Children's home run by Gracewells Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 1 Registered provider: Gracewells Care 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 provider. The provider states in its statement of purpose that the home provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 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

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: 2545733 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into the home in a planned way. Prior to moving in, they are invited to visit the home and meet the staff and children already living there. This helps to prepare children and help them settle in. Children’s views about their preferences on who they would like to live with are listened to. However, one child was not provided with a copy of the children’s guide when they moved in. The children said that they are happy and like living here. They benefit from a warm and homely environment. They have access to good facilities, such as a cinema room and snooker room. Staff work hard to develop positive relationships with the children. One social worker commented that, ‘[Name of child] has been able to trust adults again.’ Staff work hard to get to know children and their individual needs. As a result, children are making good progress in all areas. Children are provided with opportunities to enjoy a variety of activities, such as

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

holidays, trips to theme parks and white-water rafting. Individual interests and hobbies are encouraged. One child has been supported to attend a support group for children with shared experiences. This has enabled him to develop social skills, enjoy weekends away and be involved in the recruitment of social work practitioners. At the time of this inspection, the children and staff were preparing for a local awards evening, in which they had been nominated for awards. Staff promote and encourage children to attend education provisions. Staff work hard to identify education placements appropriate to children’s needs. This supports children to thrive and engage in their education. When education placements do not meet children’s needs, staff advocate for them to ensure that their needs are met and they receive the support that they require. Staff develop positive relationships with education staff. This helps provide consistency in the care provided to children

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

both at home and in school. Staff support children to safely spend time with family. Staff respect the relationships that children have with their family and those important to them. One parent commented, ‘I have never known carers like it. They are amazing. The manager has helped me rebuild my relationship with my son and we now see each other regularly.’ The manager recognises when children’s needs are not being met at the home and when the safety and well-being of the other children are compromised. She takes appropriate action to ensure that suitable alternative placements are identified. When children move on, staff work hard to support positive transitions for them.

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

Staff know the children well. Staff benefit from consultations with the local authority psychologist. This supports staff to provide individualised care and support for children with complex needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 4 Staff work hard to understand children’s risks. However, risk-assessment documents do not include all relevant risks for children. Furthermore, risk-management plans do not include clear strategies for staff to follow and have not been updated following incidents. Physical restraint is used only to ensure the safety of children and staff. Debriefs are undertaken with children after a restraint, and their views are obtained following incidents. However, Ofsted was not notified of an incident that involved police attending the home and holding a child. This reduces the regulator’s oversight. Staff work hard to understand children’s triggers and underlying needs. As a result,

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

staff are able to provide children with appropriate support in times of crisis. For one child, incidents of aggression have significantly reduced. Children are very rarely missing from home. When children do go missing, staff manage these incidents well and actively look for them. They have a good understanding of the potential risks for children and take appropriate action. The manager ensures that return home interviews are undertaken. Staff manage incidents of heightened behaviour well. The responsible individual reviews incidents when the registered manager is involved. However, one member of staff was not debriefed following an incident. This resulted in a lack of clarity and reflection on why certain actions were taken. Children receive independent therapeutic support when they are struggling with their mental health. Staff undertake appropriate checks on children following incidents of self-harm. However, room searches to further ensure the child’s safety

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

have not been carried out following these incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is new to the role and has recently registered with Ofsted. She was previously employed in the home as the deputy manager. She has an established relationship with the children and staff team. Children are cared for by an established and experienced staff team. Agency staff are not used as the manager strongly believes that the children should be cared for by staff they are familiar with. However, the home is not currently fully staffed. This means that there are low staffing numbers on shift to care for the children. One child living in the home requires a high level of supervision. This leaves a potential shortfall in staffing should incidents occur. Staff said that the manager is supportive and works hard for the children. The manager knows the children well and is actively involved in their daily care. She advocates for children when decisions are made that are not in the child’s best

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

interests. Staff benefit from regular supervision and team meetings that are child-focused. Guest speakers are invited to deliver workshops on specific topics. However, staff have not received training specific to all children’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 5 Children’s families speak highly of the manager and the care she provides to the children. One parent described her as ‘amazing’. The manager has developed positive relationships with all professionals involved in the children’s care, and they all speak highly of her. However, the local authority documentation for one child is out of date and this has not been challenged or escalated. The manager’s use of internal and external monitoring of the home is good. Feedback is regularly obtained to ensure that the team is meeting the needs of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that they have up-to-date local authority documentation on file and that action is taken to challenge when this is not provided in a timely manner. 5 January 2023

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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;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. 5 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 7 (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that risk assessments and management plans include current information in respect of all risks for children, with clear strategies to minimise risk. The registered person should also ensure that staff undertake appropriate room checks following incidents of self-harm and that all staff involved in incidents are debriefed.

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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

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

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that staff undertake training specific to the children’s needs and that staffing is sufficient to the meet children’s needs. 5 January 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(b)) 5 January 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s guide is made available to all children when their placement in the home is agreed (or on arrival at the home if the placement is made in an emergency) and that the guide is explained to each child to make sure that they understand it. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 4.21) Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 8

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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: 2545733 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Gracewells Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 21 Jubilee House, East Beach, Lytham St Annes FY8 5FT

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Inspector

Claire Hobbs, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2545733 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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