Children's Home run by Hopscotch Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 1 SC432741 Registered provider: Hopscotch Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to five children.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has a manager who registered with Ofsted in November 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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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: sustained effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/03/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness 22/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/01/2020 Full Good 08/10/2019 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good care that meets their individual needs and enhances their day- to-day lives. Children recognise the good progress that they are making and speak highly of staff. They enjoy positive experiences, such as holidays abroad, and fun and fulfilling activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good school attendance and are doing well. There is evidence of effective partnership working with school staff. This helps to ensure that children receive the necessary support to overcome barriers to learning. A more structured routine for one child who has a reduced timetable would help to prepare him for his return to full-time education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children have access to relevant healthcare services and support them to develop healthy lifestyles. An in-house therapist works closely with children and with staff to support their understanding of children’s emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s religious and cultural needs are understood and met. Staff ensure that children are supported to observe their religion. For example, waking night staff were provided during Ramadan to support a child to prepare meals after sundown.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are developing aspirations, which are well supported by staff. For example, one child hopes to become a police officer, so staff have supported him to join the local police cadets. Children’s talents and interests are encouraged, and they take part in wide range of hobbies, including music lessons and a football club.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to share their views, wishes and feelings about their own care and the home in general. One child described how the use of a room had been changed at the children’s request and how they been involved in choosing décor and furnishings.

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

Children say that they feel safe and well cared for. They express confidence in the manager and staff, and confirm that they can share any concerns or worries. The manager works closely with external professionals to ensure that risks to children’s safety and well-being are understood and addressed. There is evidence of decreasing risk and reducing concerns about children’s behaviours, which has resulted in children enjoying greater levels of independence. Children do not go missing from this home. Two children who currently live at the home arrived at a time when there were significant concerns about them frequently going missing. However, this is no longer a concern for either child. Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 4 Risks are clearly identified, and staff are provided with guidance about how to maintain children’s safety. In a small number of cases, this guidance lacks clarity or is not fully up to date. This means that staff may not be clear about what is

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

Staff understand children and why they may behave in certain ways. They are skilled in de-escalating challenging situations and, as a result, there have been no incidents where children have been physically restrained.

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

At times, children may be given a consequence to assist them in understanding the impact of a negative behaviour. Improvements are required in how consequences are recorded. This will enable the manager to monitor their effectiveness and consistency and identify any areas for improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a manager in post who has recently completed registration with Ofsted. The manager is highly child-centred and communicates a strong passion for achieving the best outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are motivated and speak highly of the leadership of the home. They describe good levels of support and a culture of positive challenge and reflective practice. The manager makes good use of supervision, during which supportive discussion takes place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are effective arrangements for staff training. Mandatory learning includes courses such as safeguarding and positive behaviour support. In addition, training that is specific to children’s needs is provided in a range of formats, including workshops with external specialists.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a clear vision for the home and shows a clear understanding of its strengths and needs. Internal monitoring has recently been reviewed and increased to include audits by senior managers. Some aspects of internal monitoring could be strengthened to assist the manager in quickly identifying shortfalls.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s six-monthly review of quality is completed within required timescales and provides some detail about children’s outcomes. The review would benefit from more evaluation and clearer plans for development, which would help to support the home’s ongoing improvement. Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 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 registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 6 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 6 a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should make best use of information from internal monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when children are not participating in full-time education, they are supported to sustain or regain their confidence in education and be engaged in suitable structured activities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards, page 28, paragraph 5.15)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s risk management plans are kept relevant and updated. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 15)

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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: SC432741 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hopscotch Care Limited

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Inspector

Marie Cordingley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC432741 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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