Children's Home run by Eagle Children’s Home in Wolverhampton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 1 SC356565 Registered provider: Eagle Children’s Home Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered in March 2008 and is privately owned. It provides care for up to two children who have experienced childhood instability which has resulted in trauma and associated complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since 2013. She is suitably qualified and experienced.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/03/2022 Full Good 31/07/2019 Full Good 24/07/2018 Full Good 02/05/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home. One child has lived at the home for four years. He is getting prepared to move on from the home in line with his care plan. Another child is settled and has been living at the home for over a year.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children form exceptional relationships with the manager and the staff team. Relationships are based on trust and respect. Children follow the guidance of staff. They have a sense of belonging, which helps them to feel valued. As a result, children can talk openly and honestly to staff. A staff member said, ‘We teach children our core values and principles.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children are happy, settled and enjoy living at the home. They have made considerable progress from their starting points. For example, children’s education attendance and relationships with their family have improved. As a result, children thrive in a home that is loving and nurturing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff go above and beyond to ensure that children stay in touch with family members who are important to them. As a result, children begin to form important bonds with those who they love. A child said, ‘I feel listened to because management were continually pressuring contact arrangements with my dad and now things are moving in the right direction.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s education, and children attend education placements which are suitable to meet their individual needs. One child’s attendance is now 100%, while another child has passed some exams. These are positive achievements from the children’s starting points.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are fit and well. They understand how important this is to them. Staff lead by example and encourage healthy food choices and exercise. As a result, personal hygiene, diet and fitness are improving. One child said, ‘I love going to the gym and football. I like to stay fit.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make their feelings known. They have not felt it necessary to make any formal complaints because they speak openly about their wishes and feelings during key-work sessions and house meetings. This means that any grumbles are addressed before they become a complaint.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to a range of on- and off-site activities. Staff encourage children to take part in community activities but experiences are sometimes limited. For example, children say they would like to spend more time on a one-to-one basis with staff rather than take part in group activities. Another child said he would like to go away on holiday with staff before he leaves the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 4

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

Children are safe and protected from harm. They enjoy living at the home and do not go missing. Staff are aware of each child’s vulnerabilities. Risk management plans provide staff with an in-depth knowledge of how to keep children safe.

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

Staff have excellent relationships with children. They lead by example and help children to follow the rules and boundaries in the home. For example, children have individual curfews. Children respect the rules and boundaries set by staff. This helps to keep children safe. Children understand what is expected of them and trust decisions made by staff. As a result, children are protected from harm.

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

‘[Name of child] has positive relationships with staff. He responds and reacts to boundaries well. For example, if he is not abiding by his curfew, staff confiscate his phone. He complies and is happy where he is living.’

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

Staff are trained in the use of physical intervention and only use it as a last resort. The excellent relationships staff have with children means that they can de-escalate situations before they need to use restraint. As a result, the need to use physical intervention is decreasing. A parent said, ‘Staff respect and understand him. [Name of child] finds it hard to trust but he trusted them from day one. They don’t restrain him or argue with him.’

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

When incidents occur, staff are quick to respond and take effective action to plan how to protect and keep the children safe. For example, a child has smoked cigarettes in his bedroom. Staff supply a safe plan about how to keep him safe. This includes carrying out a room search. During the monitoring, staff found no reason to believe the child was continuing to smoke in his bedroom. However, the risk assessment has not been updated to remove the room searches. This is a missed opportunity to promote how the child is helping to keep himself safe.

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

Staff promote positive behaviour and offer rewards and incentives. When conflict arises between children, staff use their skills and knowledge to promote calm and peace. During one incident, where a child had hit another child, action was taken to resolve the disagreement. As a result, peace was restored, and children continue to live together in harmony.

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

Children benefit from praise and rewards. Staff acknowledge positive behaviour. This helps children to take responsibility for their actions. As a result, children are becoming more socially mature and respectful of themselves and others. Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a long-standing, experienced registered manager. She holds a suitable qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The provider has not notified Ofsted in writing that there was a change of responsible individual in 2019. Despite their length of time in post, safer recruitment checks have not been carried out for the new responsible individual. The provider intends to address the shortfalls in safer recruitment checks and formally notify Ofsted of the change of responsible individual.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff team know the children well. The manager spends time with the children. However, children would like to be more involved in having their say and to be helped to understand decisions made by the manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are skilled and qualified to a suitable level. Other training is provided to staff to help them to manage children’s additional needs, such as autism spectrum disorder. As a result, staff have the most up-to-date knowledge to care for the children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are supervised, appraised and supported to further develop their skills. This effective oversight and support give staff opportunities to review and improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager checks the home to ensure that it is running effectively. She is aware of the strengths and areas of development in the home. Staff are positive about the manager and describe her as being supportive. The manager is dedicated and committed to drive improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and parents speak well of the manager and the staff team. Relationships are good and communication is effective. A parent commented about how he feels that the home has supported his son. He said, ‘This has been the perfect place for him over the last four years. They have supported him second to none, I can’t fault them.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 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

An organisation may only carry on a home if—

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Requirement Due date

the organisation has notified HMCI of the name, address and position in the organisation of the responsible individual.

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit to carry on the home; and

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Requirement Due date

the individual is financially fit to carry on the home.

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of the matters in paragraphs 1 and 3 to 6 of Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

satisfy the requirements in paragraph (5)(a) to (c); and

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Requirement Due date

have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which the responsible individual is nominated. (Regulation 26 (4)(ii) (5)(a)(b)(c)(d) (6)(a)(b) (7)(a)(b)) 24 February 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children’s case records are accessible to those who need to view them. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that children are supported to express themselves as individuals and are given an appropriate degree of freedom and choice. This is in relation to activities and personal items, such as clothing, technology and leisure items. Where a child’s preferences are unreasonable or cannot be met for safeguarding reasons, staff should discuss this with the child to help them understand why. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.21)

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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: SC356565 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Eagle Children’s Home

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Millicent Vernon

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Inspector

Michelle Spruce, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC356565 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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