Children's Home run by After Care (NW) Limited in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 1 SC051947 Registered provider: After Care NW Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home. The provider states that they provide care for up to two children who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since October 2021.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/06/2022 Full Good 01/03/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 26/02/2020 Full Good 01/11/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 3

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improvement to be good

Two children are currently living at the home. The home is spacious, newly renovated and in good repair. Children have been involved in deciding how to personalise the home.

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improvement to be good

A child who recently left the home received good care and support while they lived there. The manager and staff maintain good-quality relationships and helped this child move out of the home in a positive, planned way.

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improvement to be good

Children living at the home do not currently attend school. Although attempts have been made, staff have not been successful in engaging children with any educational activities, online projects or in-house tutoring. Children have already experienced significant delay in relation to their education and staff have not yet made clear plans for the next academic year. Children do not have opportunities to learn with their peers or to reach their potential.

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improvement to be good

Children do not have good routines. They wake up late and spend a lot of time in their bedrooms. Staff have low expectations of children and have not established consistent daily plans. Children do not have regular times for meals, sleep or education. This has an impact on their well-being and limits their opportunities to participate in structured activities.

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improvement to be good

Staff help children to explore their identity, in a safe and supportive environment. One child said, ‘Staff have helped me to find who I really am.’ Staff allow children to express themselves freely. Diversity is accepted and valued in the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff ask for children’s views and listen to them. Children are offered one-to-one discussions with staff to talk about any worries they have. There are regular weekly meetings for children, where they feel able to make suggestions about their care, the food they eat or activities. Children know how to raise a complaint.

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improvement to be good

Staff help children to attend their health appointments and understand their health needs. Children are supported to make healthy food choices and make home-cooked meals. Children achieve good outcomes in their physical health.

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improvement to be good

Managers are improving risk management processes. However, children’s plans do not consistently include clear strategies for staff to follow. This can lead to inconsistent responses to children’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 4 The police have been called regularly to help staff resolve confrontations involving children. Not all staff have completed mandatory training in relation to positive behaviour management approaches. Staff are not equipped with the knowledge, skills and confidence to understand and manage children’s behaviour effectively.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not use a successful system of rewards and consequences. When children break the rules, the response from staff is varied. Reward for positive achievements is also inconsistent. Children are not being supported to learn socially responsible behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Children have clear missing-from-home risk management plans. This helps minimise the likelihood of them going missing. Staff understand what to do when children do go missing. Children receive a coordinated response and return home safely.

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improvement to be good

Suitable background checks are completed before staff come to work at the home. This ensures that children are only cared for by safe adults.

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improvement to be good

The registered manager is aware of the risks associated with the location of the home. This information is used effectively to make sure that this is a suitable location for the children who come to live in this home.

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good

There is a suitably qualified and experienced manager leading this home. She understands the needs of the children living there and attempts to build positive relationships with them.

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good

The registered manager has monitoring and review systems in place, however, does not use these effectively to improve the quality of care for children. This is a missed opportunity to identify and address concerning patterns and trends quickly. As a result, children are not fulfilling their potential.

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good

Leaders and managers build good working relationships with other professionals. Social workers report that communication is regular and useful. However, leaders and managers do not challenge other professionals effectively when children’s needs are not being met. This has led to children experiencing significant delay, particularly in relation to their education.

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good

Staff receive supervision and appraisal. However, supervision is not always at the intervals specified in the provider’s own policy. This limits the effectiveness of formal review of staff practice.

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good

Regular team meetings are used as a forum for staff to share their knowledge and discuss current issues. There is good communication between staff members. Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 5 Leaders and managers deal with complaints effectively. When issues are raised, they are investigated thoroughly, and the complainant always receives a written response. Complaints are resolved quickly. Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 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, The 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

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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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose.

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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)(a)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered manager must use systems of oversight which are effective at identifying and addressing shortfalls in staff practice. This is particularly in relation to oversight of behaviour management practice. 30 September

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that staff— 30 September Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 7 protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand and manage the impact of any experience of abuse or neglect;

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(ii)(v)(vi)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that there are clear boundaries, routines and expectations in place around the day-to-day care delivered in the home and that these are consistently followed by the staff team.

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Requirement Due date

They should ensure that staff make efforts to positively engage children and promote the development of positive relationships. In particular, children must be encouraged to spend less time in their bedrooms and more time engaged in structured, positive activities.

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding; 30 September Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 8 strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must make sure that staff have the skills, confidence and support needed to de- escalate confrontations with or between children effectively. Staff must be equipped with confidence in their skills to ensure that intervention by police is only ever used as a last resort.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also make sure that staff have the necessary training to enable them to understand and manage potentially violent behaviour by children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also ensure that children’s plans provide staff with clear instructions as to how best to manage children’s behaviour to achieve positive outcomes and maintain positive and respectful relationships.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must also make sure that each child is actively and continuously encouraged by staff to build and maintain positive relationships with others.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study; 30 September Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 9 understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must escalate challenge to other professionals when a child’s needs are not being met. 30 September

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive regular supervision of their practice in accordance with the home’s own policy and timescales. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2) Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 10

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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: SC051947 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: After Care NW Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 45 Kensington Road, Southport, Lancashire PR9 0RT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Timothy Blundell

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Natalie Hamilton-Ryszka

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Inspectors

Nicola Shaw, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Sue Garner, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC051947 12 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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