Children's Home run by Consensus Support Services Limited in Suffolk

Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 1 SC386258 Registered provider: Consensus Support Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run home provides care for up to six children with autism spectrum disorder and learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since 2015.

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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: 2 February 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: SC386258 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/02/2022 Full Good 26/02/2020 Full Good 31/01/2019 Full Outstanding 21/09/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There were six children living at the home at the time of this inspection. Staff provide individualised care and support that result in children making good progress with their independence, functional communication skills and behaviour. Staff’s work with children and parents has enriched children’s overall experiences and future life opportunities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children and staff share positive and meaningful relationships. Children are at ease with staff, enjoy their company and eagerly look to engage them in their activities, learning and play. There is a culture of high mutual regard. Consequently, children develop the sense of security and stability that they need to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in an exciting and wide range of activities. Recent trips to theme parks, forests and music concerts meet children’s interests. All children enjoyed a short-break camping holiday. These activities greatly enhance children’s experiences and give them opportunities that they have not had previously.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children with support to develop independence skills by using tailored prompting techniques throughout daily activities and self-care routines. A new programme is in place to systematically record and monitor this work. Parents spoke of the wider progress that children make. This includes the broadening of children’s food preferences, progress in children communicating their views and improvements in children managing their emotions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children well with their education and health needs. All children attend school or college and have good attendance. Effective communication and links with school staff and health agencies have ensured that children make consistent progress towards their education and health goals.

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

Parents have full trust and confidence that the staff advocate for their child’s best interests, safety and well-being. Staff know the children well and provide individualised and consistent routines that help children to feel secure.

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

Staff skilfully work alongside speech and language therapists to ensure that alternative communication aids are used purposefully and to good effect. This enables staff to have important conversations with children. One child was sensitively supported to understand safer sex and relationships. Another child received specialist support to manage their feelings around a recent family bereavement.

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

Staff are well trained in understanding effective safeguarding practice. They are clear about their roles and responsibilities to safeguard the children and have good Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 4 knowledge of the children’s additional vulnerabilities. Managers have responded to recent safeguarding concerns appropriately and effectively. This provides reassurances that appropriate safeguarding systems are in place to protect children.

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

The manager and the staff are not risk-averse in promoting new opportunities for children. Good-quality risk assessments are compiled and followed by staff, which helps them to support children to navigate new experiences safely. The manager and staff work closely with the specialist behaviour support team to create personalised strategies for children. Staff have a good awareness of potential behavioural triggers, which successfully reduces situations that can increase children’s anxiety.

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

Safe recruitment processes for permanent staff are robust. However, managers have not consistently ensured that the recruitment records that are provided by agencies for agency staff contain all the required information. Reasons for leaving previous care roles and assurances regarding suitable references have not always been fully explored. This does not sufficiently reduce the potential for unsuitable people to gain employment at the home.

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

Physical restraint is used infrequently and as a last resort. However, the systems for recording and reviewing these incidents need improvement. Records do not always contain the necessary information and were not reviewed within the required timescales. Further development is needed to ensure that children’s views following these incidents are better represented. These shortfalls reduce the manager’s ability to provide an informed analysis of these incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced, qualified and dedicated manager confidently leads the care and support at the home. The manager and deputy manager are excellent role models to staff. This helps to create a nurturing environment with a strong sense of family values that lead to good-quality outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have continually advocated for children’s welfare. They have been tenacious in ensuring that children receive their entitlements. This had led to two children receiving the financial assistance that was due to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff morale is a real strength at this home. There was excellent feedback provided by staff during the inspection, which demonstrated their investment in the team. Staff are proud of what they achieve with children. This helps children to feel proud of their achievements too.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision sessions and detailed appraisals that focus on their professional development and children’s needs. Staff benefit from a wide range of bespoke training courses to equip them with the skills to meet the individual complex needs of the children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 5 Managers and staff have very positive relationships with the children’s families and social workers. Unanimously good feedback by families and professionals was provided. The quality of these relationships is instrumental in supporting a unified approach to meeting children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are elements of managerial monitoring and review systems that need to be improved. Information that is recorded in daily records and incident logs is sometimes unclear and includes language that is not always child-centred. Some of these records should have prompted increased managerial curiosity to provide the necessary assurances and clarity needed. While this has not individually led to increased risk for children, it has the likelihood to do so if left unresolved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent person, in their external monitoring of the home, has not consistently reviewed all relevant areas to make an informed and reliable evaluation of safeguarding. External monitoring from the independent person has not consistently reviewed all relevant areas to make an informed and reliable evaluation of safeguarding. Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 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

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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, managers must ensure that the quality of external monitoring is scrutinised. The independent person’s visits should provide clear and specific information to support safeguarding evaluations, and the reports should be objective and contribute to continuous improvements. Managers must also ensure that systems to monitor children’s records are strong enough to identify and resolve potential staff practice issues. 31 March 2023

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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

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

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”)— 31 March 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 7 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 (3)(a)(ii)(iv)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should maintain good employment practice that safeguards children and minimises potential risk to them. In particular, they should ensure that all schedule 2 checks for agency staff are verified before their deployment. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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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: SC386258 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Consensus Support Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3 The Courtyards Phoenix Square, Wyncolls Road, Colchester CO4 9PE

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Inspectors

Mark Anderton, Social Care Inspector Mary Costello, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC386258 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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