Children's Home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in North Yorkshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 1 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private provider owns and manages this home. It provides care on a medium- or long-term basis for up to two children, aged between 11 and 17 years, with social and emotional difficulties.

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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: 2509365 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/01/2022 Full Good 11/03/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/09/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive nurturing and sensitive care, and a calm and positive atmosphere pervades throughout the home. This helps children build secure relationships with staff. Children develop a greater understanding of the role of staff as caregivers, which means they accept help and support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of the trusting relationship between the children and staff has improved children’s social skills. Children have developed in confidence to experience the world outside of their home. For example, children who have avoided socialising now attend youth clubs and a local gym. Children ask to visit restaurants and enjoy local and national attractions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s psychological well-being improves due to the therapeutic parenting staff provide. Children have access to weekly support from a dedicated therapist to help them understand their feelings and past experiences. One parent described their child’s progress as ‘amazing’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children can confidently articulate their wishes and feelings. Children’s views and suggestions are taken seriously and acted on, including what they would like in their home. Children know how to make a complaint about the care they receive and have developed skills to share their views verbally. This helps children see that their views are valued and gives them verbal skills that they will use in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children have good attendance at statutory educational provisions and make steady progress. If children are not attending a formal educational setting, staff help children to work through the barriers. Children who do not attend a formal setting are encouraged to complete online learning at home, and staff are diligent to ensure this happens on a regular basis.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health has improved, and their medication has either been reduced or is no longer needed. Children are registered with universal health services, and they attend routine appointments. Staff have robust monitoring systems in place to ensure appointments are not missed. This helps children see the importance of maintaining good health and improves their confidence to access services independently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Home conditions are good, and there is a welcoming and inviting atmosphere. Photos of children enjoying activities are displayed around the home. Children’s bedrooms have personalised items, and communal areas offer a relaxing environment. Special occasions are captured in memory books for the children to keep. Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 4 Children are supported to spend time with family and people who are important to them. For some children, the quality of the relationships between staff and children’s families are good. This helps children maintain family links and a sense of identity. However, staff do not always communicate with parents and families as staff do not hold their contact details on record. This restricts the potential for cohesive relationships that would benefit children.

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

Children have individual plans that are updated on a regular basis. Staff understand children’s unique vulnerabilities and respond to children in a sensitive and nurturing way. Due to the positive and genuine relationships, children feel safe living at the home.

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

Children receive help and support to manage their feelings and understand their past experiences. The small staff team is consistent and unified in their approaches, which means appropriate boundaries are in place that the children understand.

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

Incidents involving children, such as being missing from care or being physically held, are rare. Staff adopt a restorative approach to any unwanted behaviours, which helps children learn from incidents without feeling vilified. Children’s incentives are meaningful to them, so children see the benefits of positive actions and behaviours.

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

Children are helped to understand the risks of society in a gentle way that they can understand. This includes direct work around internet safety, bullying, exploitation and personal hygiene. Children’s awareness of such topics increases as staff regularly raise them during conversations with children.

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

Children are consistently helped to understand and meet their own self-care needs. For some children, their health needs could make them vulnerable to bullying and stigma by others. Staff treat children with dignity and respect when addressing their needs. This has reduced incidents that would result in negative experiences for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has high aspirations for the home. He has a strong ethos to continue to imbed a therapeutic approach into the children’s care. He is passionate about recognising the effect of past trauma on children and demonstrates determination to help children recover. The registered manager holds these values high, and staff mirror his aspirations to improve outcomes for children. This has helped the children living at the home make good progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular personal and practice-related supervision that helps them reflect on the care they provide to children. Supervision sessions are appropriately recorded and signed. Staff say they feel well supported by each other and the Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 5 registered manager. There is a cohesive approach from staff that provides stability to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular staff meetings and additional audit tools ensure that the manager has oversight of the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

If concerns are raised about staff conduct, this is initially responded to promptly through supervision. Where serious concerns regarding staff conduct are alleged, appropriate procedures are followed. The registered manager acts to protect the children at the home and considers the welfare of all staff members involved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager and staff have a good understanding of children’s plans and the support they need. The registered manager is a strong advocate for children and their interests. The registered manager has resisted pressure from other professionals to progress a child’s education plan too quickly and remained focused on the child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Daily recordings document children’s day-to-day lives. Staff use child-friendly and easy-to-understand language. Non-judgemental language is used to describe sensitive health information about the children and how staff help children to manage incidents. Staff use the word ‘family’ when describing activities, they and the children have been involved in. This helps children see that their experiences are valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager values the role of the independent visitor and actions any recommendations, for example ensuring that staff have certain training refreshed. However, the independent visitor’s oversight is limited due to a lack of consultation with parents or relatives. This makes it difficult for the independent visitor to assess whether the home safeguards children and promotes their well-being effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered persons 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 persons must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure the name, address, telephone number and religion, if any, of the child’s parents are recorded on the child’s personal information. 01/06/2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)) 01/06/2023

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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: 2509365 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1 Tustin Court, Port Way, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston PR2 2YQ

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Inspector

Cat Clasper, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2509365 8 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 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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