Children's home run by ROC Northwest Limited in Westmorland and Furness

Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 1 SC442401 Registered provider: ROC Northwest Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to five children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, four children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since September 2016.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/03/2022 Full Good 03/02/2020 Full Good 06/02/2019 Full Good 19/01/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living in the home. They are helped to develop a sense of belonging. The home is welcoming and homely. There is a large lounge with lots of soft furnishings. There is a small snug where the children play games, have fun and relax.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who are new to the home are welcomed with good planning that also considers the needs of children already living in the home. When one child could not visit prior to moving in, the manager and staff spent time on a video call to understand their needs and to make sure that the child’s transition was managed well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they are happy living in the home. They are helped to develop trusting and positive relationships with staff who care about them. Children attend school and college regularly. When children are not in school, staff support them with other educational activities. This ensures that children understand the importance of good routines.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well. They understand the children’s plans and engage them in regular direct work sessions that explore children’s key issues. These cover topics such as relationships, internet safety and feelings. These sessions have helped children to manage relationships positively.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s future aspirations are promoted. They have been supported to attend job interviews and apply for bank accounts and driving licences. This helps children to develop their independence. One child is involved in a scheme to support them into employment. This means that they can earn a wage and further develop their skills for independent living.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s relationships with their families are nurtured and sensitively encouraged. One child has been supported to develop their understanding of their family dynamics, which has helped them to make sense of their identity.

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

Children say that they feel safe. Individual risks are detailed in robust, frequently updated risk plans that enable staff to be consistent in their care of the children. This helps children to feel settled and safe.

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

When children go missing from care, there are clear plans in place for staff to follow. The manager and staff work collaboratively with external professionals and responses are well coordinated. Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 4 Positive behaviour is supported and encouraged through positive praise and encouragement. Children are helped to create incentive plans which support them to achieve their individual targets. These are linked to different rewards and encourage independence skills. Consequences for negative behaviours are used effectively and are proportionate.

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

Staff activate door alarms on children’s bedrooms at night. There are individual risk assessments in place; however, these are not reviewed in relation to safeguarding risks. This limits children’s privacy and has the potential to place them under unnecessary levels of surveillance.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is well organised and offers good support to her team. The team of staff feel valued and trust the manager. Staff say they love coming to work and get a great deal of satisfaction in their caring roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff speak positively about the children in their care. They are committed to supporting children to succeed. The manager’s ethos is that ‘each day is a new day’. Children understand this and recognise that staff will support them to work through their issues.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a range of training opportunities to meet the children’s needs. A recent whole team training course has helped staff to develop their understanding and knowledge around supporting children who display self-injurious behaviours.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular team meetings provide opportunities for staff to further develop practice in the home. However, the quality of staff supervision is variable. This limits opportunities for staff to reflect and learn.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Records clearly evidence the progress children make. However, minor recording discrepancies were identified during the inspection. These included spelling errors and names spelt incorrectly, which is not helpful to a child viewing their records now or at a later stage in life. Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff record information in a way that is helpful to a child. Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record- keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that any limits to children’s privacy and access in the home, such as the use of bedroom door alarms, are for safeguarding purposes only. Any limits should be subject to a rigorous assessment of each child’s needs and be kept under regular review. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should ensure that all staff receive regular, quality supervision that enables them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations,

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Recommendations

including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: SC442401 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: ROC Northwest Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5th Floor, Metropolitan House, 3 Darkes Lane, Potters Bar EN6 1AG

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Inspector

Colin Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC442401 7 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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