Children's home run by One Step Care Limited Assurance visit report: 2552036 4

Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 1 Registered provider: One Step 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 managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who may have emotional and/or social difficulties, learning disabilities, mental disorders (excluding learning disability), drug dependence and alcohol dependence.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted on 13 January 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Since the last inspection, two children have left the home and three have been admitted.

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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: 7 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 for children’s home: 2552036 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience nurturing care and support through positive and trusting relationships with staff. Staff know the children well and provide consistent and skilled care. This is reflected in the progress the children make at the home and in the positive and respectful relationships the children have with each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming and homely. Children actively participate in planning how their home will look. Bedrooms are personalised and planned with the children through their own development plan. Careful thought is given to how to do this appropriately to reflect the children’s age, interests and background. Handmade artwork is on display throughout the home. This promotes a sense of belonging. It celebrates each child and what is important to them. Children’s plans show them actively involved in browsing, shopping, painting and upcycling objects for use in their home. Children were proud to show me what they had done. However, there were minor repairs needed in the home. Door monitors are routinely fitted on children’s bedroom doors without an individual risk assessment being in place for their use.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to see their families where possible. They adapt plans to help ensure that these visits are positive experiences. Some children have plans in place so that they can stay overnight at a friend’s home. Friends also visit the home regularly. This embeds a sense of belonging and community and helps maintain friendships for the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who have left fed back that the skills they learned at the home prepared them for independence. They continue to have strong and trusting relationships with the team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good attendance at education provision. The children have been on holiday and are supported to create memory books personalised to their life experiences and taste. A parent said that for one child a reduction in medication since staying at the home has led to a vast improvement in the way they behave. Professionals and staff commented on the same child’s increased ability to focus, learn and communicate their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The team values and respects the children’s views and professionals and family confirm this. Advocacy is promoted within the home. However, children’s views are not regularly reflected in reports from the independent person. There has been no regular consultation with children’s families and professionals to give an independent view of the service. Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 4

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

Children are helped by the team through key-work sessions and themed evenings to learn about risks they may face, including those risks identified in care plans as well. Clear recording in regularly updated risk assessments helps children to become increasingly safe.

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

There have been no physical interventions in this period, which reflects the positive relationships between staff and children in the home. Children are learning how to deal with difficult emotions. This promotes emotional well-being and gives children skills to manage difficult situations safely.

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

Children rarely go missing from this home. When they have, there has been a swift response from staff, and they have worked closely with others to find where children are and support them home. Staff follow protocols where children do go missing and risk assessments are updated after incidents. Follow-up work is completed with the child upon their return to increase their safety awareness.

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

Health and safety risks are managed well in general by staff and checks and risk assessments are in place. However, some fire doors are propped open with door wedges. This poses a risk if a fire occurred as doors would not automatically shut to protect children and staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and the responsible individual have high aspirations for the children. Staff follow this ethos and work hard to ensure that children have opportunities to progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the strengths and weaknesses of the team and has implemented monitoring systems and changes to supervisions and team meetings to ensure that good practice is recorded and communicated. This promotes consistency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Transition plans for children leaving set them up for success. The children are helped by being placed geographically close to their roots and through the family environment that the manager and team create. This prepares them for adulthood and independence and promotes links and friendships in their community which help them become part of their own community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The members of the team feel supported by the manager and deputy and can describe the progress of the children they work with.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides a wide range of training to the team to ensure safe delivery of care, including training specific to the children’s needs. The manager also purchases resources relevant to the children’s needs and use them to develop the knowledge of staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 5 Professionals report that the manager actively sources specialist support for children and that they enjoy good and effective working relationships with the team. They also report that the manager and responsible individual challenge them if reports and paperwork are due and are strong advocates for the children. They describe a positive experience of working together, which achieves good outcomes for the children living here. Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 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

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)(b)) 14 October 2022

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected.

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This refers to door monitors being used routinely without an individual risk assessment in place. 16 December Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s homes is a nurturing and supportive environment that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. In particular, ensure that all repairs are addressed in a timely way. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  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. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: 2552036 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: One Step Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 43 Bewicke View, Birtley, Chester-le-Street, Durham DH3 1RU

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Inspectors

Carol Jagger, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2552036 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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