educated, rather than being punished. Conversations and key- work sessions are used to motivate and support the child to develop a sense of self- worth. For example, a staff member said to the child, ‘You deserve new clothes, let’s go shopping.’

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improvement to be good

The location risk assessment is regularly reviewed. This reflects learning and information from incidents that have taken place. The manager seeks the views of the local police and has gained a good understanding of the specific risks to children in the area. The assessment is informative for staff in the event of children going missing, as it highlights specific risks and vulnerabilities for the children.

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good

The registered manager is suitably qualified, experienced and passionate about providing good-quality care to children. She has shown a real commitment to the child, the home and her team.

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good

To mitigate staffing shortages, the registered manager has covered a number of shifts. This has impacted on her ability to spend time embedding quality review systems and to monitor the quality of care. Managers have not had a comprehensive oversight of recorded incidents and opportunities to learn lessons have been missed.

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good

A number of staff have left since the home opened. This has not been beneficial in ensuring that the child is able to form strong attachments to the adults caring for them and has resulted in a reliance on the manager.

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good

Leaders and managers are prioritising recruitment to ensure there are sufficient staff to provide care for the child, and that effective arrangements are in place to support the home in the manager’s absence. Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 5 Staff training is up to date. Staff have completed the required child-specific training to meet the child’s complex needs. Staff receive regular supervision, however, reflective practice within this is minimal. Staff currently receive fortnightly clinical debriefs where they are supported to reflect on recent incidents.

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good

The manager has established a good support network outside the home, with strong links with the local community. She also works in close partnership with other agencies. The manager has supported the home to achieve an accreditation in working together to support and educate children with regard to substance misuse. This continues to support and develop the skill set and knowledge of the team, equipping them to meet children’s evolving needs. Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(v)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff adhering to children’s plans and risk assessments. It also relates to managers ensuring that staff follow safeguarding procedures in relation to allegations about their colleagues. 12 September

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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— 12 September Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 7 ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)(h))

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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: 2656736 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1 & 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kathleen McGowan

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Inspectors

Zoey Lee, Social Care Inspector Linda Mason, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2656736 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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