Children's Home run by New Horizons NW Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 1 Registered provider: New Horizons (NW) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is one of a number of homes owned and operated by a private organisation.

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the home’s first inspection. The home and manager have been registered with Ofsted since April 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: 2670262 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected. Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children said that they are happy living in the home. They have trusting and positive relationships with staff. Children say that if they have a problem they can talk to staff and staff will always help. Children also understand how to make a complaint. When children have raised concerns, their issues are addressed and responded to appropriately. This positive response ensures that they feel listened to and their views are valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children are doing well in school. However, one child has not been to school since the start of the new school year. Staff are completing educational activities with the child, but this is not sufficient. There is not enough challenge to ensure that the child’s educational needs are met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to a wide range of community-based activities, such as youth clubs, dance classes and cadets. They also have time with friends. This means that children have age-appropriate social interactions, and can build skills and strategies to form and maintain relationships and gain a sense of their own identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Each child has individualised plans, which are detailed and give clear guidance to staff. Staff have demonstrated a good understanding of the plans for each child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health and well-being needs are met. They have access to health professionals when needed. Specialist external help is sourced when necessary.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is supported in line with relevant plans, ensuring that it meets the individual needs of each child and that they can maintain relationships that are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who are new to the home are always welcomed sensitively and with the best possible planning. There is a robust referral process, which is used to assess the needs of children who already live in the home and the impact for children who may be new to the home. This ensures that there is a child-centred approach when making decisions about whether children should live together.

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

Each child’s individual risks are detailed in their risk assessments. These are robust documents that are frequently updated and give clear guidance to staff to ensure consistent responses to children’s behaviours. Staff understand these documents and put them into practice.

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

When children go missing from care, there are clear and comprehensive plans in place for staff to follow. The manager and staff work collaboratively with external Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 4 professionals, such as the local police and missing-from-home team, to ensure well- coordinated responses when children go missing from the home.

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

Incidents when children are physically held are reasonable and proportionate. They are recorded appropriately and all relevant professionals notified. The manager has evaluated each incident and children are given the opportunity for a debrief following an incident. However, these focus on the child’s behaviour and do not ensure that the child understands the reason why a hold was necessary.

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

The manager has created a document to review and reflect on restraints used. Through this, the manager has been able to reflect with staff during team meetings and review practice, and this has reduced the number of restraints used.

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

Imposed consequences are not evaluated for effectiveness. The manager should ensure that all incidents of control and discipline are recorded and have regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair and effective.

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

Room searches are carried out when necessary. These are done sensitively and are appropriately recorded, including the reasons for the search and efforts to seek the child’s consent.

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

Staff have completed mandatory training. However, they do not have training to meet the children’s individual needs, such as training in knife crime, substance misuse and eating disorders.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager shows an ambitious vision, with high expectations for what all children can achieve. The staff are positive about the manager and describe there being a supportive environment. Staff spoken to describe the manager as readily available to provide advice and guidance.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager effectively uses internal and external monitoring of the home, and has a good vision for the development that she wants to achieve in the home. Leaders and the manager have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. This enables them to take effective action when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that plans for individual children comprehensively identify their needs. Plans take into account the local authority care plan for each child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. However, this is not always practice related and misses the opportunity to support staff to understand how their feelings impact on their responses to children’s behaviour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has adequate staff to meet the needs of the children. Staff are suitably vetted and qualified. There are robust arrangements in place for recruitment, and these include children when appropriate. Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 5 The physical environment is maintained to a high standard and it meets the needs of the children. It feels and looks like a family home for children. There were some maintenance issues, which were addressed during the inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 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

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

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the provider must ensure that they pursue referrals to external professionals to ensure that the children’s educational and health needs are met. 27 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— 27 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 7 ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that staff have completed training that is relevant to children living in the home, such as knife crime, substance misuse and eating disorders.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 27 January 2023

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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

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure;

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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 (3)(a)(vii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the effectiveness of any consequence is evaluated.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the registered person must ensure that following a restraint the child is spoken to about the reason why the restraint has been necessary. 27 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: 2670262 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Horizons (NW) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 12, Riversway Business Village, Navigation Way, Preston, Lancashire PR2 2YP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Natalie Waterhouse

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Inspector

Katie Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2670262 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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