Children's home run by A&M Care Solutions Limited – trading as Metropolitan Care Solutions

Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 1 Registered provider: A&M Care Solutions Ltd - T/a Metropolitan Care Solutions Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to three children who have learning disabilities.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

There are currently two children living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2021.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

p.1

outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

p.1

outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

p.1

outstanding

Date of last inspection: 11 January 2022

p.1

outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

p.1

outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/01/2022 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 3

p.2

outstanding

The children have lived at this home for a considerable period, and they are extremely settled, content and happy. They have enjoyed the support of the same staff team during this period. The children like living together and have built strong and enduring friendships. They enjoy the vibrant and uplifting atmosphere that staff have created. The children are happy and enjoy their lives.

p.3

outstanding

Staff know the children exceptionally well and give them their undivided attention. They are alert to how children behave and treat children with the utmost dignity and respect. Children develop strong bonds with staff and embrace the warmth of their nurturing approach. With this genuine and highly effective care, children thrive in all aspects of their lives.

p.3

outstanding

Staff manage children’s complex health needs with great precision. Working with external professionals, the staff implement successful support plans. Children progress well and become stronger as staff have careful oversight of their nutritional needs and overall development. For example, because of consistent encouragement from staff, one child’s language skills have significantly improved. The child is now confident to talk about his daily plans.

p.3

outstanding

The staff are ambitious to support children to reach their full potential. Schools unanimously attribute the children’s educational success to the stability and support they receive. The manager has a proactive approach to partnership working with agencies, and this has had a remarkable effect. By visiting the home, school staff have seen the support strategies that work well. This led to them changing their approach in school. For one child, this signified improved relationships with school staff and reduced his anxiety. Incidents at school have reduced and the child now attends full time. This is excellent progress.

p.3

outstanding

Children actively influence their home and daily plans. Creative visual displays of enjoyable times help children choose what they want to do. Children enjoy many new experiences. They take teddy bears on adventures and proudly display theme park tickets in the home. One child has become less anxious about going out and has even been on a Harry Potter tour. Staff recognise the significance of this and fully embrace the child’s new-found interest. They spend time together watching movies and have personalised the child’s bedroom to reflect their interests. Through these exciting times, children’s confidence and identity have developed.

p.3

outstanding

Staff are integral in supporting children to spend time with their families. Children maintain and build valuable relationships with people who are important to them. One parent said, ‘Spending time together as a family, we all look forward to it. We all go out together, and [name of child] has a great time. Staff come along and our relationship with them is fantastic; we couldn’t ask for more.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 4 Children develop important life skills because of the targets they are set. Staff are proud of children’s achievements and celebrate every success. Marvellous wall displays show children what has gone well. These include a train track representing each child’s progress journey and notes of praise that staff attached to a large caterpillar. This is motivational for children and gives them confidence.

p.3

outstanding

The staff support children to keep safe. They use therapeutic approaches and guidance from children’s individualised support plans to provide children with structure and guidance. The use of restrictive physical intervention is extremely rare. When needed, its use is proportionate to the escalating risk. Staff complete research on how to enhance children’s sensory experiences. The innovative calming strategies they put in place help children to relax. These situations do not reoccur, and the frequency of incidents is reducing.

p.4

outstanding

Staff give great attention to the detail, design, and function of the home. They proactively seek extra training to understand the challenges that visually impaired children face. They decorate the home in colours that the children can easily identify so they can move from room to room with ease. This significantly reduces the frequent risk of physical injury.

p.4

outstanding

Staff uphold children’s safety and protection with the highest importance. The manager successfully advocates and contributes to care planning discussions with professionals. They challenge others and they advocate for children on how best to manage risk. One child’s deprivation of liberty order includes appropriate and agreed restrictions. This is adhered to by staff to ensure the child’s safety.

p.4

outstanding

Children respond well to the high levels of staff supervision and support. Children learn about risky situations through regular and meaningful chats with key workers. As part of ‘Child Safety Week’, they undertook a range of practical and resource-led tasks. Children’s demeanour indicates they have a strong sense of safety.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is an exceptionally strong leader. His enthusiasm, commitment and high expectations resonate with the staff team. The manager empowers staff to make important decisions about children’s care. This inclusive approach motivates staff to achieve positive outcomes for children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home benefits from having a stable and experienced team of staff who are devoted and child centred. Staff thoroughly enjoy their work and describe the team as being ‘like family’. Together, they provide continuity and stability to children’s lives.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a clear focus on professional development that ensures that staff are fully Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 5 equipped to care for children. The manager takes every opportunity to test staff’s knowledge and skills. The manager maintains good oversight of training and makes sure that all staff are up to date with mandatory courses, such as safeguarding. In addition, the staff undertake necessary specialist training to care for the children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager, deputy manager and responsible individual share a highly effective working dynamic. Wide-ranging internal auditing and quality assurance processes are undertaken. This provides the manager with essential information and holistic oversight of the service. Through this, the manager is aware of the strengths of the home and identifies actions to improve and maintain the high standards of care for children. A comprehensive improvement plan provides a wealth of examples of how the home continually evolves.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A major strength of this team is how it promotes partnership working effectively. External professionals value and recognise the consistency that children receive as a result. All professionals attribute the significant and progressive steps that children make to this consistency. One professional places the home’s delivery of care in very high regard. They have sought the manager’s advice and resources to share with other services.

p.5

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: 2589579 6

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider: A&M Care Solutions Ltd - T/a Metropolitan Care Solutions

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 16 Regent Street, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG1 5BQ

p.6

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Katherine Adkins

p.6

Inspector

Alexandra Howitt, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2589579 7 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

p.6

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

Inspector

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

p.7