Children's home run by Crystal Care Solutions Limited in Cheshire East

Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 1 SC477726 Registered provider: Crystal Care Solutions Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private company. It provides care for up to two children. The home specialises in caring for children who have been, or who are, experiencing social and emotional difficulties and children with special educational needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since August 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/03/2022 Full Good 04/07/2019 Full Good 05/09/2018 Full Good 25/07/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make clear and measurable progress from their starting points. Developing children’s independence skills is a priority for staff, and this is reflected in well- planned direct work sessions. When children reach their goals, staff ensure that these are celebrated and rewarded. This enables children to have a clear understanding of the progress they make. Children speak proudly about their developed skills. One child said, ‘I now have a bank account. I can manage my own money and go to the shop alone.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a settled, relaxed and welcoming home environment. When children return home from school, they are greeted with smiles, hugs and enthusiasm. The inspector observed that children embrace this and are excited to tell staff about their daily experiences. Such caring practice reinforces that children are cared for and have a secure home to return to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are sought through enjoyable direct work sessions and children’s meetings. Child-friendly monthly newsletters tell children how their views are acted upon. In addition, staff produce a monthly summary of each child’s statutory plans. These are written to the children and at a level they can understand. Children told the inspector that they understand their plans. One child said, ‘I have permanence here. I will be here until I am 18, then I will move into my own place.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from personalised bedrooms which reflect their individual tastes and interests. The home is decorated with photos of the children, their families and staff. This creates a homely feel. However, some parts of the home are worn and require redecoration. A recommendation has been made to address this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make clear educational progress. Staff actively support children to understand the importance of education and the impact upon their future. This has resulted in one child having an improved school attendance of 100% and a place at their chosen college.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively advocate on behalf of children for access to specialist support services. Effective collaborative work with external agencies has resulted in children having access to therapeutic services. This has enabled staff to have a better understanding of how to meet children’s complex needs.

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

Children benefit from the independent visitor’s monthly attendance at the home. Children speak openly to the independent visitor, who provides appropriate scrutiny and challenge to staff and management. Clear recommendations from these visits Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 4 have ensured that practice in the home continues to improve and that children remain safe.

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

Clear behaviour management plans and risk assessments detail what staff must do to help keep children safe. These documents are updated regularly and help staff to provide children with clear and consistent boundaries. Where staff have needed to use physical restraint, they have done so proportionately. However, the recording of some of these interventions lacks evaluation and debriefs with the children. This means that opportunities to learn from the use of some restraints have been missed.

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

Children told the inspector that they feel happy, safe and secure living at the home. They have been able to identify staff members who they can talk to about any worries or concerns. Staff support children to speak to their social workers, independent reviewing officer, teachers and advocate. This enables children to have key adults outside of the home who they can talk to.

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

Children are supported to take age-appropriate risks in order to further develop their independence and social skills and maintain friendships. Children go out in the community to meet with friends, while keeping in regular contact with staff. This has enabled one child to reduce the risks they faced and now have overnight stays with family members.

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

When incidents have occurred, leaders and staff have responded appropriately and swiftly to ensure the safety of children. The staff maintain excellent working relationships with the children’s social workers and keep them updated in line with statutory guidance. One social worker said, ‘During an emerging crisis situation earlier on in the year, I have found the home to be very efficient in notifying other professionals and taking appropriate steps to safeguard the child.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitably qualified registered manager who is very much committed to providing children with a welcoming, safe and homely environment to live in. The manager has been in post for several years and provides her staff with stability and clear guidance. As a result, children are provided with consistently good care from a stable, well-trained staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is supported by a suitably experienced deputy manager. Together, they form an effective management team that provides staff with clear leadership. Staff report that they are well supported by their managers and receive regular formal and informal supervision sessions. One staff member said, ‘They are always there to give you support. You can ask them anything.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

For most parts, management oversight of children’s records is of good quality. However, some medication records are not clear and are difficult to read. In addition, there is no clearly recorded management oversight of the medication records. This means that there is no documented scrutiny of medication recordings. Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 5 The manager recognised this as an area for improvement and implemented a plan for improved management oversight. A recommendation has been made to ensure that this is addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has an excellent knowledge of the children in her care and has developed a caring relationship with them. The manager has created a culture where children openly talk to staff about their daily lived experiences. Throughout the inspection, excellent interactions between the manager, staff and the children were observed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers maintain good working relationships with professionals at the local authority and keep them well informed about how children progress. Professionals reported that there is excellent communication from the management team, with regular written updates. One social worker said, ‘I have received weekly chronology reports and contact summaries.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager leads by example and actively promotes the progression of children’s time with their family members. Children have been able to safely spend regular time with their parents and siblings. This ensures that children will be more likely to have well-developed relationships and support from relatives as they transition into adulthood. Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 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, the 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

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the date, time, and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, that the registered person ensures that all records in relation to restraint detail debriefs of the use of the restraint with all staff and children involved. 12 October 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that medicines are administered in line with a medically approved protocol. Records must be kept of the administration of all medication, which includes a clear record identifying the person who administers the medication. Regulation 23 requires the registered person to ensure that they make suitable arrangements to manage, administer and dispose of any medication. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 35, paragraph 7.15) Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 7  The registered person should ensure that all aspects of the home are maintained to a good standard and that repairs are made so that children have an inviting, homely environment. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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 children’s home: SC477726 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Crystal Care Solutions Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bank House, Market Square, Congleton, Cheshire CW12 1ET

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Inspector

Rob Neild, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC477726 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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