Children's Home run by My Choice Children’s Homes Limited in West Sussex

Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 1 Registered provider: My Choice Children’s Homes Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and run by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to four children.

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Information about this children’s home

Four children were living at the home at the time of inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager in day-to-day charge of the home has an application in progress to be registered with Ofsted.

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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: 2625942 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/05/2022 Full Good 16/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/08/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from positive and trusting relationships with staff, who have a good understanding of the children’s individual needs. Children say that they feel safe, and that staff listen to them and respect their opinions. Children confidently approach staff about their worries and concerns.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are engaged in education and are making progress from their starting points. Two children are on a reduced timetable because they struggle to stay in school full time. The manager and staff are working closely with the school and the local authority to ensure that the children have access to the resources and support that they need.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are successfully encouraged to participate in community-based activities and clubs, including swimming, boxing, scouts, and football. Staff also creatively provide learning opportunities. Books and board games are readily available to children. They are encouraged to join the local library and are given support to complete work set by school. Children’s independence is promoted, for example, by staff involving them in planning and preparing meals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are valued. There are regular children’s meetings and children have the opportunity to put forward suggestions about the way that the home is run. Recent examples include holiday activity choices and improvements to the home and garden. This gives children a sense of ownership and pride in their surroundings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been some specific challenges in the home since the last inspection. They have been sensitively addressed through children’s meetings and individual key-work sessions. Children have been supported to express their feelings about significant changes to the staff team and about living together harmoniously as a group.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are supported by staff through careful planning and strong communication with external health professionals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to see those people who are important to them. When plans need to change, staff sensitively explain this to children. One social worker told the inspector that staff are in regular contact with a child’s family and ‘always promote positive family time’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Reports written for children’s statutory reviews provide a comprehensive overview of their progress and include their views and wishes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home’s statement of purpose has recently been updated to reflect staff changes. However, the updated version was not submitted to Ofsted. This was addressed by managers during the inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 4

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

Managers and staff prioritise the safety and well-being of children. Staff recruitment procedures are robust. This reduces the potential for unsuitable adults to be employed at the home.

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

The systems for administering and recording medication promote safe practice. As a result of learning from previous medication errors, managers have reviewed medication processes and updated staff guidance. Staff have received additional medication training and had medication competency assessments. These changes have reduced the risk of further medication errors.

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

Children’s bedroom doors have alarms fitted to alert staff when children need help during the night. Appropriate permissions are in place for their use. At times, these are not switched off during the day and so alarms are activated when children go in and out of their rooms. This gives the home an institutional feel. Managers took steps to address this shortfall during the inspection.

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

Information about how to make a complaint is included in the written children’s guide to the home, and children told the inspector that they know how to complain. However, children are not always informed about the outcome of their complaints in a timely way. This has the potential to stop children from telling adults if they are unhappy about any aspect of their care.

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

Risk management plans are in place for children. These are understood by staff and implemented effectively to reduce known risks. The frequency of behavioural incidents is reducing for all children. During times of difficulty, staff ensure children’s emotional well-being. Following incidents, staff help children to reflect on how to better manage their emotions.

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

Regular health and safety checks of the building ensure that the environment remains safe and secure. Staff know the locality well and provide children with the freedom to explore the community at a level that is appropriate for their age, understanding and ability. This approach builds children’s confidence and helps to teach them how to keep themselves safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children and staff speak positively about the impact that the new manager has had on the home. Staff members told the inspector that they feel optimistic about the way that the home is developing under his leadership. One member of staff said that the manager is always available to give advice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager speaks passionately about his plans for the home and says that his priority is to make sure that children feel fully part of them. The manager, area manager and responsible individual have a well-informed awareness of the strengths Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 5 and weaknesses of the home. There is a clear plan in place to address the shortfalls that they have identified.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

This has been a particularly challenging period of time for the home. Senior leaders have provided effective support to children, the staff team and the manager. This has had a negative impact on some aspects of management oversight of the home. One example relates to staff supervision and appraisals, which are not being carried out at agreed intervals. As a result, there are missed opportunities to reflect on the development needs of the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A further shortfall in the monitoring systems relates to records of complaints made by children. Complaints are acted on, but records could be improved to enable the manager to identify patterns and trends that could be learned from to improve practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

In other areas, the manager has good oversight of the quality of care being provided to children. The progress of children is well recorded, and risk assessments are updated and reviewed regularly. The use of physical restraint is monitored, and staff reflect on incidents. A debrief and evaluation takes place to consider how to prevent recurrence. Focused team meetings provide staff with opportunities to improve their knowledge and understanding about how to meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the importance of engaging with other professionals, and feedback is positive regarding communication and partnership working. Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 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 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)) 30 June 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)(c)) 30 June 2023

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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: 2625942 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: My Choice Children’s Homes Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 3a, Mill Green Business Estate, Mill Green Road, Haywards Heath RH16 1XQ

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Inspector

Mike Simmonds, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2625942 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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