Children's home run by Omega Care Group Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 1 Registered provider: Omega Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to two children. The provider states in its statement of purpose that care is provided for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered in February 2023 and the manager has been registered since that time. This is the home’s first inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home. The child spoke to the inspector about their experiences living in the home.

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child told the inspector that they are happy and love living in the home. The child has been supported to develop positive relationships with the staff team. They know that staff care about them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is making progress in education. Before coming to the home, the child was excluded from school. The team has supported the child with a slow reintroduction to a specialist school. The child is now attending education full time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is encouraged and supported. Family members come to the home regularly. The child sees the home as theirs and takes pride in welcoming family members in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s health needs are well understood. The team has been proactive in supporting the child to engage with routine and specialist health services.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Frequent key-working sessions provide opportunities for the team to discuss key topics with the child, including education and caring for pets. Through these sessions, the child is helped to express themselves and voice their opinions. These views are then used to inform the care provided to the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child takes part in a wide range of activities, both inside and outside the home, including going to the cinema, playing console games and having pamper nights. This is good progress, as the child was previously very wary of going out anywhere. These experiences help the child to build positive memories, as well as to develop their social skills and relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff speak very fondly of the child and understand that each day is a new day. One member of the team said, ‘[Name of child] has gone from not attending any medical appointments, going out on activities or attending education, to now never missing any appointments, attending every day and actually enjoying school, which is massive progress.’

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

The child said they feel safe living in the home. They feel well looked after and say the staff are fun to be around.

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

The child’s risk plans are detailed and regularly updated. Staff understand the helpful strategies to use to support the child to regulate their emotions and to manage their behaviours. This has led to a reduction in incidents of the child needing to be held to keep themselves and others safe. When incidents do occur, they are well managed and recorded, including with the child’s views. The manager Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 3 takes any learning from incidents to update plans and to improve practice in the home.

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

The child understands how to raise a complaint and has done so on one occasion. This was taken seriously by the manager and senior manager and responded to in a sensitive manner. The child felt listened to and, as a result, accepted the response. A key-work session was undertaken to further develop the team’s understanding of the child’s views and to develop practice in the home.

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

The team is vigilant to risks. However, there was a lack of awareness among staff regarding the parental controls on the TV streaming service and the child was watching programmes not suitable for their age. The manager has taken action to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced. He is child-centred and is supported by an experienced responsible individual. Together, they support the team to provide consistent care to the child. Staff are positive about the support they receive from managers and the senior leadership team, and the commitment provided to children. One member of the team said, ‘Children always come first.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say they enjoy working at the home. They understand and support each other well. Staff are able to appropriately challenge each other, and staff morale is high.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision that provides them with opportunities to reflect on their practice and on the child’s needs. The manager recognises the impact of the work on their well-being and there is an understanding that staff can take time out when needed. This helps the staff to feel valued. Each supervision session highlights any training that is required to ensure that the child’s needs can be met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses internal and external monitoring systems effectively to evaluate and develop practice in the home. He has a clear vision for the home and has a good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. This enables him to take effective action when required.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has sufficient staff to meet the needs of the child. All staff are suitably vetted and qualified and the arrangements for recruitment are robust. However, on one occasion, a gap in one person’s employment record was not checked. This was rectified during the inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 4

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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 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

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that appropriate safeguarding measures are in place to prevent children from accessing content that is not age appropriate through streaming services. 26 October 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

The requirements are that— the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and 26 October 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 5 full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)) This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that any gaps in employment are fully explored, in line with schedule 2.

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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: 10293339 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Omega Care Group Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 40-42 Kemble Street, Prescot L34 5SQ

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Inspector

Colin Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 10293339 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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