Children's home run by Pelican Care Group Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 1 Registered provider: Pelican Care 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 operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2021 and is suitably experienced.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/03/2022 Full Good 13/11/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy and relaxed living in the home. They are supported to form strong bonds and trusting relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who come to live at this home have a history of disruption to their education, including non-attendance. The children are provided with bespoke support packages. As a result, they are enabled to return to education settings and make substantial progress. One child achieved seven GCSE qualifications and went on to successfully complete a two year college course and achieve qualifications in barbering.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to take part in a range of outdoor activities, including going for country walks, going on bike rides and visiting places of interest. Children engage in these activities and enjoy spending time with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health. They are registered with local health services. There are clear health plans in place that incorporate any actions from children’s annual health assessments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Thorough plans are in place to manage and review children’s care. However, on one occasion, the placing authority failed to secure a placement for a child reaching the age of 18. Two complaints made by the manager, were not addressed by the placing authority. However, the manager did not take steps to use escalation processed. This resulted in the child being supported by staff away from the home until an appropriate placement was sourced.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff complete regular, planned and unplanned key-worker sessions with children. These sessions enable the children to begin to make sense of their individual circumstances and help them to develop skills and strategies to manage their own difficulties and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are consistently consulted. They are listened to and their views, wishes and feelings are highly valued by the staff team. Children engage in weekly children’s meetings and are supported to have their voices heard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Consultation with parents and professionals is a consistent feature in the home. Feedback from stakeholders is routinely sought and is used to enhance the services provided to children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming. Children are consulted on the decor of the home, and encouraged to decorate their bedrooms in a way that reflects their personality. However, children’s bedroom windows are not obscured with a blind or alternative covering. Therefore, children’s privacy is compromised. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 4 Children are supported to safely spend time with their families. Plans clearly detail any supervisory requirements for staff to follow when children are away from the home.

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

Individual assessments take account of children’s lived experiences. Potential triggers for challenging behaviours are identified, alongside the strategies for staff to follow to manage these. Assessments are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect children’s current risks and vulnerabilities.

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

The day-to-day care of children is focused on praise, fun, exploration and the promotion of play. Challenging behaviours are quickly diverted using agreed distraction techniques.

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

Staff are in tune with children and quickly help them to become calm using agreed de-escalation techniques. As a result, there are no incidents of staff needing to hold children to keep them and others safe.

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

Some children come to the home with a history of substance misuse. Staff work collaboratively with the children, their families and external agencies to address these concerns and reduce risks for children. Furthermore, where obstacles have arisen, such as families providing children with additional funds, staff have been active in challenging these.

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

Records of children who have been reported as absent or missing from the home are clear. Records demonstrate that staff follow the missing-from-home policy and take swift action to locate children in line with their plans.

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

Children are provided with age-appropriate information about the home. This includes being given a copy of the children’s guide, the house rules and information about how to speak to an independent person should they wish to.

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

Staff work with children to help them to understand the impact of previous negative friendship groups. They encourage children to build positive friendships and support this by inviting friends for tea or to attend an activity.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The statement of purpose is well defined to ensure that children, social workers and families are clear about the service and the support that it provides. Safer recruitment procedures are consistently adhered to. The registered manager monitors the care provided in the home and ensures that the staff working with the children are safe to do so.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home employs a committed and enthusiastic staff team. Three staff are qualified to diploma level and three staff are enrolled on this training. The registered Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 5 manager has successfully completed the level 5 diploma in leadership and management.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Internal monitoring is good. The registered manager consistently reviews the work being undertaken with the children. She provides guidance for staff on how to progress each child’s short- and long-term aims.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent visitor monitors the home in accordance with regulation. However, their reports lack an overall analysis of the care being provided to children and do not consistently include feedback from external stakeholders, parents or children. Therefore, the information contained in the reports does not help to support the ongoing development of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive support from the registered manager and deputy manager. Formal supervisions take place regularly and informal support is available daily. A staff member said, ‘The management is particularly good. We all have good support. It is a great place to work.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive ongoing mandatory and specialist training. However, professional training to support the specific needs of one child has not yet taken place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

On one occasion, a serious incident was not notified to Ofsted in line with regulation. Although there were issues with the online reporting system at the time, the manage did not take steps to inform via email or telephone. This limits the regulator’s oversight of serious incidents in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 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 registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers serious. (Regulation 40(4)(b)) 7 April 2023

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)) 7 April 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, and that the training available meets the needs of the children in their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should ensure that the independent visitor is skilled in anticipating difficulties and reviewing incidents, such as learning from disruptions and placement breakdowns. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that children’s personal space, which is usually their bedrooms, has appropriate window coverings to ensure that the children’s privacy is supported and protected. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.18)

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 7 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: 2510737 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pelican Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: c/o Holden Associates, V12 Suite, Merlin Park, Ringtail Road, Burscough, Lancashire L40 8JY

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Inspector

Maria McGranaghan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2510737 9 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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