Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for three children with emotional, behavioural and social difficulties and learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a qualified manager who is registered with Ofsted.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 2540927 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/03/2022 Full Good 13/01/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff build strong relationships with children. They provide a nurturing approach which is effective in helping children build good routines and maintain good health. Staff help children work through difficult times and do not give up on them. Therefore, children learn to trust adults and accept support when they need it. This enables them to settle at the home and develop a sense of permanence. There are clear plans in place for children and they are regularly consulted about their wishes and feelings. One child is being supported to move back to live with family, which is a very good outcome for her.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend school every day and are supported to learn and achieve. One child is benefiting from individual tutoring to help her prepare for her exams. All children have been completing educational key-work sessions which contribute to an accredited learning programme. Consequently, they experience learning in a variety of ways to maximise their achievements. This helps children to increase their confidence and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make complaints and managers respond to these well. They communicate clearly with children about each stage of the process and ensure that they have a record of the outcome. One child said that she has confidence that her worries are taken seriously and will be resolved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff support children to develop independence. Children spend time away from the home with friends and other people who are important to them. Time with family is very much encouraged. This means that children maintain a sense of identity and develop new relationships when they are ready.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities inside and outside of the home, such as dancing, rangers, and arts and crafts. They enjoyed a holiday abroad, which was an exciting opportunity for them. The children have evocative memory books so they can revisit valuable times they have had. As a result, children will have lasting memories of a significant period of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff undertake regular direct work with children. They talk to them about important issues, including sexual health, online safety and becoming more independent. Some written records contain language and phrases which could be stigmatising for children. Although not intentional, this has the potential to have a negative impact on children’s self-esteem. The managers are currently supporting staff to develop their use of language to ensure that information is recorded sensitively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 4

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

Children are kept safe from harm. Staff have a good understanding of the risks and vulnerabilities affecting children. Overall, the manager and staff respond to incidents well and risk management plans are up to date and regularly reviewed. There has been one situation where there was a delay in seeking medical advice after an incident. Following this inspection, managers now recognise the importance of gaining medical oversight in a timely way, even when the child declines this.

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

The manager and staff have supported children to make good progress with their behaviour. Children are starting to manage their feelings in healthier ways. This has led to a reduction in incidents of physical aggression. As a result, physical interventions are seldom used. There has been one incident where new or inexperienced staff were required to manage an incident which escalated. They did not have sufficient support. Leaders and managers have addressed shortfalls in practice through individual work. However, they have not yet undertaken work to ensure that the team works together to ensure that situations are always managed safely.

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

Leaders and managers have been required to manage a high number of allegations and negative statements made about the manager and staff. Many allegations have been withdrawn following the original incident. This has presented challenges and required a proactive approach. Allegations have good oversight from the manager and are fully investigated. The manager has worked with relevant agencies and children effectively and incidents have started to reduce. Professionals are confident that the home is dealing with this issue in a transparent way.

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

Children do not go missing from home. They keep in contact with staff when they are out by themselves. Online risks are also well managed. Where concerns arise, staff ensure that children are safeguarded, and relevant agencies are informed. As a result, children are kept safe from risks of exploitation.

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

The manager and staff work hard to keep children safe from bullying. Incidents are addressed in restorative ways with children individually and as a group. The manager and staff monitor this closely so that children learn how to be kind to one another and develop healthy relationships.

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good

There is an experienced registered manager who is supported by a recently appointed deputy. Both managers have had periods of absence from the home which resulted in some gaps in oversight during that time. The manager has carried out a learning exercise and developed an action plan to address these shortfalls. This is in progress; however, leaders and managers recognise that further work is required to ensure consistency of care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 5 The manager has not always ensured the maintenance of important records in relation to children’s risk management. For one child, it was unclear how risks had been managed following a significant incident of self-harm. A senior member of staff had not seen the risk management plan. While staff had safeguarded the child, overall some records of how they had continued to mitigate risks were not available. In addition, senior managers had not been informed of the incident. This lack of

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good

clarity, oversight and accountability leaves room for error and has the potential to put children at increased risk of harm.

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good

Leaders and managers have recruited an experienced staff team. Staff enjoy working at the home and know the children well. Some staff have left the home, however new staff have been safely recruited and received a thorough induction. Staff undertake a good range of training to meet the individual needs of children. They also benefit from monthly consultations with the in-house clinician to ensure that children’s care plans are regularly reviewed. This also helps to ensure that staff retain a therapeutic approach to their care of children.

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good

Staff attend supervision meetings with their manager which are focused on the children’s needs. There are also opportunities to discuss personal issues and professional development. Shortfalls in practice and areas for development are addressed in a timely way. This helps to maintain resilience and motivation in the team.

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good

The manager makes considered decisions about children coming to live at the home. He ensures that the needs of children already living there are prioritised. This ensures that children have the stability and security they need to become settled and reduces the risk of children having to move on in an unplanned manner. Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to the managers ensuring that all staff have clear information and direction about children’s risk management plans, they understand actions they need to take to mitigate risks and clear records are kept to enable monitoring and review of risks. 31 March 2023

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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 promotes their welfare.

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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

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. 31 March 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 7 (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to leaders and managers ensuring that the staff team works together to ensure that children have consistent and safe care from staff when on shift in the home.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to the registered manager ensuring that senior managers are informed of significant incidents when they happen to enable oversight of the quality of care being provided in the home.

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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: 2540927 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1 & 5 , Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Inspector

Laura Walker, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2540927 9 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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