Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2723807 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run home provides care for up to two children with social and emotional difficulties. There were two children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by a registered manager.

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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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2723807 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected. Inspection report children’s home: 2723807 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive good-quality care from staff who know them well. Children and staff regularly spend time together and this leads to the development of good and strong bonds. The manager and staff respect children and hold them in high regard. Consequently, the atmosphere in the home is positive and children feel highly valued and say they like living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support children to take part in a range of activities and encourage them to try new experiences to participate in. This provides children with the opportunity to increase their social skills and develop their self-esteem. Children’s memories are recorded in memory books by staff, which are available for children to view and take with them when they leave the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to see the importance of learning, and children’s attendance in education is good. For example, one child was congratulated by their school for having 100% attendance. There are desks in each child’s room to help with homework and study. There is effective liaison with education professionals, and a culture of promoting education is embedded in the home. This gives children the best opportunity to succeed in education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to keep in contact with people who are important to them, who are, at times, some distance away. This helps children to feel settled and secure and maintain their sense of identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide parents with regular updates regarding their child’s progress. Parents are reassured by the care that their children receive, and they speak confidently about the manager and staff. One parent said that although they are not with their child every day ‘it feels like they are still in my care’.

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

Children have built extremely secure attachments with staff in a short period of time. This relationship has been instrumental to enabling children to talk about any worries they have. As a result, children feel safe and secure as staff can identify any triggers and provide the appropriate support to manage more-challenging behaviours.

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

There have been no allegations or complaints made by children about staff. This reflects not only staff competence, but their skills in working with children sensitively and managing more-difficult situations.

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

Staff do not use sanctions as a punishment when children’s behaviour has not met the expectations of staff. Alternatively, staff support and promote positive behaviours from children. Additionally, staff celebrate children’s achievements. Staff support children to excel with their hobbies and interests. For example, one child is supplied with artistic Inspection report children’s home: 2723807 4 items to allow them to sketch or paint. This has supported the child to manage their emotions. Consequently, incidents involving children behaving negatively have decreased.

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

The manager has ensured that there is a robust assessment process for any new children coming to live at the home. This ensures that children are only admitted to the home if the manager and staff have the right experience and skills to meet their needs. The manager ensures that any risk or vulnerability of the child are identified early, and measures are put in place to reduce risks.

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

Thorough recruitment processes are followed to help to ensure that only those adults who have been assessed as safe to work with children are employed. As a result, the manager is assured of the background of the staff and that they are motivated to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good understanding of the needs of the children. She monitors all aspects of the care provided to ensure that continual progress is made. The manager has developed positive relationships with children and knows them well. She is approachable and leads by example. The manager works hard to improve outcomes for children and help them make very good progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is provided with good support from the responsible individual. He is available for support, advice and direction. This improves the manager’s confidence in developing the team and her own management style and, overall, this leads to good and consistent care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff are committed to the children and demonstrate an in-depth understanding of each child and their needs. They take great pride in providing nurturing care. The children benefit from having stability in the staff team caring for them. As a result, staff morale is high, and they are fully attuned to the needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Multi-agency working is a real strength in this home. This approach promotes the full involvement of the professional network around the child. There is very good daily communication between the care staff, school, and other professionals. This means that approaches to care are well coordinated. Feedback from professionals is positive. One professional stated that the staff are 'exceeding expectations’. Another professional commented that, ‘Communication is good, and staff are brilliant.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular individual supervision, team meetings and clinical meetings. These meetings support staff to reflect on children’s needs. Additionally, they provide an opportunity for staff to reflect on their own practice, raise any concerns they may have, and receive any identified support. Inspection report children’s home: 2723807 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 children’s home: 2723807 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1 & 5 , Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Richard Matthews

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Inspector

Corline Parker, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2723807 7 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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