Children's Home run by Halton Borough Council in Halton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 1 SC039559 Registered provider: Halton Borough Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide short breaks for up to four children who may have learning disabilities, physical disabilities and sensory impairment. It is managed by a local authority and provides a service for children from other local authorities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered at the home since 2007.

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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: 16 November 2021

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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: SC039559 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/11/2021 Full Good 25/02/2020 Full Good 23/01/2019 Full Good 28/11/2017 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This service is currently providing short breaks to 18 children. The number of overnight stays is individual for each child and is dependent on their individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive a good quality of care during their short-break stay. Careful planning considers children’s complex needs and health conditions. As a result, transitions into the home are successful. Children are encouraged to make decisions about their care and activities. This takes place during children’s meetings and individual consultations with their key workers. The staff listen to children’s views and are creative in trying to meet children’s requests. For example, one child asked for their overnight stay to be changed so that they could spend more time with their grandparents. This was facilitated. Children requested a pet; however, this was not possible because some children were allergic to animals. However, staff arranged for the children to adopt a pig at a local petting farm, and children enjoy visiting the pig. Social workers and parents spoke very highly of the quality of care and the positive

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

support that children receive during their short breaks. One parent said, ‘When I tell her she is going, her face lights up. A picture speaks a thousand words.’ Another parent spoke of how well the staff understand her child’s needs. Daily records and photos of children’s achievements are concise, evaluative and provide a clear sense of how short breaks improve children’s lives. Children can choose large print and picture exchange symbols to enable them to contribute to their care or make a complaint if they wish. The different communication systems ensure that all children have a voice and can share their feelings. The environment is a homely, safe place where children can maximise their potential. The premises are well designed and fully equipped to meet a full range of mobility needs. Children’s bedrooms are well designed and furnished to promote their privacy. Staff make every effort to ensure that children can stay in the same room for each

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

visit and that they are surrounded by items that are personal to them, including bedding, toys and photos. This has helped children to settle during their short-break stay.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The team constantly strives to provide children with good-quality experiences to enhance their lives and develop their independence skills. Children are truly valued and are at the centre of practice in the home.

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

Staff have a gentle and calm approach towards behaviour management. When children become upset or frustrated, staff use a variety of de-escalation techniques, such as spending time with them in quiet areas or redirecting children to an activity. This helps children to reduce their anxieties and divert their attention positively. As a Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 4 result, there have been no incidents of physical intervention, and other incidents are very minimal.

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

Good planning ensures that children can enjoy stays at the home. Appropriate levels of supervision and good risk assessments, behaviour management plans and daily records mean that incidents are rare. Parents said that they are confident in the team’s ability to keep their children safe. They know that staff will respond to any incidents and keep them well informed. In addition to this, staff are appropriately trained in child protection. They clearly demonstrate their roles and responsibilities and know when and how to respond to any safeguarding concerns. Records demonstrate that there is a thorough analysis and reflection on any incident. For example, there has been one incident where a child exhibited an uncharacteristic behaviour. The staff communicated with parents and other professionals to examine the potential causes of the child’s distress. Staff were then able to put other safeguarding practices in place, such as one-to-one supervision. This ensures that the

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

child can be monitored and that all children are safe. Some children have complex health needs that require regular medication. There are effective and robust medication procedures in place to ensure that all children have the appropriate and correct medication that they need.

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

Children are protected from hazards by a wide range of health and safety procedures, risk assessments and checks. Staff carry out regular health and safety checks, including fire drills, to ensure that the premises are safe and that children know what to do in an emergency. All visitors to the home are suitably checked and supervised to protect children.

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good

The registered manager has been absent from the home due to ill health. She is due to retire in April 2023. In her absence, the deputy manager has been managing the home. He is suitably qualified and experienced to undertake this role.

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good

The deputy manager has made sure that staff have been supported through regular supervision sessions. However, he has only received one formal supervision in the last six months. Initially, the deputy manager did not have full access to the registered manager’s documents, as these were password protected. However, this has recently been rectified.

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good

There are vacancies in the staff team. However, the current staff are covering additional shifts to ensure that the children’s short-break stays are not cancelled. Staff said that they were unsure of how long this can be maintained given that another member of staff is due to leave at the end of March 2023. Recruitment is ongoing, but it has proven unsuccessful. The deputy manager and senior leadership team are now exploring different options for recruiting suitable people. Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 5 The deputy manager holds regular team meetings. However, they do not routinely use research to inform their practice. This is a missed opportunity to keep staff updated on changes in legislation or current trends and guidance articles. The home is operating in line with the statement of purpose. However, a copy has not been sent to the regulator with all the changes of staff. This restricts the regulator’s

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good

oversight of the home. External monitoring processes comply with regulations and contribute towards the children’s safety and well-being. The views of the children and parents are carefully gathered and used positively to inform care outcomes. Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 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 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—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)) 30 June 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—

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(g)(i)) 31 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 31 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 7 promotes their welfare.

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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

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

Specifically, ensure that there is a clear plan to support the deputy manager in their role. Further to this, ensure that there is good oversight of the home from the senior leadership team.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 31 May 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the statement of purpose is kept under review and sent to the regulator. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)

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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: SC039559 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Halton Borough Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3rd Floor Rutland House, Halton Lea, Runcorn WA7 2GW

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Inspectors

Pam Nuckley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Sally Griffiths, Social Care Regulatory inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC039559 9 and 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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