Children's home run by Homes 2 Inspire Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 1 Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is run by a private company that is owned and operated by a national charity. It is registered to care for up to three children with complex needs who have experienced trauma and loss.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in March 2020 and holds a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 8 December 2021

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/12/2021 Full Good 05/11/2019 Full Good 15/07/2019 Full Inadequate 07/12/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, two children were living in this home. One of the children had recently moved in. Two children had been positively supported by staff to move on to supported accommodation.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and the managers are very supportive and nurturing of children and have a good understanding of children’s needs. Staff’s knowledge of children allows them to provide individualised care which meets each child’s needs. Consequently, children are making good progress in a range of areas and settling into the home well.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children do not have an identified education provision, the managers and staff are proactive and work in partnership with other agencies to ensure that children have access to education while a suitable provision is identified. As a result, children do not experience significant gaps in their learning. One child’s tutor informed the inspector that the child has made one academic year’s progress in the six months he has been receiving tuition at home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with opportunities to engage in activities they are interested in, at the home and in the community. They enjoy boxing, gaming and bike riding as well as visiting historical places of interest and theme parks. Following recent snowfall, one child was supported by staff to go sledging for the first time. Staff encourage children to attend the local youth club, to socialise with peers and develop good self-esteem and confidence while having fun.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s relationships with people who are important to them. The children enjoy positive family time, and relationships between children’s families and staff are positive. Children benefit from staff and families working together. A parent told the inspector that it was ‘brilliant’ for her child to live at this home as she knew he was safe and happy and was no longer going missing.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are involved in the day-to-day running of the home, through children’s meetings and general conversations with staff. Staff encourage children to personalise their rooms to promote a sense of belonging. Children feel that staff listen to them, respect them and value them. The home’s ‘you said and I did’ system allows children to see how staff have actioned their requests and how they have contributed to changes in the running of their home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, children enjoy living in a spacious, comfortable and homely environment. The managers and staff work hard to create an atmosphere that is nurturing, child- friendly and relaxed. However, the managers have been slow to escalate work that needs doing in the home, for example, the laundry room continues to have signs of damp, despite efforts made to address this. Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 4

p.3

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

Staff and the managers respond to safeguarding concerns well. For example, when children go missing from home, staff try to contact children on their mobile phones, and they search local areas and the areas that the children may have links to. In addition, they contact all relevant professionals and work closely with the police in an attempt to ensure that children return safely.

p.4

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

Local police confirmed that the manager and staff care about safeguarding the children and promptly alert the police when needed. Managers and staff work in partnership with the police to try to reduce risks for children. This coordinated approach helps to safeguard children when they are missing from care and contributes to them returning.

p.4

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

Behaviour management plans and risk assessments identify all known and potential risks to children. They include clear step-by-step guidance for staff on managing risks. This guidance helps staff to keep the children safe from harm. As a result, there has been a reduction in missing-from-care incidents. Children feel safe enough to confide in staff about things that happened when they were missing from their previous home before coming to live at this home.

p.4

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

Staff build strong relationships with children as a result of their practice of ‘connection before correction’ and use of the PACE (p layfulness, acceptance, curiosity and empathy) model of care. This enables staff to de-escalate incidents quickly and the use of physical intervention is kept to a minimum. When physical interventions are used, they are managed well. Following incidents, managers and staff use key-working sessions to help children learn from their behaviours and equip them to make better choices in the future.

p.4

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

On one occasion, staff did not follow the company’s whistle-blowing policy when there were concerns about a staff member’s conduct on shift. There was a delay in raising these concerns with managers. Managers responded promptly when alerted, took appropriate steps and notified all relevant professionals.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers are passionate, motivated and committed to the development of a staff team who deliver consistent good-quality care to children. The managers speak positively about the children. They want children to succeed and they ensure that children are provided with clear and consistent boundaries. This supports children’s development and progress.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff attend a range of training to develop their skills to care for children. All staff have either attained their level 3 qualification in residential childcare or are due to be enrolled on a relevant course following the conclusion of their probation period. The managers and staff use team meetings to focus on specific areas to develop practice, such as recording skills and the terminology used. This promotes staff’s Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 5 learning and understanding of how to improve their recording and how to refer to and respond to children’s needs.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals are complimentary of the registered manager and the care the staff provide. An assistant head for children in care said, ‘My experience of working alongside staff at [name of home] has been positive. They are very committed to ensuring that students are engaging in education and are supportive of strategies to make this a reality. They have been flexible when working with some students where education is a significant challenge and are always supportive of the efforts to provide an education for these students. Staff always attend PEP meetings and contribute positively.’

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is not fully staffed, however, managers ensure that there are enough staff to meet the children’s needs. There have been some changes in staffing, but the managers use familiar staff when cover is needed, to provide continuity of care for the children. The managers are recruiting, but shortfalls are managed well.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Overall, the managers have monitoring systems in place that allow them to have good oversight of the progress made by children. This allows them to understand the home’s strengths and the areas that require development. Managers’ evaluations evidence reflection of incidents, however, learning that influences the development of practice is not consistently captured to reflect the good practice that is taking place.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about the managers. They say the managers are very supportive and are always available to support them when needed. Staff receive good-quality supervision that helps them reflect on practice. This keeps staff motivated and focused on the way they respond to children’s needs. However, some staff supervisions are not taking place regularly, in line with company policy. Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 6

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff receive supervision, in line with company policy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should ensure that staff are made familiar through the induction process with the home’s internal whistle-blowing procedures. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.9)  The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of their children. In particular, that the work needed in the home is carried out, such as in the laundry room. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

p.6

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: 1255744 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Ltd

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lumonics House, Valiant Office Suites, Valley Drive CV21 1TQ

p.7

Inspector

Sharon Bourne, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1255744 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.

p.7

Inspector

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 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 .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8