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

Inspection report children’s home: SC460800 1 SC460800 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 registered to provide care for up to four children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties and for children who may have learning disabilities. The home is privately run and managed.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered by Ofsted in 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

Date of last inspection: 14 September 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 children’s home: SC460800 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/09/2021 Full Good 25/06/2019 Full Outstanding 10/01/2019 Full Good 13/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC460800 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children at this home make good progress from their starting points. They have a well-planned transition into the home. Careful consideration is taken to ensure that children are well matched in relation to their individual needs. Care planning is personalised and effective in meeting the children’s highly complex needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Often, children arrive at the home who are not engaged in their education. The manager is proactive in securing educational provision that meets the child’s individual needs. Children now attend full-time college and school. They have excellent attendance and are making good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children said their home is a ‘family home’ and have formed trusting and meaningful relationships with staff. This is because staff provide a nurturing approach and respond to children with acceptance and high positive regard. One child said, ‘It is the best home you could ever put a child in and the best home I have ever lived in.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good partnership working between therapists and staff support children to understand their behaviours and identified risks. This means that children are able to progress to community-based free time in a safe and planned way. Therapists support staff in their roles to understand the therapeutic model that is used in the home. This facilitates staff’s learning and understanding, resulting in consistent care being provided, which supports children’s emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Thorough transition plans support children to progress to independent living. Children leave with life skills, such as cooking and budgeting, as well as wider skills of understanding council tax, income tax and how to pay a key meter. Children are also provided with strategies to manage ongoing behaviours and risks into adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents and professionals speak highly of the care and support that children receive. While the environment is comfortable and homely, parts of the home need cleaning and children’s bedrooms are untidy.

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

Safeguarding practice is effective. Up-to-date risk assessments and behaviour management plans provide clear and effective strategies for managing risks to individual children. Staff and therapists coordinate a joint approach to ensure that children understand these risks. Children are provided with the information they need to stay safe through therapist and key-working sessions.

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

When necessary, further specialist services are used to keep children safe and they work interchangeably, whereby risks are shared, understood and managed well. Children say that they feel safe in the home and staff support them to keep safe. Inspection report children’s home: SC460800 4 Consistent boundaries are in place, which children respond well to. They have clear expectations of what is expected of them in relation to behaviour. Praise and rewards are used regularly to celebrate and promote positive behaviour. Sanctions are no longer used in this home. Instead, a care and repair model is used, in which children are encouraged to take part in discussions. This is providing children with reflective skills and the ability to understand other people’s feelings.

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

Safer recruitment practice at the home ensures that all staff are appropriately checked and vetted before coming to work in the home. This helps to ensure that the home is a safe place for children to live. Children’s safety is supported further by all staff being trained in safeguarding practices.

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

The majority of the health and safety practices at the home identify risks, but neither the safer area report or the home risk assessment cover the risks of the home’s large extensive back garden or the close railway line. A recommendation has been made to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is run by a dedicated manager who is committed to providing a high standard of quality care to children. She leads by example, is well qualified and experienced, and has worked in the home for many years.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager values and respects her staff. She supports staff in understanding their roles and provides staff with opportunities for professional development. This high level of support has created a stable staff team, which, in turn, provides consistent care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager continually reviews and monitors systems to ensure their effectiveness. She has recently changed the supervision form. The changes made support staff to become more accountable for their practice when completing actions. Supervisions are practice-based, and staff have weekly consultations with the therapist. This supports staff to review and reflect on their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a good induction programme in place for new staff, which supports them to understand and learn about their role. Staff are committed to training and are up to date with mandatory training. Team meetings are well attended.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is very skilled in promoting multi-agency work, and has strong links with local providers. This promotes children’s education, health, emotional and social well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

While monitoring of the home is in place and, in most areas, is very effective, this can be improved by having manager evaluation and signatures on key-work sessions to enable the manager to have full overview and oversight. Inspection report children’s home: SC460800 5

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Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, the registered person should ensure that all parts of the home are cleaned to an acceptable standard, and that all children’s bedrooms are clean and tidy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring, including under regulations 44 and 45, to ensure continuous improvement. Manager evaluation and signatures on key-working sessions would improve monitoring of the service. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Recommendations

 Under regulation 46, the registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and the premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. The safer area report needs to include the external large back garden and the close railway line. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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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: SC460800 6

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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

Nicola Clements, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC460800 7 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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