Children's Home run by Fairfield Residential Limited in Trafford

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 1 SC387148

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Registered provider: Fairfield Residential Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The provider states in its statement of purpose that this home provides care for up to five children with learning disabilities and/or autism spectrum disorder. The home is run by a private company and provides education on site at a registered school. The inspector only inspected the social care provision at this school.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered in December 2015 and is suitably experienced and qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

Date of last inspection: 20 September 2022

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Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspector evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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The care of children

Children have good relationships with the staff who care for them and enjoy a range of activities inside and outside of the home. Staff encourage children to build on their social skills and to maintain relationships with their peers.

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The care of children

Children’s health needs are met, and they have access to appropriate therapy services that support them with their individual needs. The manager has recently obtained support from the local learning disability team to carry out a behaviour assessment for a child. However, individual behaviour support plans do not always reflect learning and provide staff with current information.

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The care of children

Children use a wide range of communication aids and are developing their ability to make choices. The staff understand the children’s needs well and encourage them to communicate their views, wishes and feelings. However, following incidents, children are not being engaged in debriefs.

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The care of children

The manager has advocated on a child’s behalf with regards to the arrangements for them spending time with their family. The manager ensures that factors such as travel and having appropriate resources are considered. As a result, children have positive experiences.

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The care of children

Children have clear individual targets that staff support them to achieve. Targets are reviewed and monitored regularly and are in line with children’s care plans.

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The safety of children

Children have clear risk management plans which are understood and followed by staff so that children are kept safe.

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The safety of children

Children who require the use of mechanical restraint to keep them safe now have these detailed in their education, health and care plans. However, the manager has not arranged for the use of mechanical restraint to be included in the statement of purpose and behaviour management policy.

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The safety of children

Children’s incidents are decreasing and the use of physical restraint in the home is rare. However, there have been occasions when restraint has been used and has not been recorded appropriately. This reduces oversight and opportunities for learning and reflection. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 3 The manager has met the previous requirement with regards to removing internal locks on the doors of communal areas and identifying appropriate staff sleeping arrangements. This means that children are freely able to access areas of their home.

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The safety of children

Staff are aware of the procedure to follow in the event of a fire and all children have individual plans which support them to leave the building when the alarm sounds.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The manager has acted appropriately to complaints that have been made and these have been resolved satisfactorily.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The manager has attended training to support her to develop her evaluative skills for reviewing the quality of care. However, there is a lack of feedback from professionals and parents which will help to inform future practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The manager uses supervision, team meetings and independent visits to monitor the progress of children. However, she does not always have full oversight of incidents in the home or evaluate staff’s responses effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

There is now allocated time on the rota for staff to ensure that they have time to receive the information that they need to support the children effectively. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/09/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 07/12/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/05/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 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, the 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

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

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure; 17 February 2023 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 6 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) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the use of mechanical restraint being included in the behaviour management policy.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to any use of restraint being recorded appropriately and evaluated by an appropriate person within the necessary time frame and that children receive debriefs.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (1) (3)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the use of mechanical restraint being included in the statement of purpose. 17 February 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

promotes their welfare. 17 February 2023 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(e)(g)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the manager ensuring that staff have the information needed to support children effectively by updating children’s plans.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to the manager obtaining feedback from parents and professionals to inform the care provided at the home. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Fairfield Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 108 Whitworth Road, Rochdale OL12 0JJ

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Inspector

Kerri Lynch-Mahoney, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: SC387148 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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