Children's home run by HMO NE Ltd T/A ForeverCare

Inspection report for children’s home: 2591471 1 Registered provider: HMO NE Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. The home provides care for up to two children aged between seven and 18 years old who may have emotional and social difficulties and learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2021.

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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: 2591471 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/07/2022 Full Good 17/08/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2591471 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are making good progress from their starting points. Staff give children time to develop secure and trusting relationships. Staff understand that their strength is developing relationships with children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The property is furnished to a good standard and is warm and welcoming. Children have personalised bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms. They are able to contribute to how their rooms and the home are decorated. Photographs of the children are displayed in the home. This demonstrates to children that this is their home. The property has a small courtyard garden, which is well maintained.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children’s education is a priority. When children are not attending education, staff work with children and support their engagement with alternative forms of learning, such as home tuition. Staff work well with professionals to advocate for children and ensure that children get the support they need. This helps children to return to school as soon as possible. One professional described staff as ‘outstanding’ and said that the support staff give children is ‘brilliant’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff take children’s physical and emotional health needs seriously. Staff make referrals for children to access the support they need and work closely with professionals once support is in place. They ensure that children are supported to attend appointments and that they understand why their health is important. This helps children to learn how to make decisions that are in their best interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to spend time with family members and are proactive in making these arrangements. Family time is promoted for the children in line with their care plans and taking into consideration the child’s wishes and feelings. This helps children to maintain relationships with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are sought through individual work and in children’s meetings. Each child has a ‘moans and groans’ book in which they can write down any issues they would like staff to think about or change. Staff provide children with feedback so that they know they have been actively listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The time children spend living in the home is well recorded and captured in memory books. These are given to the children to take with them when they move on from the home. Staff also prepare a book of each child’s life story. Elements of these contain some blaming language, which is not beneficial to children.

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

Children’s risks are known to staff. When there is a serious incident, staff work with children to help them understand those risks. Individual support sessions take place with children to focus on important aspects of their lives. This helps children to understand how to make positive decisions and be safer. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591471 4 Children rarely go missing from the home. When they do, staff follow the children’s risk assessments and missing-from-home procedures. Staff make efforts to locate children, including contacting known family and friends. When children are returned, they are welcomed back into the home and return home interviews are offered.

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

The manager has reviewed the process of how any physical holds or restrictions of movement are recorded. This ensures that records are detailed and subject to scrutiny and evaluation. Children and staff are provided with an opportunity for discussion after any incidents have taken place. This gives those involved an opportunity to repair their relationships and consider what can be learned from these events.

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

Children’s behaviour has improved because of a restorative approach by staff to managing behaviour. Staff help children to understand the impact of their behaviour and learn from it. This supports children to reflect on previous actions and make better choices on how to respond when they are angry or upset.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an experienced manager with the support of an experienced staff team. There have been some changes in staffing since the last inspection. Feedback from staff was positive in terms of the support they receive formally and informally from the managers and each other.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff participate in regular team meetings. These provide an environment for staff to reflect on the progress of children and any concerns that may arise. The support provided to the team allows them to develop their practice and gives them an opportunity to share knowledge. This helps them to better meet the needs of the children in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Safe recruitment checks are in place to ensure that staff are appropriately vetted as suitable to work in the home. New staff are supported through an induction programme to ensure that they have the necessary skills and knowledge to work with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has developed monitoring systems to measure children’s progress and the quality of children’s records. However, the quality of the content of assessments and care plans is inconsistent, with some being out of date or containing incorrect information.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision for staff takes place regularly and staff are able to have reflective discussions about safeguarding children and their own personal development. Therefore, the manager has good oversight of the knowledge and practice of her staff team. However, the manager’s supervision is inconsistent and does not evidence discussion around the progress of children or practice development. As a result, leaders have limited oversight of the home and the performance of the manager. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591471 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should ensure that all children’s case records are kept up to date and signed and dated by the author of each entry. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that staff record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2591471 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hallgate House, 9 Grange Terrace, Sunderland SR2 7DF

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Inspector

Joanne Wallis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2591471 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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