Children's home run by Hestia Homes for Children

Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 1 Registered provider: Hestia Homes for Children Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns the home. It is registered to provide care for up to five children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2022.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 25 January 2023

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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: 2670636 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/01/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are looked after by caring and friendly staff. Staff ensure that children with health needs and/or disabilities are provided with the appropriate support and care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When new children are being introduced to the home, staff and managers carry out child-centred assessments with help from the children’s parents, social workers and health professionals. Pre-visits and introduction sessions are arranged. Children move in when they are ready and are supported to integrate into the home. This helps children build relationships and settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers have good working relationships with external professionals and parents. Information regarding children’s care needs and interests is shared between staff, parents and social workers. This collaboratively guides the care provided to children and promotes consistency. A social worker said, ‘I have weekly detailed reports and email updates as and when incidents take place.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children continue to make good progress in their education and in interacting with the wider community. When full-time school provisions are not available for children, staff and managers work closely with local authorities to identify educational options. Staff also support children to engage in private tutorials and other activities which help them gain social skills in preparation for starting new schools.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff use a variety of creative measures to encourage children to share their views and wishes. They support children to express themselves through planned and unplanned life-story discussions, using a variety of communication aids. These include the Picture Exchange Communication System, Makaton and verbal communication. This makes children feel listened to and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in a variety of fun and inspiring activities. These include playing in the garden, swimming, bowling, arts and crafts, playing on the trampoline, sports and listening to music. A social worker said, ‘Staff encourage him [the child] to attend basketball and are already preparing a holiday for him in September.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop independence skills which are appropriate for their age and capabilities. They are guided by child-centred plans to carry out tasks such as visits to the local shops to help purchase the weekly food shopping, cooking meals and doing chores in the home. This empowers children and helps them develop life skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children develop their individual identity in relation to their gender, disability, religious, racial and cultural backgrounds. Staff support children to understand each other’s differences and promote acceptance and kindness. Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 4

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

Well-written assessment plans are implemented and regularly reviewed. These are used to guide staff in the care and safeguarding of children. Newly identified risks are discussed in professional meetings, handovers and supervisions, where effective approaches on keeping children safe are identified, which are then implemented in practice. Staff discuss risks with children. As a result, children are kept safe and understand risks.

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

Children do not go missing. When children walk off, staff use guidance from individualised protocols to return children home safely.

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

Staff use their knowledge and skills to support children when they struggle with their emotions and feelings. They support children to calm and encourage them to self-regulate. Physical restraints are rarely used and are a last resort. Staff sensitively hold child-centred, non-shaming restorative discussions with children. This supports them to understand the impact of their behaviours towards others and helps rebuild relationships.

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

Managers and staff ensure that any concerns are investigated and conclusions are shared with relevant agencies, including Ofsted.

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

Safer recruitment processes are adhered to. Thorough checks are completed before agency staff and new staff start work. As a result, children are cared for safely.

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good

Leaders, managers and staff have failed to adhere to some organisational policies. For example, records of visitors to the home are not always maintained. Poor monitoring of visitors to the home could compromise the confidentiality of children’s information and, potentially, their safety. Leaders and managers have recently implemented new processes and reviewed their policies. However, the effectiveness of these could not be fully tested at the time of this inspection.

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good

Leaders and managers use effective measures to track children’s progress. These include life-skill assessments and behavioural reports which are used to analyse children’s development and measure behavioural trends. Discussions are held with children where staff explain their progress and praise them on their achievements and completion of tasks.

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good

The manager and staff receive regular and effective supervisions. Staff are given time to reflect, in formal and informal discussions where concerns and practice issues are addressed. Reflective debriefs are held with staff after incidents. This helps staff to identify good practice, feel listened to and appreciated. Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 5 Staff have completed all mandatory training. They have also completed training in line with children’s current needs, such as Makaton, personal care and epilepsy. This helps staff gain the required knowledge to care for children. Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 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 take reasonable steps to ensure that any individual who is working at the home and who does not fall within paragraph (2)(a) and (b) is appropriately supervised while carrying out the individual’s duties. (Regulation 32 (8)) 31 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect; and

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Requirement Due date

sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep under review and, as necessary, revise the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b) (6)) 31 July 2023

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date; and

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Requirement Due date

retain the records for at least 15 years from the date of the last entry. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the service has records of all visitors to the home and to children, including the names of visitors and the reasons for the visit. 31 July 2023 Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 7

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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: 2670636 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hestia Homes for Children Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Emerys Farm, Beckfords, Upper Basildon, Reading RG8 8PB

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Inspector

Alphie Khumalo, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2670636 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 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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