Children's Home run by Hopespring in Sunderland

Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 1 Registered provider: Hopespring 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. It provides care for up to two children who may have emotional and social 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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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

Date of last inspection: 13 December 2022

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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: 2630728 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/12/2022 Full Good 08/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 3

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improvement to be good

Children’s experiences of living in the home are mixed. Children do make incremental progress with support and guidance from staff who know them well. However, the shortfalls in management arrangements and how children are helped and protected have impacted on the overall judgement.

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improvement to be good

Not all children receive well planned care while living in the home. One child was informed of a decision to end her placement at a crucial stage in their education. Although the decision was later reversed, this will have been distressing and confusing for the child and may have impacted on their achievement in school.

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improvement to be good

Children’s bedroom doors have alarms that are activated at night to let staff know if a child leaves their room. The manager does not assess the need for these alarms or review their use. This means children may be subject to unnecessary surveillance in their home.

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improvement to be good

Children are cared for by staff who understand their past experiences and trauma. Staff access support from psychological services that offer advice and complete assessments of the children’s needs. This helps staff to better understand and meet their needs. Children benefit from targeted support from staff, which makes a difference to their emotional well-being.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported back into education by staff. One professional said that the manager is a good advocate for children and ensures that children access the right educational provision. This means that children who do not always recognise the importance of education are supported to learn. One child said they were excited to be returning to school.

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improvement to be good

The manager completes an assessment to ensure that staff have the skills to meet the needs of the child. This assessment also balances the needs of other children living in the home. Children are welcomed into the home after sensitively planned introductions. This helps children start to develop relationships and settle into their new home.

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improvement to be good

The property is well furnished throughout, and communal areas have a homely feel. Children have individualised bedrooms and en-suite bathrooms. Although one child’s bedroom had damage to a wall, staff were quick to make repairs. This shows children that they, and the space they live in, are valued. Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 4

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improvement to be good

Staff rarely need to hold children to keep them and others safe. When this does happen, records are clear about the need for the intervention. However, on one occasion, a child told staff they had been hurt during a hold. In the absence of the registered manager, interim managers and staff were slow to respond to and investigate this complaint. This does not assure children that their voice is always heard or that their complaints will be addressed in a timely way.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing from the home, staff do not always follow their protocols and make a search of the local area. As a result, children receive an inconsistent response from staff. This could delay a child being located and returned home, leaving them exposed to a potential risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Children are engaged in conversations about important issues that are relevant to them. Staff help children identify their feelings and discuss the impact their behaviour can have on themselves and others. This helps children understand that staff are concerned about their welfare and want to help them.

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improvement to be good

Staff understand the risks to children. While not all children’s paper documents reflect recent changes to how children are to be supported, staff are aware of those changes. Staff know what actions they need to take to help children stay safer.

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improvement to be good

Staff focus on rewarding children’s positive behaviours. There are few consequences given in the home, but when used, they are appropriate for the child and have a time limit. The recording of these is thorough, and the manager reviews the consequences to learn what has been effective in supporting the child.

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good

The registered manager was on annual leave at the time of the inspection, and the interim arrangements to oversee the home were not effective. As a result, the children did not receive timely responses from leaders to address concerns or take action to promote their welfare.

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good

The manager has monitoring systems in place to track the progress of children and review the quality of the children’s files. However, this has not been effective in ensuring that all essential documents are in the children’s files and up to date. Leaders and managers have not followed this up with the relevant local authority. This means that the home does not have up-to-date records of the children’s plans.

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good

Leaders and managers follow safer recruitment practices to ensure that adults who care for children are safe to do so. New staff are supported through a comprehensive induction programme. Staff are then enrolled on the appropriate courses to gain the necessary qualifications for their role. This provides staff with the opportunity to learn the right skills to meet the needs of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 5 Staff receive regular supervision and attend team meetings to support their ongoing professional development. This allows time for learning and discussion to develop a greater insight into meeting the needs of the children. Staff have said that supervision is supportive and an opportunity to reflect on their practice and the progress of children. As a result, children receive care from a skilled workforce. Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 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 care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iii)) 6 October 2023

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; and

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(v)) 6 October 2023

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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— 6 October 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 7 promotes their welfare.

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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. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that there are appropriate management arrangements in place when the leaders and managers are not in work.

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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; 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)(d)) 6 October 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; and

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensuring that children have up-to-date local authority care plans. 6 October 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 8

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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: 2630728 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 10 Sea View Road West, Sunderland SR2 9HA

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Inspector

Joanne Wallis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2630728 10 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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