Children's Home run by Reflexion Care Group Limited in Westmorland and Furness

Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 1 Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run children’s home provides care for up to six children, irrespective of gender. It provides short-, medium- and long-term placements, with a therapeutic outdoor activity-based response, for children in crisis.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 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 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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/03/2022 Full Outstanding 05/11/2019 Full Good 20/11/2018 Full Good 21/09/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress from their starting points. Children are held in high regard and benefit from positive relationships with staff. Children accept the support and guidance provided to them. One child told the inspector that ‘all staff are nice and kind’, and said that they are ‘safe and happy’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Often, children arriving at the home are in crisis and have had significant disruptions in their education. All children are now attending school or college and have excellent attendance. Staff are invested in children’s education and learning, and have built positive relationships with school staff. Staff attend parents’ evening and children’s assemblies, and arrange children’s birthday parties with their friends’ parents. This provides children with memorable experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with a wide range of therapeutic outdoor-based activities. These include wild swimming, camping, ghyll scrambling, climbing and rambling. This enables children to develop new skills and have adventures that they have not experienced before. However, staff need to ensure that they only complete activities that they are licensed to undertake.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A professional said, ‘The home goes above and beyond to support family time. Staff facilitate weekly family time, and this has helped the child to settle well within the home while also promoting [the child’s] identity.’ Staff will travel considerable distances to ensure that children have family time with the people who are important to them. This has helped with the development of positive relationships between children, parents and staff; children benefit from this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The physical environment of the home is warm, welcoming and furnished to a very high standard. It is made to feel like a family home, with photos and children’s art displayed on the walls. Children are proud of their home. Chickens and ducks roam the grounds, which provides children with the opportunity to be responsible for animals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to move out of the home. However, the manager should clearly record the work completed with children in how they support children to prepare for leaving the home both practically and emotionally.

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

Children have developed trusting relationships with staff and can identify a trusted individual who they can share their worries or fears with. Therefore, while they know how to complain, they have not needed to.

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

Individual risk management plans for children address any know vulnerabilities for children and what actions should be taken to reduce them. Staff know the children Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 4 well and implement effective behaviour management strategies. This means that physically holding children is only used rarely and as a last resort.

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

A child was missing from care for a prolonged period of time. There was a well- coordinated response from the home, police and local authority. The manager had implemented the agreed protocol. Records show that staff followed this protocol in trying to locate the child. However, return-home interviews have not taken place consistently.

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

Staff receive training to build their skills and knowledge, particularly around safeguarding, so that they can keep children safe. Staff were able to discuss the safeguarding process and procedure to follow if a child made an allegation. Staff also understand and follow whistle-blowing procedures.

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

There are some shortfalls in medication. On one occasion, staff did not administer the correct medication to a child. The home’s system for monitoring controlled medication is to ensure that two members of staff sign the medication records, but this had not been consistently put into practice. Some staff members’ medication training had expired. This has a negative effect on children’s health and safety.

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

Safer recruitment means that only suitable staff work with children and the home is a safe place to live.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitability qualified manager. The manager is supported by two competent deputies, and there is a strong leadership team who staff feel supported by. The home has good staff morale. All staff in the home are very child centred and committed to providing a high level of care to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from professionals and birth families is complimentary of the care provided to children, and the progress that children are making is recognised. Social workers benefit from regular updates and excellent communication from the home. A family member said, ‘It makes me so happy how well [the child] is progressing; they are amazing. Staff are brilliant and keep me up to date.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The internal monitoring of the home can be improved in some areas. For example, managers need to ensure that children’s debriefs include their comments and signatures. Managers need to ensure that all children’s local authority documents are on file. Also, records need to include the time that it takes for fire drills to be completed. This will enhance the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Consequences are not used in the home. The positive behaviour of children is continually promoted and rewarded. Staff respond with clear boundaries and routines. This provides children with consistent and predictable care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from a thorough induction programme and are committed to attending training. Supervisions are reflective and practice based. Team meetings have a high Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 5 staff attendance. This supports staff in understanding their roles and aids staff’s ongoing professional development. Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 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 children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, staff should not complete activities that they are not licenced to undertake. Staff should ensure that a judgement is made as to whether activities are in the best interest of the child’s safety and welfare before considering undertaking them. 3 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 3 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 7 use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that any missing statutory documents are on children’s files including, care plans, placement plans and health assessments. Furthermore, ensure that children’s debriefs include their comments and signatures. Ensure that records of fire drills include the time taken to complete the test.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child; and

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff safely administer the correct medication, and that there is consistency in two members of staff signing the controlled medication records. Furthermore, ensure that all staff have up-to-date medication training. 3 May 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return-home interview. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that work completed with children in how they assist them to prepare for leaving the home, both practically and emotionally, is recorded. (Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 57, paragraph 11.9) Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 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: 1249123 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fitzroy Academy, Cruckton, Shrewsbury SY5 8PR

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Inspector

Nicola Clements, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1249123 10 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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