Children's home run by Sunnier Skies Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 1 Registered provider: Sunnier Skies Care Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for up to three children who may require support in respect of social, emotional and behavioural needs, including learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since November 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 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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive and meaningful relationships with staff. Children enjoy spending time with staff. Staff show genuine emotional warmth and understanding to children. This helps children to build trusting relationships with staff, which supports children to make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged and supported to explore their interests and hobbies. They express their individuality and take pride in their success. Staff are confident in meeting the children’s needs while helping them to develop their individual identities. Because of this, children’s confidence and self-esteem improve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well considered and met by staff. Staff work with a variety of health services. Staff understand the complexities of each individual child. A therapeutic approach is used by staff. This helps support children’s emotional health and well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and team support children to attend their educational placement. When children are home-schooled, staff work hard to motivate them to learn and provide learning experiences daily. Staff understand the barriers to education and are helping children to overcome these. Children have bespoke education plans in place. As a result, children engage with learning and are making good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s contact with families is encouraged and supported. Good arrangements are in place for children to spend time with people that matter to them, even those that live some distance from the home. Staff go above and beyond to make sure that contact is supported where appropriate. Staff understand the importance of this. This helps children to maintain positive relationships with family and friends.

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

Children enjoy the trusting relationships built with the staff. Children know they will be listened to and taken seriously. This reflects the staff’s ability to manage and support children through their anxieties and worries. As a consequence, children have the stability they need.

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

Staff use their skills and training well to keep incidents to a minimum. The therapeutic approach used to support children is very effective in helping children to regulate their emotions. This is fully embedded in all aspects of care. As a result, staff support children to overcome past trauma and are able to manage current risks.

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

Staff complete the mandatory safeguarding training required. Staff discuss safeguarding issues in team meetings. This provides opportunities for staff to Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 4 discuss and reflect more about specific safeguarding issues. As a result, training is focused on care, support and the safeguarding needs of children.

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

Staff have a clear understanding of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. Safeguarding is routinely discussed in one-to-one meetings. However, not all concerns are reported to professionals. This limits external review of safeguarding practice and working with the wider professional network.

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

Medication records do not show attention to detail. Records are poor in relation to prescribed medication and there is a lack of information about the medication used. Systems to record medication are not in line with safe administration and recording. As a result, it is not clear if children are receiving their prescribed medication.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is new in post. She speaks with passion about the home and children. She demonstrates a genuine commitment to helping children make good progress in all areas of their lives. As a result, staff share her passion to improve children’s experiences and outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff experience good leadership from managers. They receive daily support and guidance from the management team. Team spirit and morale are very positive. Staff have confidence in their management team and value the leadership it provides. As a result, staff are enthusiastic and enjoy working at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff training programme is effective in ensuring that staff have the skills to meet children’s needs. Additional therapeutic training for staff is also being arranged so that staff can further improve their support to children and provide them with nurturing care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular formal one-to-one meetings with their manager. The sessions provide reflective challenge for staff to learn and improve. Staff have also completed an audit in relation to their own skills which contributes to their individual development plan. This supports staff’s personal and professional development. Consequently, this reinforces the strength and knowledge of the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Although quality assurance and monitoring systems are generally effective, some internal systems do not consistently identify or rectify shortfalls. For example, there are gaps in medication logs, monthly audits for one-to-one work with children and health and safety audits. In some cases, it is not clear what actions have been taken to address shortfalls because quality assurance records are not completed in full.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External scrutiny from the independent visitor supports the manager in the monthly review of the home. The current visitor is insightful in identifying the strengths and areas for improvements in the home. This level of scrutiny is openly welcomed by the manager. Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 5

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to ensuring that all relevant safeguarding information relating to children is shared promptly with professionals. 26 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

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)) 26 June 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

medicines kept in the home are stored in a secure place so as to prevent any child from having unsupervised access to them; 26 June 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 6 medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child;

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3)(a)(b))

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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: 2710124 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Sunnier Skies Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Pera Business Park, Nottingham Road, Melton Mowbray LE13 0PB

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Inspector

Thirza Smith, Social Care Inspector Emma Dacres, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2710124 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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