Children's Home run by Compass Children‟s Homes Limited in Wakefield

Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 1 Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

It provides care for up to eight children aged between 10 and 17 years who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since December 2022. A permanent manager has been appointed but they are not yet registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

There were five children living at the home when the inspection took place.

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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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Enforcement action since last inspection:

Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/08/2022 Full Good 20/10/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making progress because they experience structure and routine in their daily lives. They respond to the predictable and nurturing care provided by staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy and settled. They respond to the secure and trusting relationships they enjoy with staff. Children said that staff help and support them. Children spoke positively about the care that they receive and the progress that they are making. One child said, ‘I am proud of myself’. Another child said, ‘Staff are amazing because they accept me for who I am.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have improved attendance at school, and they are making progress in their education. Staff have high aspirations for the children, which motivates children to be aspirational about the future. Staff support children to work in a group with their peers to do their homework. This additional support enhances learning, which leads to improved outcomes for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have improved health outcomes. Children receive support in response to detailed assessments of their emotional and psychological well-being. The access to therapeutic support helps children to better understand their experiences and develop strategies to manage difficult feelings and emotions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff talk to children about various topics in line with children’s individual plans. They encourage children to talk about their experiences and how they are feeling. Staff respond sensitively to children when they feel worried or anxious. This enables children to become more resilient and helps them to gain an understanding of what is happening in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of them building positive and supportive relationships with the people who are important in children’s lives. They support children and families to enjoy fun activities when they spend time together. One parent said, ‘Staff are great. They go out of their way to support me to see my child.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s personalities are reflected in the decoration of their bedrooms and throughout this warm and welcoming home. Children are proud of their home. This makes children feel valued and cared for, and gives them a sense of belonging. Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 4

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

The risks to children have reduced. For some children, this happened soon after they moved in to the home. Children’s risk assessments are thorough, and staff ensure that they are kept up to date. Staff understand the vulnerabilities and risks for individual children, and they respond accordingly. However, for some children, the strategies in place to mitigate risks are not proportionate to the assessment of the risk. This relates to the high level of supervision and the lack of free time that children have in the community without supervision. This has the potential to hinder children from gaining independence and developing the skills to manage risks.

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

Children rarely go missing. When children have gone missing, staff understand their responsibilities, as clarified in the children’s individual plans. Staff are proactive in searching for children and reporting them missing. When children return home, staff talk to them about the dangers associated with going missing. However, children have not always been provided with the opportunity to talk to an independent person.

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

Staff respond to children consistently when they are struggling to express how they are feeling. Staff talk to children and help them to reflect on their behaviour and how they are feeling. This positive approach has led to a reduction of incidents because children are helped to develop strategies to manage their emotions safely.

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

Records show that when children have been held, the action taken by staff has been necessary and proportionate to reduce the risk of harm to children. Staff and children are supported to reflect on these incidents and talk about how they are feeling and what they could do differently. This provides everyone with an opportunity for learning, which helps to reduce the likelihood of incidents reoccurring.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has been without a registered manager since December 2022. A permanent manager was appointed at the same time, but they are not yet registered with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to the development of the home and the staff team. He knows the children well and understands their needs. The manager has a child- centred approach and role models positive practice to the staff team. This helps staff to work as a team to implement firm boundaries and deliver consistent care to achieve improved outcomes for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 5 Staff morale is high as they are happy and feel supported. Regular supervision provides them with the opportunity to discuss their own learning and children’s needs. This is reflected in records that show that staff’s training and development needs are reviewed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective systems to track and monitor the quality of care provided to children. The manager and senior leaders have good oversight of the progress that children make and the development of staff. When shortfalls are identified, the manager takes prompt action to address them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has made child-centred decisions about children moving in to the home. When children have moved in to the home, the manager has considered the impact on the children who already live at the home. Children have moved in to the home in a planned way, which helps them to understand and manage the changes that they are experiencing in their lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Not all records for children are up to date. This relates to discussions and actions arising from children’s looked after reviews and the placing authority care plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The rationale for the use of door alarms for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is not captured in the risk assessment for individual children. The manager has kept the assessment of risk under regular review, but it does not reflect the different needs of individual children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 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 may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children. (Regulation 24 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is repeated. 15 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the records of the review of the child’s care, and a child’s care plan written by the placing authority. 15 May 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person must ensure that staff continually assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. They should make informed professional judgement based on the individual child’s needs about when to allow a child to take a particular risk or follow a particular course of action. In particular, this relates to restricting children from having unsupervised time away from the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.7)

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Recommendations

 The registered person must ensure that when a child returns home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 7 local authority provides 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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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: 2539587 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Compass Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Compass Community Limited, 3 Rayns Way, Syston, Leicester LE7 1PF

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jessica Middleton

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Inspector

Rachel Webster, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2539587 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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