Children's Home run by Unity Residential Care Services Limited in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 1 SC426318 Registered provider: Unity Residential Care Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to three children who have had adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2020. She has a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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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: 12 January 2022

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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: SC426318 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/01/2022 Full Good 08/01/2020 Full Outstanding 22/01/2019 Full Outstanding 08/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out of the home and one child has moved into the home. At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a warm and comfortable environment. The decor is modern and bright, and personalised artwork is on view in communal spaces for all to see and express pride in. Children enjoy open spaces to relax or play that suit their cognitive needs. The dynamics of the home allow children to develop a sense of pride in where they live.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to attend and engage in activities and hobbies that they enjoy. Children take part in jujitsu classes and are involved in local sports clubs. The inspectors saw one child building toy brick models, following the instruction manual with the support of a member of staff. This approach encourages children to build positive relationships and improve their self-esteem through having fun.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress with their education. Staff support children with targets and attainment. For example, an additional tutor was sought to assist a child with their English and mathematics targets before their GCSE examinations. This helped the child to progress his reading age by three years. Staff’s proactive approach helps children to make measurable progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the health and well-being of the children in their care. Healthcare plans are informative and outline the needs of each child. The staff and manager advocate for each child and access additional specialist support when required. For example, they have made referrals to local mental health services, which have supported children with recent autism spectrum disorder diagnoses.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience well-planned moves into and on from the home. The manager carefully considers the impact of new children on the needs of children who are already resident. Staff support children with good independence work and carefully plan transitions when children leave. One child has left the home since the last inspection. He enjoyed a leaving meal, which children and adults from across the company attended, and a go-karting activity of his choice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children maintain positive relationships with the people who are most important to them. Staff facilitate family time and visits and offer a joint approach to care for the children. One family member said, ‘The home is his main consistency; they have so much patience with him. I think they have helped him to understand his emotions better.’ Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 4

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

Staff work hard to keep children safe. Effective planning processes help staff to understand the risks posed to children and develop individualised plans that assist in reducing risk and harm over time. Staff encourage children to take part in reviewing their individual support plans. This ensures that information is current, that children know what their goals are and how they will be supported to achieve them. Because of this approach, children feel supported and protected.

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

Children take part in direct work to address their individual needs. As a result, children make good progress. For example, children are supported to take age- appropriate risks as part of the development of their independent living skills. One child has been supported to travel independently to and from school by bus.

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

The close and nurturing relationships that children have with staff mean that they can share their worries and concerns. Children are confident to speak out if they have concerns. Investigations into complaints and allegations of harm are handled fairly and effectively, helping to keep children safe from harm.

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

Staff de-escalate incidents well, and the use of a therapeutic parenting style is evident. Staff only ever physically intervene as a last resort to keep the children and others safe. The manager reviews the handling of incidents to improve practice. The manager completes debriefs with staff who have been involved in the use of the restraint. However, the majority of these debriefs do not take place in a timely way. For example, one debrief took place two months after an incident of restraint.

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

Overall, staff and managers understand and manage risk well. Risk management plans are clear and include up-to-date information that supports staff to understand presenting risks. Staff follow the guidance in children’s plans and assessments well for the most part. This helps to keep children as safe as possible. However, inspectors found that on one occasion, a member of staff did not report an allegation from a child to the managers for two days. This goes against organisational policy and means that there was a delay in responding to what happened. Once managers did know, they took effective action.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A suitable and registered manager leads the home. The manager shows high ambition for the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good knowledge of children’s starting points and what they have accomplished since living at the home. Management oversight is mostly effective. However, the manager has not identified errors in recording in children’s risk assessments, children’s appointment documents and rotas. These errors have not had an impact on children’s progress and experiences to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff enjoy working at the home and are positive about the support that they receive from the manager. The manager is ambitious about the children and Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 5 passionate about the support she delivers to her staff team. One member of staff informed the inspectors, ‘[The manager] provides fantastic support, both professionally and personally. It’s encouraging that she takes time out of her busy day to listen to me on a personal level.’ Overall, staff feel positive about their work.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Over half of the staff hold the required level 3 diploma in residential childcare (or equivalent). A small number of staff are currently working to achieve this qualification, and the manager includes this information in her development plan. Plans are in place to ensure that staff complete their qualification within the required timescales.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff complete a wide range of training that informs their practice. The manager is proactive in sourcing additional training when needed. For example, following a child’s recent diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, the manager made it a priority for staff to complete training that specialised in supporting children with autism spectrum disorder. This proactive approach ensures that staff are provided with the knowledge and skills to care for children effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision sessions are regular and of good quality. These help staff to generate ideas and reflect on their practice. New staff are well supported through a clear, effective induction process. This ensures that children receive high-quality care from skilled and well-informed staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has formed positive relationships with children’s families and professionals to ensure that children’s needs are met effectively. This partnership working results in the children receiving good-quality, coordinated care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has failed to notify Ofsted of all allegations of harm, in line with regulation. This prevents the regulator from having oversight of significant events and helping to ensure that children are sufficiently safeguarded. Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 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

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. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii)) 27 February 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 27 February 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all children’s case records are kept up to date. This specifically relates to ensuring that records in the home are accurate and clear. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 7

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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: SC426318 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Unity Residential Care Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 Lymevale Court, Lyme Drive, Parklands, Stoke- on-Trent ST4 6NW

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Inspectors

Kev Brammer, Social Care Inspector Chanel Bryant, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC426318 9 regulates and inspects 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

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