Children's home run by Care Perspectives Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 1 Registered provider: Care Perspectives 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 with learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2023.

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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: 12 December 2022

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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: 2547918 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/12/2022 Full Good 28/04/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home. They have both lived there since the last full inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive high-quality care that makes them feel valued and secure. Both children living in this home have made significant and meaningful progress from their starting points. Children are extremely positive about the care they receive. One child told the inspector, ‘I love it here; the best thing is the staff who look after me and the gardens.’ The other child told the inspector, ‘I am now able to communicate how I feel and understand the reasons for my behaviour.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have built strong relationships with the staff who care for them. Relationships between staff and children are warm, affectionate and loving. Staff are continually curious about, and reflect on, how they can help children grow in all areas of their development. This helps children to build trust and feel safer and relaxed in their surroundings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are actively encouraged to develop all of their interests. Staff identify and nurture children’s interests exceptionally well. They carefully consider how activities help children’s development. For example, both children have guitar and horse- riding lessons.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is promoted and supported well. The staff work effectively with education providers and promote children’s engagement with school. Staff know how well schools meet children’s needs and act if they are concerned that they are not being met. This results in children finding the best educational provision for their needs to support them to achieve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place great emphasis on children making memories and having shared experiences that they can cherish and keep forever. This is evident in the home with a vast range of pictures, memory books and treasures. These provide children with a valuable record of the time they have spent living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Internal care planning processes are structured and well recorded. Staff complete internal placement plans to a high standard. These plans detail clear targets and enable staff to track children’s progress and achievements. Children’s internal care plans detail longer-term aims and mirror statutory care plans. This promotes good- quality and consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a well-maintained, comfortable and homely environment. Staff work hard to create an atmosphere that is full of warmth and respect. Children’s belongings fill the home, and their photos, certificates and achievements are proudly on display. Books and games are easily accessible, and soft furnishings help to create a nurturing environment. Children personalise their bedrooms, which allows Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 4 them to take a sense of pride in their home and promotes their well-being. However, the laundry room was locked, which restricted the children’s access around their home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have multiple opportunities to have their say, for example through weekly meetings, reflection time and key-work sessions. These events allow the children to share and talk about their achievements, reflect on events and be involved in their care planning. These opportunities provide valuable life experiences for children to learn how to communicate and listen effectively. However, there has been a missed opportunity to ensure that children’s views and wishes are always consistently responded to. The manager has noted this shortfall and has put a new system in place to address it.

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

Managers and staff place a high priority on keeping children safe. They work in partnership with placing authorities to protect children and promote their safety. The effectiveness of these relationships helps children to feel safe and secure. Staff are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities, and they have a good knowledge of whistle-blowing procedures. The depth of staff’s safeguarding knowledge is continually reflected on during team meetings and in supervision sessions.

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

Children told the inspector that they feel safe and could identify a trusted adult. This means that children do have someone they can talk to if they have any worries. Children know how to make a complaint, and any complaints are taken seriously. As a result, children feel listened to and valued.

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

Children have personal behaviour support plans. Staff use de-escalation techniques and distraction techniques to support children. As a result, incidents of restraint are low. Staff physically intervene when children become unsettled and show behaviours that place themselves or others at risk of harm. Staff understand the reasons behind behaviour and provide good support to children afterwards. This helps children to move on from the incident. The manager provides close scrutiny of all incidents and measures of control to ensure that their use is fair and proportionate. Good management oversight and prompt action to address issues mean that children are treated fairly and stay safe.

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

Incidents of self-harm have been managed well. Staff and managers work in partnership to support children with their emotional health. Safety plans and risk assessments are kept up to date. When there have been concerns that staff have not followed the risk assessment in keeping the children safe, this practice has been addressed promptly. The manager took appropriate action and delivered a lesson learned development session with the team. As a result, practice improved.

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

Children’s risk assessments are detailed and clear. These plans provide the staff with the information and guidance that they need to understand and support the specific vulnerabilities and risks for each child. This awareness is embedded in the staff’s day-to-day work, which reduces and minimises the risks for children effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 5 Staff are directed in how to manage and mitigate the risks identified for each child. Observations show that staff are highly skilled in the PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy) model of care, diversion, distraction and de-escalation, which demonstrates that the strategies identified are being used and are effective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is passionate about the service and advocating for children’s views. The manager keeps children at the heart of all she does. She, alongside the therapist, role models a nurturing and therapeutic approach to children’s care. Throughout the inspection, the manager showed a strong knowledge of children’s progress and a commitment to respecting their individual identities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good knowledge of children’s starting points and what they have accomplished since living at the home. She is fully involved in the children’s lives. She is clear about the progress children are making and has high aspirations for what they can achieve. She is enthusiastic in her efforts to be a trusted person for children. This makes her a good role model for staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak positively about working at the home. The manager is well regarded, and she is nurturing towards the team. This means that staff work in an environment where they feel well supported. There is effective support and challenge, and the manager ensures that all actions are reviewed. This means that poor practice is addressed effectively and that good practice is promoted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has created an open and inclusive culture that places children at the centre of practice. She values and promotes good teamwork well. As a result, children build positive relationships with the staff, whose skilled and caring practice increases the bonds between them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a wide range of training that informs their practice and meets children’s individual and diverse needs. Training in therapeutic approaches and an understanding of attachment theory underpin staff practice. Regular consultations with a clinical psychologist are used well and are effective in improving staff practice. This enables staff to better understand the reasons behind some of the children’s behaviours and provide a nurturing environment in which children thrive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good oversight of the home. Effective auditing tools are used, which produce action plans to develop the staff’s practice further and promote consistency in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has established strong connections with partner agencies. Professionals are unanimously positive about the communication with the staff team and about the care provided for the child. One social worker told the inspector, ‘I have a lot of confidence in them. They have a great understanding of [name of child]’s needs and have been a great advocate for them.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 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 children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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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

is enabled to provide feedback to, and raise issues with, a relevant person about the support and services that the child receives. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(b)(i))

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that children receive feedback during children’s meetings when they share their views and wishes. 31 December 2023

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises. (Regulation 21 (b))

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Requirement Due date

The manager must ensure that children have access to all areas of their home. 31 December 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 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: 2547918 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care Perspectives Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 36 Frederick Street, Loughborough LE11 3BJ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Rodrigo Ferreira

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Inspector

Marianne Grandfield, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2547918 9 and inspects 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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