Children's home run by Blossom Care Group Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 1 Registered provider: Blossom Care Group 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 provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties. The home was registered in August 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by an experienced and qualified registered manager.

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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: 17 January 2022

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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: 2620184 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. They have all developed strong bonds with the staff who care for them. The manager and staff know the children well and provide nurturing and individualised care. Since moving into the home, one child now has a pet hamster, and during the inspection, children were negotiating about having another pet. Children are at the centre of everything staff do, and this helps children feel a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is strong focus by staff and the manager on ensuring that children are in education and that their learning needs are understood and met. Staff and the manager work closely with teachers, social workers and the virtual school to understand any issues that are likely to impact on a child’s education. This has led to children receiving support from tutors while they waited for a suitable school to be identified. In addition, for one child, this has led to them being assessed for an education and healthcare plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children attend their routine health appointments. Staff have sought external therapeutic support for children when this has been needed to help children talk about their feelings and worries.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that the direct work they undertake with children is meaningful and relevant. This helps children to understand the concerns that staff may have about their behaviour. It also helps them understand how to keep safe and educates them on life skills. For example, staff have worked with children on areas such as healthy eating, dealing with friendships, the importance of education, managing their emotions and having healthy relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are given opportunities to share their views through general conversations with staff, direct work and weekly meetings with staff. Managers write individual letters to children following the meetings to acknowledge any issues they may have raised and to agree how the things they have requested will be actioned. Currently, children are working on redecorating their bedrooms. This helps children feel listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities in line with their hobbies and interests. They have been to the cinema, to play pool and have gone horse riding and trampolining. Staff continue to seek children’s views about additional activities they want to do and ensure that children’s requests are planned for them during the week.

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

When children have gone missing from home, staff follow missing-from-home procedures diligently, including looking for and maintaining contact with children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 4 One child was listened to about why they go missing from home and, with the support of the manager and an advocate, they now have overnight contact with their friend. Since then, there have been no missing-from-home incidents for this child.

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

Managers follow safeguarding procedures when children make allegations against the staff who care for them. This includes liaising with the local authority designated officer and completing internal investigations when requested. Learning is taken from the investigations and, when appropriate, the relationships between staff and children are repaired. The open culture created by managers and staff enables children to feel able to share their concerns. This contributes to keeping children safe.

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

Staff promote positive behaviours by using an effective rewards system and their positive relationships with children to help children reflect on their behaviours. This means the need to restrain children is rare. This has only occurred twice since the last inspection. The manager reviews all incidents in detail to ensure that these are managed well and, when necessary, lessons can be learned.

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

Children sometimes display potentially harmful behaviours towards staff and each other. Staff respond well in these situations, demonstrating care and empathy. During the inspection, a recent incident between children is being looked at, and the staff and managers are working on different ways to resolve this while ensuring that each child feels listened to.

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

Clear fire safety procedures are in place. Any issues that have been identified in health and safety assessments have been addressed. When children refuse to take part in a fire drill, staff work with them to share the importance of fire safety procedures.

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

The storage and administration of medication is safe. Regular audit checks are in place to allow managers to pick up on any issues should they arise.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by an aspirational and child-focused manager who is experienced, skilled and qualified. The manager has worked hard to create an enjoyable and caring home environment for children. She has high aspirations and ensures that staff are clear about her high expectations.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is effective oversight by the manager and the responsible individual. They have good monitoring and reviewing systems in place and are always looking at way to improve the care and support they offer to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff and managers have good working relationships with other agencies and family members. They work together to ensure children make progress. One social worker reported to the inspector that they would not have placed another child in Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 5 the home if they did not have trust in the manager’s and staff’s ability to provide good care and support to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team works well together, and staff have a good understanding of children and are clear about their roles and responsibilities. Staff shared positive feedback with the inspector, with one staff member saying it feels like a home not a workplace.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff have good inductions and have probation reviews to discuss their development. Staff receive regular supervision, which helps staff reflect on their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers are keen to upskill the staff team and offer them additional mentoring sessions to reinforce any learning. Staff have completed their mandatory training. However, not all staff have completed their required learning as per their training plan within timescales. Managers are aware of this and are working with staff to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Recruitment processes are generally thorough. However, an updated telephone verification form has not been consistently used, which has meat that for new staff the reason for them leaving their previous employment is not always understood.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have not ensured that reports completed by the independent visitor are sent to Ofsted in a timely way. The responsible individual has previously addressed this issue with the visitor and, during the inspection, was keen to share that this will be escalated to ensure that this does not happen again. In addition, the reports do not always capture children’s views. This does not assure the regulator that children’s views by the visitor are considered. Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff keep up to date with training as outlined in their development plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should ensure that when new staff are employed, their reason for leaving previous employment is understood as part of the telephone verification process. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should ensure that the independent visitor’s report is submitted to Ofsted in a timely way and that children’s views are considered by the visitor. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5)

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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: 2620184 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blossom Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Office 19, Anglesey Business Centre, Anglesey Road, Burton-On-Trent DE14 3NT

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Inspector

Shazana Jamal, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2620184 8 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit

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Inspector

www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspector

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Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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