Children's home run by Social Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 1 Registered provider: Social Care Services (Clayton) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to three children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has recently gone on extended leave. Another manager has been appointed but has not submitted their application to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home. One child spoke to the inspector about their experiences living in the home.

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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: 2553543 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/08/2022 Full Good 08/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living in this home make good progress. They are helped to develop trusting relationships with staff who know them well. Children are helped to develop a sense of belonging and to settle in the home. Consequently, some children live in the home for several years.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to move on from the home in a positive way. An older child has recently moved on to live more independently after living in the home for three years. During this time, the child had access to a clear preparation for adulthood programme that enabled them to develop a range of life skills. Another child is being helped to budget, purchase food and prepare meals so that they have skills for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, the home has been refurbished. It is a welcoming space for children to relax in and enjoy. Children are encouraged to contribute to the way the home is decorated and furnished. They have plenty of space inside and outside of the home to pursue their activities, such as gaming and basketball.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to maintain relationships with their families and friends. Staff are proactive in building positive relationships with children’s families. This helps children to strengthen their relationships with people who are important to them and to develop their sense of identity. Children are able to continue to benefit from these relationships into adulthood. One parent stated that their child has made progress which may seem small to an outsider but is significant for their child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is well promoted, and children are helped to attend. Children who have previously had significant gaps in their education have been supported to sit exams. Staff communicate regularly with education providers to support children to reach their potential. This helps children to develop their aspirations and opportunities for future employment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop their interests and to join local groups. One child has access to an external youth service provider to build their support network and interests. This helps children to develop friendships and positive peer relationships. Children feel comfortable inviting their friends back to the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are listened to. They know how to make complaints or to raise any concerns. When children raise concerns, these are acted on appropriately and sensitively. Group living dynamics are well understood. Children are helped to develop positive relationships with each other to enable them to live together safely. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 4

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

Children say they feel safe living in the home. They know that staff help them to stay safe. Direct-work sessions support children to reflect on issues that are important to them. This helps children to make safer choices and promotes their safety and well-being. An example of this is how staff encourage children to keep safe online. Staff help children to understand risks. They also monitor online activity and respond appropriately when there is a concern.

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

Children do not go missing from this home. However, staff are aware of how to respond should this occur. Staff have opportunities to further develop their knowledge of safeguarding practices through scenarios and training.

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

Staff use positive conversations effectively to support children when they become distressed. They creatively use systems to further help children to understand and recognise their emotions. For one child, a system of using colours to identify the emotions they are feeling has worked well and has enabled staff to understand how to help the child in particular circumstances. This has meant there have been no incidents where staff have had to intervene and physically hold a child to keep them safe.

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

Any allegations or safeguarding concerns are dealt with quickly and professionally, in line with safeguarding procedures by the managers and responsible individual. Managers have good oversight of incidents and ensure that information is appropriately shared with relevant safeguarding agencies.

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

Safer recruitment practices are followed for new staff joining the home. This helps to ensure that only people who are suitable to work with children are employed to work in the home.

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

Children’s plans are individualised. They are regularly updated and provide strategies for staff to follow to safely manage children’s risks. However, the routine use of alarms on children’s bedroom doors does not take into consideration children’s individual needs. Discussions have taken place between the management and staff team about the need for these alarms, but children’s risk management plans have not been updated. This also limits children’s privacy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has recently taken extended leave. A manager has been identified to manage the home in the manager’s absence. They already work for the organisation and know the home and the children well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are child focused. They have good knowledge and understanding of children’s needs and oversight of practice in the home. They are proactive in ensuring that staff are responsive to meeting children’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 5 Staff say that they enjoy working in the home and feel supported by the management team. They have access to regular team meetings and supervision which is related to their practice. There are signs of evidence-based research starting to be used to help further develop practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers ensure that staff have access to a wide variety of training and development opportunities. New starters say that the induction is thorough and has enabled them to develop their skills to be able to care for the children well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals are complimentary about the staff and managers and the care they provide to children. Staff maintain effective partnerships to ensure that children’s needs are being met. Staff advocate for children. They are quick to act on advice from other professionals to ensure that children are supported well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers have introduced effective monitoring systems to maintain oversight of practice in the home. They regularly review and evaluate children’s records to address any shortfalls and to ensure that any opportunities for learning are implemented into practice in the home. However, records of visitors to the home are not always recorded in line with the organisation’s expectations. This reduces the manager’s oversight of visitors to the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 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;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance;

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Requirement Due date

so far as reasonably practicable in the light of the child’s age and understanding, the child is informed in advance of the intention to do the monitoring or surveillance; and

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that any limits to children’s privacy and access in the home, such as bedroom door alarms, are for safeguarding purposes only. Any limits should be subject to a rigorous assessment of each child’s needs and be kept under regular review. 14 September

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that all staff, including the manager, are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping, specifically in relation to recording information about visitors to the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 7

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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: 2553543 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Social Care Services (Clayton) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Social Care Services Group, 31 Shaw Road, Stockport SK4 4AG

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Inspector

Colin Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2553543 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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