Children's Home run by Abbey Green Therapeutic Children’s Services Ltd in Nottinghamshire

Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 1 Registered provider: Abbey Green Therapeutic Children’s Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. It provides therapeutic care for up to four children who have experienced trauma and may subsequently present with a range of behavioural and/or emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home has a suitably qualified and experienced manager who is registered with Ofsted.

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 good

p.1

outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/03/2022 Full Good 02/03/2020 Interim Improved effectiveness 14/08/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 3

p.2

outstanding

Since the last inspection, two children have left the home and have successfully transitioned back to their families. Two children remain living at the home, and two children have recently moved in.

p.3

outstanding

Children experience excellent outcomes. The children who have moved back to their families both maintain employment and continue to make positive progress. A parent said, ‘We didn’t think that it would ever happen that [name of child] would come home. My child is a different person, really stepping up and growing up. [Name of child] came home and that was the best day of my life.’

p.3

outstanding

Children benefit from exceptionally strong and trusting relationships with the staff team. They absolutely view the home as their home and express wanting to live there until adulthood. The manager and staff team express their commitment to the children in the same way. A social worker for two of the children said, ‘They feel really safe. The stability and nurture they have been given have allowed them to thrive. They have built up really good, trusting relationships with all the staff.’

p.3

outstanding

Planning for new children to move into the home is incredibly thoughtful and sensitively managed. Both children and staff were consulted about the new children who have recently moved in, and the manager has carefully considered the skills of the staff team in relation to the needs of the children.

p.3

outstanding

Children achieve very good education outcomes. Staff use their excellent relationships with children to encourage them to progress in education. For one young person, a private tutor was used to help them prepare for their GCSE exams. Staff sensitively ensured that the child had a quiet environment in which to work by taking the other children out. An education professional said, ‘Care is excellent. Wraparound therapy is excellent. Communication is excellent…. The way they keep the children safe is so professional. Attention to detail with safeguarding is excellent. They are just brilliant. And it all helps [name of child] achieve in school.’

p.3

outstanding

As a result of the home’s strong therapeutic ethos, children’s emotional well-being is prioritised. As a result, children better understand the emotions and feelings they experience when they experience upset, anger, hunger or sadness. This enables children to better moderate their feelings and gain control over their emotions. For example, during a recent education meeting, a member of staff was able to help a child understand the feelings of frustration and anxiety he was having. The child was able to feel calmer, resulting in the meeting having a positive outcome.

p.3

outstanding

The importance of time with family and friends is recognised by the manager and the staff team. School friendships are encouraged, and family time is prioritised. Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 4 Where appropriate, the staff team works directly with families to help them understand how to best parent their child and to build their parenting skills.

p.3

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

Staff use their relationships with children, as well as their skills and experience, to maintain a positive atmosphere in the home. This helps keep incidents to a minimum. Staff provide consistent boundaries to promote positive behaviour. There have been few situations requiring physical intervention. When incidents do occur, they are recorded in detail, and children are given the opportunity to talk through their feelings. Restorative work is undertaken following an incident to help children understand what happened. This enables children to learn healthy ways of resolving conflicts and difficulties.

p.4

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

Principles of safer recruitment practice are followed, which helps ensure unsuitable people do not have contact with children. However, on one occasion, carrying out checks on a person who worked overseas for a period of time would have further enhanced this practice. There is no use of agency staffing support, which means that children receive care and support from staff they know and trust.

p.4

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

Knowledge and understanding of safeguarding procedures are sound. Leaders and managers ensure that in the event of an allegation made by a child, they refer it to the appropriate safeguarding professionals, it is fully investigated and it is dealt with in a timely way. Outcomes are recorded, and actions are taken to ensure that children and staff are supported throughout these processes. This means that children’s concerns are taken seriously, and steps are taken to help prevent them from harm.

p.4

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

In the rare event that children go missing from home, staff follow missing-from-care procedures. Staff understand and act on any concerns relating to child criminal exploitation or other forms of abuse. Staff work closely with other professionals, including the police, to ensure that children are returned safely to the home as soon as possible. Staff undertake good-quality follow-up work with children to learn any lessons from incidents of going missing or where a child was at risk.

p.4

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

There is very good communication with social workers and other people involved in children’s lives. Social workers confirm that communication is usually excellent. However, for one child, a form used to indicate the placing authority has delegated responsibility for urgent medical treatment to staff at the home was not filled out correctly. This means there is a risk of confusion should the child require medical treatment.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is fully committed to leading the home. He has worked in the home since it opened and knows every child exceptionally well. He provides a consistent, nurturing and reliable presence for children. The manager and staff team are mindful of the impact of staff coming and going in and out of children’s lives. Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 5 Wherever possible, children are prepared for staff leaving or moving on to another of the provider’s children’s homes. In this way, children are helped to understand feelings of loss.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager provides advocacy on behalf of the children in his care. He has a keen sense of injustice and ensures that children have no fewer opportunities because they are looked after. He appropriately challenges other professionals to ensure children receive what they are entitled too.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is a mix of long-standing, experienced practitioners and newer staff. They are well motivated and enjoy their jobs. A staff member said, ‘I do feel proud to be a part of what we are achieving for children here.’ The manager ensures that the training provided to staff is relevant to the needs of the children. Members of staff benefit from very good quality support and supervision. The home’s therapeutic ethos means that staff have regular contact with the in-house therapy team to talk about children’s needs and how these impact on them. As a result, staff have developed self-awareness, which enhances their practice with the children they care for.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager’s monitoring of the quality of care is effective and efficient. His close oversight of the functioning of the home and his positive relationships with the staff team and the children in his care mean that he rectifies issues brought to his attention quickly. However, on one occasion, when a shortfall was identified with a member of staff’s practice, a risk assessment was not in place when that staff member returned to duties.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff team implement their learning from children’s experiences of living at the home. The manager’s vision for the home is driving further improvements. However, an administrative error meant that the most recent quality of care review produced by the managers was not sent to Ofsted. This limits the effectiveness of the regulator’s oversight of the service.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Shortfalls identified during this inspection have had no impact on the safety or well- being of children. Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 6

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (4)(a)) 30/03/2023

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. (Regulation 32 (1))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, consideration should be given to obtaining checks on prospective employees who have spent time abroad. 30/03/2023

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the supervision and performance management of staff safeguard children and minimise potential risks to them. In particular, ensure that an assessment of risk is used when making decisions about shortfalls in staff practice. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should ensure that specific responsibilities of the home towards supporting the health and well- being of each child are agreed with the placing authority and recorded in the child’s placement plan. It is the joint responsibility of the registered person and the placing authority that this is agreed at the time of placement. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, paragraph 7.7)

p.6

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: 2508525 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Abbey Green Therapeutic Children’s Services Ltd

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 51 Abbey Green Road, Leek ST13 8SA

p.7

Inspector

Catherine Honey, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2508525 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

p.7

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.8

Inspector

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

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8