Children's home run by Wrottesley Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 1 Registered provider: Wrottesley Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home. The home is registered to provide care for up to three children with complex needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 26 September 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 27 September 2022, due to shortfalls in all areas that impacted negatively on the quality of care that children receive and the progress they were making.

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Information about this children’s home

A monitoring visit was carried out on 2 November 2022 to review the progress being made by leaders to meet the shortfalls raised and improve the quality of care children receive. This visit demonstrated that managers had taken action to meet requirements under regulation 8, regulation 21 and regulation 35.

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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: 27 September 2022

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

27/09/2022 Full Inadequate 16/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 21/04/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 02/12/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children currently live in the home. They have lived here for nearly a year or more. The children are provided with stability, and they feel safe in their home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with staff, who know them well. As a result of these positive relationships, children are open with staff and seek support when they are worried and upset. Staff treat children with respect and talk to them with positive regard and offer encouragement and appropriate emotional warmth.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to spend time with people who are important to them. This includes inviting family members to celebrate children’s birthdays with the staff team and other children living in the home. Staff choose to attend children’s celebratory meals even when they are not working. During the inspection, staff and children had their Christmas party. Staff who were not on shift attended and brought home-made cakes, and children and staff spent time together enjoying the party. This reinforces the positive relationships staff and children share and demonstrates the commitment staff have to children’s care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop independence skills at a pace suited to their individual needs. Children are learning to cook, do their laundry and ensure their personal spaces are clean and tidy. One child recently built a set of drawers that they are proud of.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are unconditionally supported to achieve their goals. For example, one child has changed his mind several times about his further education and aspirations. Staff have continued to advocate for him and support his goals. While he waits to secure an education placement, staff are supporting him to undertake work on his independence skills and online training. Two children who attend school have recent attendance rates of 100%.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to set themselves achievable goals and targets and they receive praise and rewards for reaching them. These incentives help children to recognise areas of self-development, feel proud of their achievements and increase their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health is improving. Staff support children to be more active and make healthy choices. They encourage and support children to attend appointments for both their physical and mental health when required. The manager has raised concerns and advocated for children when timescales to meet children’s health needs have been too long. As a result, one child was seen by health practitioners three to six months sooner than initially stated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff decorated the house to celebrate Halloween and Christmas. One child helped decorate the Christmas tree. Staff recognised what a positive step this was, and that Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 4 this child is feeling part of the home. As a result of staff knowing children well, they recognise and praise children’s individual progress in areas that are only measurable through knowing and understanding children’s experiences.

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

Staff support children to understand dangers and to keep themselves safe. For example, staff engage children in online learning courses about topics such as bullying and internet safety. Staff talk openly about sexual health and positive relationships, to ensure children know they can speak with them about any questions they might have.

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

Children rarely go missing from home. There have been two instances of children going missing during this period. Staff have responded to the situations well. They followed children’s plans, looked for children and involved relevant professionals to return children home as quickly as possible. When children return home, they are given a warm welcome and supported to talk through their feelings. Children receive timely independent return home interviews, and this information is shared with the manager to help prevent further instances of children going missing from home.

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

Due to the positive relationships and knowledge of children’s individual needs and personalities, staff de-escalate potentially unsafe situations. When children’s behaviours change, staff understand the reasons for this and put in measures to support children.

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

Staff only use physical restraint as a last resort, to prevent children from harming themselves or others. They use a range of strategies to try to de-escalate these incidents. Staff now ensure that records of these events include all relevant information. This enables the registered manager to review these incidents and ensure that the use of restraint is necessary and proportionate.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has worked hard to make positive changes. She has recognised shortfalls and been proactive in implementing new systems. This has had a positive impact on the quality of care children receive and the support staff receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is motivated, committed and passionate about children receiving good care. She is ambitious for their futures and consequently advocates for children and supports them wholeheartedly. She knows children well and understands their individual needs. She shares her knowledge with the staff team and leads with high standards and consistency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a strong sense of leadership, which is echoed by feedback from staff and external professionals. Staff said that the manager is approachable and supportive and they work as a team. Professionals report they have positive relationships with the manager and they are kept well informed about children and the communication Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 5 is strong. All professionals involved in the inspection process recognise the progress children are making living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report that morale in the home is good. They feel supported in their roles and responsibilities through having regular training, supervision, appraisals and staff meetings. Staff are proud of their work with children and the homely environment they have created.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has begun working on collating information for the quality of care report. The previous requirement in relation to this has been restated as the report is not yet due to be submitted to Ofsted. All other previous requirements have been met. No new requirements have been raised as a result of this inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 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

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the previous inspection and is restated. 31 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: 1280623 7

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Childrens home details

Registered provider: Wrottesley Care Limited

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Childrens home details

Registered provider address: Office 28, 28 Cleveland Street, Wolverhampton WV1 3HT

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Inspectors

Jodie Lewis, Social Care Inspector Glenis Staiger-Grant, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1280623 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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