Children's home run by North East Specialist Therapeutic Services CIC

Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 1 Registered provider: North East Specialist Therapeutic Services CIC Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for up to two children who may have emotional and social difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

One child was living in the home during the time of the inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2018.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 24 October 2022

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/10/2022 Full Good 17/02/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness 22/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 18/02/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child feels a sense of belonging and is cared for by staff who have known them for many years. Children, including those who have lived at the home previously, have made progress and feel a sense of safety when they face barriers in their lives.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who have moved on from the home continue to receive support. They get in touch by phone or visit to share proud moments, seek help and see other children they have known over many years.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child receives appropriate healthcare that is responsive to their needs. Staff support them to attend their appointments and seek specialist advice. Staff work with the child to ensure they understand their own needs and encourage them to manage their long-term health.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has been supported to overcome barriers to education attainment. The manager and staff have worked closely with the child, education providers and other professionals. This has helped to ensure that the child has sat their exams and managed the transition to college.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff give care that is responsive to the child’s needs as they grow up. Consultant therapists visit the home regularly to give advice to staff on the complex issues that inform the child’s plans. This helps to develop those plans and ensure that they continue to address the developing needs of the child.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the child to prepare for moving on from the home. This support is in line with their age and stage of development. Skills are developed in small steps to ensure that children build confidence and feel able to progress. This will help them as they progress into adulthood.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager works closely with the child’s parents and other family members to maintain positive relationships. This supports the child’s sense of who they are and helps them stay in touch with people who are important to them.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff work with organisations so that the child is involved in their local community. The child has had long-term participation with organised groups, such as Scouts. They have also been involved with local community initiatives and volunteered with a charity.

p.3

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

The child feels safe and can trust the staff around them to respond with appropriate boundaries and support. The child is supported to understand and manage their own emotions. The staff focus on resilience in their daily interactions to ensure that children can solve problems and seek appropriate support to manage conflict. The Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 4 child experiences a sense of routine and structure to life at the home, which adds to their sense of security.

p.3

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

Children can explain how they stay safe online and understand issues such as exploitation. Daily discussions with children reflect the individual work that takes place to help them understand their own vulnerabilities. This helps the child to make better choices, which therefore keeps them safer.

p.4

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

Staff support the child effectively when they become angry or upset. When incidents occur, the child receives support from staff to keep them emotionally secure and protected from harm. This de-escalates the child’s behaviour and allows them to calm. Consequently, there have been no missing-from-home episodes or instances where staff have held the child.

p.4

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

Consequences are used to help the child learn positive behaviours. However, these are limited to the removal of their Wi-Fi. There has been no review of this approach or of its effectiveness in supporting the child to learn about the impact of their behaviours.

p.4

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

The children’s guide is not clear about who children should contact if they want to make a complaint. There is confusion over a formal and informal complaint policy and who to report to. This could lead to a lack of transparency and confusion for children and staff when making or dealing with complaints.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff have been employed since the home opened. The model of care means that children progress between the provider’s homes. This allows key staff to move with them to ensure long-term support during the next phase of their development. This means that the child receives consistent care from staff they trust and have known for many years. The care team is permanent, and all of the staff have a long-term relationship and know each other well.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective systems in place to maintain oversight of the strengths and areas for development of the home. Shortfalls in practice and recording are recognised and addressed quickly. As a result, the children receive a consistently good quality of care.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers understand the child’s plans and have systems in place to ensure that staff follow these as children grow and develop. The manager holds regular reflection sessions with clinical practitioners. Information is shared, plans are updated and care is adjusted to meet the children’s needs.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers create a professional environment for staff. Staff have regular supervision that allows them space to consider the care they provide to the child. Staff receive the support they need to enable them to meet the child’s needs. They receive appropriate training to allow them to meet the needs of the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 5 When employing new staff, the manager follows safer recruitment procedures. This means that adults working in the home have been assessed as being appropriate to work with children. This provides assurances that the safety and well-being of children are a priority. Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 6

p.4

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

p.6

Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints made by or on behalf of children.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. (Regulation 39 (1) (3)) 18 October 2023

p.6

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour, and the staff should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

p.6

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: 1278217 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: North East Specialist Therapeutic Services CIC

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 34 Westbourne Road, Hartlepool TS25 5RE

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jason Darbyshire

p.7

Inspector

Lee Riley, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1278217 8 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.

p.7

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8