Children's home run by Next Stage 4Life Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 2602585 1 Registered provider: Next Stage 4Life Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there was one child living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The post for a registered manager is vacant.

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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: 21 September 2022

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

This home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 21 and 22 September 2022. Following this inspection, Ofsted issued two compliance notices under section 22A of the Care Standards Act 2000. These related to regulation 12, the protection of children standard and regulation 13, the leadership and management standard.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

Ofsted also issued a notice restricting accommodation at the home. This notice was with immediate effect from 22 September 2022 until 14 December 2022. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 2 A monitoring visit was carried out on 1 November 2022. Following this visit, a case review was held where the compliance notices were deemed to have been met. The notice restricting accommodation at the home was also lifted. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/09/2022 Full Inadequate 27/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the child well. They listen to them and invest time in them. When the child has any worries, they say that they can speak to the staff, who will listen to them. When the child has expressed their wish for extended time with friends, this was reviewed, and changes were made to their plans. This shows that the child’s wishes and views are valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff promote the child’s time with family and friends. They welcome them into the home and also support the child to spend time away from the home with friends. This means that the child can maintain relationships which are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is supported and encouraged to develop their independence skills to help prepare them for adulthood. This is done in a way which is compatible with the child’s age, ability and emotional needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s school attendance has improved. The manager and staff have worked alongside the school and a tutor to ensure that the child’s educational needs are met. A representative from the school said, ‘I have been very impressed with the support, the effort and the patience that they have shown in trying to re-engage [name of child] in education.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that the child’s health needs are met and that they have access to local health services. The child is provided with therapeutic care and support which is informed by the company’s therapist. This means that staff can support the child’s complex needs effectively.

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

The child’s individual risks are detailed in their risk management plans and safety plan. These are robust documents which are updated following significant events and give clear guidance to the staff to ensure consistent responses to the child’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

There have been no occasions when restraint has been used. This demonstrates that the strategies detailed in the child’s plans and the training staff have received are effective.

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

When the child goes missing from care, there are clear and comprehensive plans in place for staff to follow. The manager and staff work collaboratively with external professionals, such as the local police and missing-from-home team, to ensure well- coordinated responses when the child goes missing from the home. This has resulted in a reduction in the number of episodes that the child has been missing. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 5 The child has trusting relationships with the staff and, as a result, has shared their worries and concerns. The manager and staff have taken all necessary action to investigate and address these concerns sensitively, ensuring that the needs of the child were prioritised throughout the process.

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

Direct work takes place around relevant topics, such as sexual health, self-harm, education and emotional well-being. This helps the child to learn how to keep themself safe. These sessions are proactive. However, when needed, they are also carried out in response to new risks that arise.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is an experienced manager in post, who has applied to register with Ofsted. She has a clear oversight of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. Robust monitoring systems ensure that the manager has a good oversight of the quality of care that is provided to the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has an ambitious vision and high expectations. She has learned from practice and previous experiences to drive improvements in the quality of care. Staff speak positively of the support that they receive from leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a consistent staff team, which provides stability for the child and means that the child is always cared for by staff who know them well. Staff are suitably trained in mandatory subjects and sessions that are tailored to meet the child’s individual needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are well attended and occur monthly. They cover topics which are relevant to the current matters arising in the home. They are used as a development opportunity for the team and to review lessons learned from previous experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that plans for children comprehensively identify their needs. However, they do not have access to the local authority care plan or up-to-date education plan for the child as these have not been completed by the social worker, which has not been adequately challenged with the placing authority.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff supervision takes place and focuses on children’s experiences. It is practice led, which means that staff are reflective and learn from experiences. Staff appraisals take place annually. However, records of these were not available during the inspection due to an information technology error. This means that electronic records are not accessible. Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 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

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. (Regulation 5 (1)(a)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must challenge the placing authority if it does not make relevant plans available to the home, specifically care plans and education plans. 19 February 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that records that are kept electronically can be easily accessed by anyone with a legitimate need to view them and, if required, be reproduced in a legible form. Information technology systems should ensure the safe storage of these records, and business continuity plans should be in place to prevent loss or damage to them. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.2)

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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: 2602585 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Next Stage 4Life Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Regency House, 45 to 53 Chorley New Road, Bolton BL1 4QR

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Inspector

Katie Tomlinson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2602585 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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