Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 1 SC454838 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A large national provider of children’s services operates this home, which is situated in a rural location. It is registered to provide care for up to eight children who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties. There is a registered school attached to the home. The inspector only inspected the social care provision on this site.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2020 and holds a relevant level 5 qualification. The provider plans to have two registered managers overseeing the running of this home. The operations manager has applied to Ofsted to become registered. He is currently working towards a level 5 qualification.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 15 December 2021

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/12/2021 Full Good 15/05/2019 Full Good 24/04/2018 Full Good 14/11/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 3

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improvement to be good

Three children’s experiences have been affected by a serious incident that took place in the home when staff were not supervising them as they should have been. This shortfall and the impact of what happened contributes to the judgement of requires improvement to be good.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health is promoted well by staff. Children are registered with local health services and attend routine health appointments. Staff support children to attend any health assessments and receive advice and support for medical conditions. Children benefit from a varied diet and regular exercise.

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improvement to be good

Children attend the organisation’s school in the grounds of the home. Their attendance at school improves and they make progress with their learning.

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improvement to be good

Children develop positive relationships with the staff who care for them. All children attend weekly swimming lessons and enjoy regular leisure activities. These experiences provide children with opportunities to be part of the community they live in and to develop new skills. Staff create memory books for children which capture the adventures they have.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff are ambitious for children. They work exceptionally well with people who are important to children. They help family members to understand children’s behaviours and how to manage these. They also share the importance and benefits of children having structured routines. As a result of this good work, two children have returned to live with their families and three children now live with foster families in the area where they grew up.

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improvement to be good

Systems to supervise children are not always effective. Since the last inspection, there has been one serious incident when staff did not protect two children from harming each other. This incident was witnessed by a third child. This incident has undermined the safety of these children and caused them distress.

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improvement to be good

Children’s plans identify risks and behaviours that need to be considered by staff. Occasionally, some control measures in place are not specific, for example, plans advise staff to have ‘good supervision’ of children. This has the potential to be interpreted differently by individuals and could compromise the safety of children who live in the home.

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improvement to be good

Children are provided with opportunities to raise concerns during children’s meetings that are held weekly. They have access to complaints forms and understand how to Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 4 raise a concern. Two days after the serious incident, a child reported it to staff and managers.

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improvement to be good

The registered manager takes concerns about staff seriously. These concerns are shared with relevant people and agreed actions are taken. The responsible individual and registered manager have a positive working relationship with the local authority designated officer. During this inspection period, there has been a notable improvement in how information gathered to investigate concerns is obtained and recorded. This now shows how outcomes to investigations have been reached.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff help children to understand personal safety. Child-friendly resources are used by staff to help children to learn about positive relationships and identify unsafe relationships. This work has helped one child to identify and report unsafe behaviours.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to understand their emotions and develop strategies to help them to manage their anger. As a result, incidents of aggressive behaviour have reduced.

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improvement to be good

Children who have a history of going missing from home, no longer present with these behaviours. There has been one occasion when a child left the home without permission. The child was found and returned by staff before the incident escalated and the child needed to be reported missing from home.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff promote positive behaviours by using child-friendly targets and reward systems. Children are supported to reflect on positive behaviours and behaviours that need to improve. This helps children to develop their social and emotional skills, allowing them to achieve their personal goals.

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improvement to be good

Managers ensure that staff receive training in physical intervention. On occasion, children are restrained to keep them and others safe and prevent damage to property. Staff using physical intervention use the minimal force to manage the situation. Clear records are kept by staff. Children and staff are provided with an opportunity to reflect on the incident. This practice creates an open culture that promotes learning.

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improvement to be good

Six new staff have started work in the home, three having transferred from other homes in the organisation. The registered manager has safe recruitment systems in place. This reduces the risk of children being cared for by unsuitable individuals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager responds well when there is a serious incident. Information is shared with parents and professionals involved in the children’s lives. Measures to reduce risk are implemented without delay and are sensitive to the needs of the children involved. For example, following the recent serious incident, the arrangements for supervising children were reviewed. In addition, staff arranged Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 5 activities that took account of peer group dynamics and so reduced the time that some children spent together.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Reflective practice is promoted by managers and staff, which creates a positive learning environment that facilitates improvement. For example, staff spoken with recognise that incidents can occur when there is a small window of opportunity. Staff now ensure that children’s and staff’s whereabouts in the home are always known.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel supported by managers, who ensure that they receive regular supervision. Their performance is appraised following their probation period and annually thereafter. This practice promotes a supportive culture of personal growth and development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most staff hold or are working towards a relevant qualification in caring for children who live in residential care. The registered manager ensures that additional training to meet the specific needs of children is provided to staff, in addition to mandatory training completed by staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Health and safety issues are taken seriously and the home is maintained, furnished and decorated to a good standard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers build positive relationships with external professionals. When there are concerns about a professional’s practice, the registered manager addresses it sensitively. The registered manager recently raised concerns about a local authority which did not fully disclose the complex needs of a child. It has been assessed that the child needs a more specialised service than this home can provide. The registered manager is working with the local authority to ensure a new care setting is found that can meet the diverse needs of the child and that they have a positive transition from the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff rosters do not reflect the actual hours worked in the home by managers and staff. If this information is required, now or in the future, this is not readily available. Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(iv)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, arrangements put in place by the registered manager to supervise children to prevent them from harming each other must be clearly recorded and implemented by staff. 22 March 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that up-to-date records are kept. In particular, staff rosters should record the actual hours staff and managers work in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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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: SC454838 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspector

Helen Malanaphy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC454838 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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