Children's home run by Courtyard Care Limited in Tameside

Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 1 SC062309 Registered provider: Courtyard Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned children’s home is registered to provide care for up to six children who may have physical and learning disabilities. This includes one place provided for short-break services.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in 2014.

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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: 17 November 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: SC062309 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/11/2021 Full Good 13/01/2020 Full Outstanding 16/10/2018 Full Outstanding 29/11/2017 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have made good progress since moving into the home. Their communication skills have improved as they respond to the methods used by the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged and supported to attend to aspects of their own self-care as far as they are able. This gives the children a sense of independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff attach great importance to the complex health needs of children and support them to attend all health appointments. This considerably improves children’s health outcomes. The children benefit immensely from having access to the home’s practice nurse and close working partnerships with occupational therapists and speech and language therapists. External professionals gave positive feedback in regard to working collaboratively with the manager and staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have built strong relationships with the staff who care for them. This helps children to build trust and feel safe and relaxed in their surroundings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff communicate with the children both verbally and through sign language. Staff have also recently begun learning body signing to support some children. This enables children to give their views and be actively involved in decisions about their life, such as choosing clothing and leisure activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy spending time with their families. Staff have established a positive rapport with parents and have spent time delivering training to empower parents. This equips parents with the skills and confidence to support their children during family time outside the home. Parents have praised this aspect of support from the manager and staff. This ensures that children maintain strong and positive connections with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with different opportunities to help support their social skills and establish friendships. Friends are encouraged to join in activities with the children, such as going bowling and to the cinema. This support’s children’s social and emotional development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s cultures are celebrated by the manager and staff. One parent discussed how the staff organised a party at the home for the families and children to celebrate Diwali. This supports children to understand different cultural practices and experience different cultural celebrations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is proactive planning and attention to supporting children who are preparing to move on. The manager has ensured that children have advocates to support them in this area. This means that children have a voice and their views are at the forefront of all planning and decision-making. Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 4 There is a focus on education in the home and children’s achievements are celebrated. However, not all children have an up-to-date personal education plan on file. This can impact on the progress that children make in education and limit the support delivered by the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well furnished and children’s bedrooms are personalised. This is a welcoming environment for children to live in.

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

Staff are supported by an experienced manager and a practice nurse who ensure that they are fully aware of the children’s vulnerabilities and complex health needs. A focus on regular competency training and assessments, overseen by the practice nurse, ensures that children are supported by a confident and knowledgeable staff team.

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

The children’s support plans and risk assessments set out, in specific detail, how the children are to be cared for. These plans are regularly reviewed. The identified support strategies and measures are implemented by staff and this has resulted in improved emotional, health and behavioural outcomes for children. As a result of the support delivered by the staff team, physical intervention has not been required in this home.

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

Staff are fully aware of and demonstrate a good knowledge of safeguarding policies and procedures to keep the children safe. This includes what to do in the event they witness a safeguarding incident or an allegation is made.

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

Safeguarding concerns are acted on in a timely manner. The manager is thorough and transparent in her investigations and shares information with relevant professionals. The manager ensures that action is taken to address any concerning staff practice. This ensures that children are safeguarded.

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

Safer recruitment practices are followed, with all required safeguarding checks being undertaken. This means that all staff working at the home are safe to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The children are cared for by a passionate and committed manager and deputy manager. There has been staffing instability during the last 12 months. Leaders and managers have recognised the challenges this has brought and have worked hard to train and develop a number of new staff members. This has resulted in a more stable staff team and an improvement in the delivery of consistent care for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most staff are qualified and have completed up-to-date mandatory training, including paediatric first aid, safeguarding in learning disability and health and Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 5 safety. However, some bank staff require refresher training in basic safeguarding and food hygiene.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are omissions from rotas which means that they do not always meet regulatory requirements. The manager’s actual hours worked and some full names are not recorded on the rotas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s case files include comprehensive information. However, some information is duplicated and in some records there are anomalies. In addition to this, not all children have up-to-date local authority plans in place. The manager has requested documentation but failed to adequately escalate requests. This has the potential to impact on the delivery of care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place on a monthly basis. The manager is consistent in supporting the team with research and development practice material to help improve the experience and outcomes for children. Examples include, improving children’s verbal communication and toilet training one child following significant development in their communication and motor skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff members receive regular supervision. They find this support beneficial for their emotional and professional development. However, not all records are completed in line with the organisation’s policy. As a result, staff are not always receiving the level of support they should.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from professionals was extremely positive. One professional discussed how they felt the manager went ‘above and beyond’ in arranging for the practice nurse to deliver bespoke training to education staff. This ensures that they understand the children’s complex health needs and the most effective ways to support them. The professional described the training as ‘an invaluable opportunity that they would not otherwise have had’. This level of support ensures that children are supported effectively by knowledgeable professionals in the home and while in school. Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 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

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

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

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the manager ensuring that all children’s up-to-date personal education plans are available to staff and children. 1 January 2023

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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—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of 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)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must ensure that staff undertake all refresher training within required timescales and a more 1 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 7 effective monitoring system is used to identify anomalies in children’s records.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation (14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the manager ensuring that up-to- date local authority plans are available for all children. The manager must escalate to the relevant professionals when plans are not received in a timely manner. 1 January 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that supervisions are completed for all staff in line with the organisation’s policy and that records evidence regular discussion and reflection on safeguarding scenarios and reflection on training undertaken. 1 January 2023

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date. 1 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 8 (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the manager’s working hours and full names of staff being recorded on the rota.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires;

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to—

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that reports are sent to Ofsted within required timescales and support the independent person to regularly seek feedback from parents and professionals. 1 January 2023

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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: SC062309 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Courtyard Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Courtyard Care Limited, Number 3 Siskin Drive, Middlemarch Business Park, Coventry CV3 4FJ

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Inspector

Kelly McCurdy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC062309 10 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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