Children's home run by Future Focused Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 1 Registered provider: Future Focused Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who experience social and/or 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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into the home in a positive way, which is carefully planned. The manager and staff provide children with individualised care. Children’s plans are understood and followed by staff. This ensures that children receive consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure they listen to the children’s views, wishes and feelings to allow children choices and to make decisions about their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A child is making good progress with their education. They have significantly increased their educational attendance from their starting point and are engaging well. The manager and staff are currently supporting another child to look at their education options and are appropriately requesting education documents from the local authority to support the child’s learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prioritise children’s health and well-being and encourage children to attend routine health appointments. One child engages with a play therapist, which ensures that the child’s emotional health and well-being needs are addressed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to see their family and friends. Staff have good relationships with children’s family members and friends’ parents, which means that children can maintain relationships with people who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s photos are displayed in the home, and their bedrooms are personalised. The home is decorated to a good standard. The inspector observed positive and caring relationships between staff and children. Children live in a happy and relaxed home where staff treat them with dignity and respect.

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

Children’s risk assessments and behaviour support plans address children’s vulnerabilities and include clear strategies for staff to follow. Plans are reviewed and updated following any incidents, which supports staff to have children’s safety at the centre of their practice.

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

At times, staff have had to physically intervene when children’s behaviour has deteriorated. Staff are trained in physical intervention and de-escalation, which allows them to manage situations safely. There has been a significant decrease in the use of physical intervention over the past few months.

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

On the rare occasion that a child has been missing from home, staff know how to respond, and they have taken appropriate action and worked with the police to locate the child and encourage their safe return. Children have the opportunity to speak to someone independently to share any worries. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 4 Children said that they feel safe, and staff help them to stay safe. Occasionally, the manager and staff have given children consequences; however, the manager and staff must ensure that the consequence used is correctly documented.

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

One professional said, ‘I am impressed that the staff appear to have quickly developed excellent relationships with [name of child], and I am aware she has developed a close relationship with the manager.’ They continued, ‘I am confident the team are equipped and trained to keep [name of child] safe.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has been in post since the home opened and has a relevant childcare and management qualification. There is a stable and committed staff team that has high aspirations for the children in its care. There is a strong ethos of teamwork. Staff said that there is honest communication and there is a sense of shared ownership in their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff receive regular supervision, are up to date with their training and take part in regular team meetings. This ensures that staff can reflect on their practice to continue to meet the needs of the children in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff spoke highly of the manager and told the inspector that they enjoy working in the home and feel valued and supported. One member of staff stated, ‘Since working at [name of home], I have felt supported by [name of manager], especially during challenging times. [Name of manager] has always been on hand to offer guidance and support if I ever needed it.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective monitoring systems in place, which helps them to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the service for her to take swift action to address any shortfalls as they arise. The manager reviews the home on a six- monthly basis, which gives a clear overview of the service and areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff receive a thorough induction that provides them with a detailed programme of training and guidance in their new role. This helps the manager to ensure that children are cared for by staff who can meet their needs. The manager needs to ensure that the home’s statement of purpose is kept up to date. Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 5

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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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that all children, if required, have an up- to-date education, health and care plan and personal education plan in place. 30 April 2023

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline, or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the date, time, and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used, or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 30 April 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 6 within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that all consequences are recorded in line with regulation.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have a workforce plan that can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should detail the necessary management and staffing structure (including any staff commissioned to provide health and education); the experience and qualifications of staff currently working within the staffing structure, and any further training required for those staff, to enable the delivery of the home’s statement of purpose; and detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding, health and safety and mandatory qualifications). They should ensure that the statement of purpose is kept up to date with staff qualifications. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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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: 2693530 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Crows Nest Business Park, Ashton Road, Wigan, Lancashire WN5 7XX

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Inspector

Julie Elder, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2693530 8 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 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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