Children's home run by Parkwood Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 1 Registered provider: Parkwood Care 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 children’s home. The provider states in the home’s statement of purpose that it provides care for up to three children of any gender identity, with social, emotional and mental health needs.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a registered manager in post. She was registered with Ofsted in May 2022

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living in this home are making positive progress from their starting points. Children are held in high regard and treated with respect. This has enabled children to build positive relationships in a short space of time. One social worker said, ‘They are making such a difference to the life of a very hard-to-reach young man who has so much to offer if supported and cared for in the right way.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand how multiple moves and trauma can impact on children’s emotional well-being and behaviours. Staff are skilled in promoting multi-agency work to ensure that children are supported to access specialist services that meet their individual complex needs. This means that children have support outside of the home to personalise the care they receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Prior to coming to this home, children had sporadic or no attendance at school. Since arriving, children are now studying with tutors and are being supported to take exams for apprenticeships. This supports children’s self-esteem, confidence and life prospects. However, opportunities have been missed to escalate education and healthcare plan assessments in a timely manner, which would provide children with additional help and support in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand that children have missed parts of their childhood and that children do not always function at their chronological age. Memory boxes include photos of holidays and life events, and the children will take these memory boxes with them when they leave. This includes a letter from the tooth fairy. This memorabilia strengthens children’s identities, as it provides them with memorable positive experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warm, welcoming and furnished well. One child rated his home 10 out of 10, and also 10 for the care he receives. Children have developed a sense of belonging to their home as they were proud to show the inspector their rooms, and they were invested in their home.

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

Staff build positive and genuine relationships with children. This helps children develop trust in staff, which makes them feel safe and protected. One parent said, ‘It’s a brilliant environment and they need to carry on what they are doing. Staff understand him [the child], they are very supportive and caring and they treat him very well. They understand his needs and risks and have been supporting him with these.’

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

Staff are aware of children’s past experiences and work closely with professionals and services to educate children on identified risks and behaviours. This supports Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 4 children to understand how to keep themselves safe. Since arriving in the home, children have not been missing from the home.

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

Staff are skilled in de-escalating behaviours and respond calmly to crisis situations as they arise. Staff are trained to use a therapeutic approach which supports children to develop strategies to regulate their emotions. Clear and consistent boundaries are in place, which provide children with safe, reliable and predictable care.

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

Staff understand children’s individual needs. Staff respond well to emerging risks and they understand children’s vulnerabilities. However, the registered manager needs to ensure that the recording and updating of risk assessments are consistent and that all risks are updated on the risk assessment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. She is supported by a competent deputy manager. They are passionate about achieving positive outcomes for children. Their ability to work well together has a positive impact on the home. Staff feel supported and invested in. There is good team morale.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a thorough induction programme and are up to date with mandatory training. The registered manager ensures that staff access training to respond to children’s specific risks. As well as regular supervision, staff receive clinical supervision by the home’s therapist. This helps staff review and reflect on their own practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring of the home is in place and is effective in most areas. However, some of the IT systems used are cumbersome. Information for incidents and physical interventions are located in various places. This impacts on the manager’s ability to review and reflect on lessons learned. During the inspection, changes were being made to these systems which will support managers to have more scrutiny and adopt a robust approach to monitoring and reviewing the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is achieving its aims and objectives as set out in its statement of purpose. The registered manager needs to update the statement of purpose after any changes to the service and send this to the regulator. Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 5

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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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

raise any need for further assessment or specialist provision in relation to a child with the child’s education or training provider and the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(vii)

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Requirement Due date

In particular escalate assessments for education and healthcare plans for children. 3 November 2022

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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. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that any changes in risks are updated and recorded accordingly in risk assessments. 3 November 2022

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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 3 November 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 6 promotes their welfare.

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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

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

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the Statement of Purpose kept under review. This document should be updated (regulation 16 and schedule 1). The registered manager needs to update the statement of purpose after any changes to the service and send to the regulator. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5).

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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: 2678673 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Parkwood Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Flat 2, 5 Lancaster Road, Didsbury, Manchester M20 2TY

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Inspector

Nicola Clements, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2678673 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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