Children's Home run by Horizon Care and Education Group Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 1 Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a large private provider. It provides care for up to two children who experience complex emotional difficulties. There was one child living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since May 2020.

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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 outstanding

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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: 2573144 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, two children have moved into the home and two children have left the home. At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home. The child benefits from trusting relationships with the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager has not always been provided with sufficient referral information to help inform decisions and children moved have into the home whose needs could not be safely met. This means that children have left the home earlier than expected, which hinders their stability and progress. The manager has learned from this experience and ensures that she has all the relevant information to consider about children before they move into the home. She uses her knowledge of the children living in the home, as well as the skills and experience of the staff, to assess how well they will be able to meet children’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children with their health and well-being. The manager and staff work closely with clinicians to understand children’s emotional needs. The registered manager seeks specialist support when required and the care provided is informed by strong research-based practice to meet the specific needs of the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff have high aspirations for the children. They prioritise children’s education and are relentless in supporting children who have disengaged with school or have been out of education. When children experience barriers to learning, staff advocate for them. As a result, children access education provisions specific to their individual needs, continue to learn and achieve good results in their GCSE exams. One child secured a place at university, where he is pursuing his academic aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work hard to promote positive relationships with family and friends who are important to children. They have a good understanding of family dynamics, which enables them to support children’s relationships in line with their wishes and in accordance with the local authority’s care plans. The staff ensure that children can spend quality time with their loved ones and maintain long-standing friendships even when they are living some distance away.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have encouraged a child to expand his social network locally by introducing him to a gym and martial arts club. He regularly attends and has made new friends. This promotes equality of opportunity and reduces social exclusion and isolation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to develop their independence skills by teaching them to carry out daily chores, such as laundry, cooking and keeping their bedrooms clean and tidy. They also learn to budget, shop and travel independently. This instils confidence in children and prepares them for adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warm and welcoming. Improvements are required in the upkeep of the decoration to ensure that children are living in a high-quality environment. Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 4

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

Risk management plans for children are detailed and contain clear actions and guidance. They are regularly reviewed and updated. Staff are familiar with the plans and follow them consistently.

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

Children are supported to understand their emotions, and staff know what works well for children when they are distressed. One child has spoken to staff about sensitive issues concerning their health and relationship. As a result, staff helped the child to access suitable healthcare. Staff safely support the child’s relationship, which has significantly reduced the risk of missing-from-care episodes.

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

The skilled staff team supports children to become safer. Quality key-work sessions help children to recognise unsafe behaviour and learn to make safer choices. When incidents have occurred and children’s behaviour has become challenging, staff use their relationship with, and knowledge of, the children to defuse the situation.

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

The manager is clear about her expectations of staff and the standard of care they provide. When required, she carries out investigations into complaints raised and ensures that actions resulting from these are clear and embedded in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is a dedicated, highly motivated, child-focused practitioner and inspiring leader. The manager spends time with children and staff and models best practice. The manager has high aspirations for children and is a strong advocate for them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Excellent relationships have been established with external professionals who influence decision-making. For example, when a child was moving out of the home, the manager advocated for the child to obtain suitable accommodation in their preferred location to enable them to have easy transport links to university.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Additionally, the manager has challenged the poor decisions of external professionals which have compromised the safety of children. The manager has escalated concerns to achieve positive outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The staff describe the manager as being ‘fantastic’ and ‘a great leader and manager with an open door for the children and staff’. Staff retention is excellent, and agency staff are rarely used. This has resulted in consistent care which has enabled children to form trusting relationships with staff who know them exceptionally well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s skills and experience enable highly effective management of staff and ensure that exceptional care is provided for children. The staff feel supported and valued by the manager, which is a contributing factor to retaining a stable staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 5 Outstanding leadership and management ensure that the staff team receives excellent training opportunities. Specialist in-house clinicians provide specialist training to staff, attend staff meetings and provide reflective learning spaces, which strengthens staff development and helps them to reflect on their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The committed and motivated staff team receives regular reflective supervision. All staff hold level 3 diplomas and access training opportunities to meet the diverse needs of the children. High-quality training has resulted in the staff having the skills and knowledge base to provide individualised, informed care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has incorporated relevant research into staff practice. One example of this relates to the emotional well-being of children. With support from the in-house clinicians, research was simplified and shared with the staff. Staff then shared this with the child, to help improve their understanding of their own emotional health.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has excellent knowledge of the children’s starting points and what they have accomplished since living at the home. Management oversight and monitoring processes are highly effective. One member of staff said, ‘The registered manager is available to discuss incidents involving children. This allows time to reflect and discuss what can be done differently.’ As a result, the registered manager has a good insight into the home’s strengths and areas for development. Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff provide a nurturing environment that is welcoming. This specifically relates to ensuring a high quality of maintenance and decoration in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)

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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: 2573144 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 12, Venture House, Prospect Business Park, Longford Road, Cannock, Staffordshire WS11 0LG

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Rebecca Grimshaw

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Inspectors

Glenis Staiger-Grant, Social Care Inspector Jodie Lewis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2573144 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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