Children's home run by Pathway Care Solutions Ltd in Nottingham

Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 1 SC374405 Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Ltd 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. It is registered to provide care for up to four children and young people with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

There is no registered manager in post. The manager has submitted her application to Ofsted to become the registered manager of the home. The manager is suitably qualified and has substantial experience.

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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: 15 November 2022

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/11/2022 Full Outstanding 13/07/2021 Full Outstanding 17/12/2019 Full Good 05/12/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children live in a large home where they have lots of space to either be together or have time out in separate areas. There is a sensory room and a large garden that they can play in. The children’s bedrooms have been decorated according to their wishes and with consideration of their individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to support children. They are nurturing in their approach and are patient with the children. Staff will repeat information or ways of completing a task to ensure that children understand what is being asked of them. Children therefore learn and develop their skills. The commitment of staff has helped one child to progress from using single words to forming sentences. This has helped the child to convey their needs and for staff to better understand them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children are registered with the appropriate health services. When specialist health intervention is required, staff contact the necessary departments. Staff recognise that children can be anxious when going to new environments and meeting new people. For example, to reduce the children’s anxieties, staff have done role play at home to show children what will happen when they go for an injection. This provides the children with an explanation and helps them to know what to expect. The outcome is that children feel more assured and relaxed when attending appointments and their health needs can be met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy going to school each day. The staff have worked hard to establish good communication processes with the schools. The staff at school are very appreciative of the time that staff take to update them each day about the children. This enables staff at school to provide the right support at the start of each day and for the child’s learning to be maximised.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children when moving in and out of the home as part of their transition plan. Careful planning and coordination with all involved ensures that the whole process is at the child’s pace. Where appropriate, parents are invited to come to the home and look around before their child moves in. The whole process is focused on the child feeling happy and safe when they move in or out.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager recognises the importance of the children maintaining meaningful links with their family. Family members are encouraged to visit the home and spend time with their child. The manager also takes time between visits to keep the parents updated about what is happening in the child’s life. This offers reassurance and comfort to parents as they feel that their child is being well looked after.

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

Safeguarding is prioritised by all in the home. The manager has appropriate systems in place to ensure that she has clear oversight of all safeguarding matters. Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 4 Children have individual risk assessments. These clearly detail the risks and vulnerabilities of the children. They also provide staff with information about how to respond and support children when risks arise. The risk assessments are continually reviewed and updated to ensure that they remain pertinent to the children. However, staff are not consistently being proactive in signing these documents. This is important because they provide key information about how to keep children safe.

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

To ensure that the children remain safe, there are times when physical intervention is needed. This is used as a last resort. Due to the learning needs of the children, staff have produced a child debrief that uses basic words and images. This helps the children to understand what is being asked of them and ensures that their feelings or worries are explored and captured.

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

The needs of the children are such that they require close supervision. Therefore, they do not go missing or become involved in any form of exploitation. The children are supported by staff who know them well and can ensure that the children remain protected.

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

Thorough checks and scrutiny of any new prospective employee at the home help to ensure that only those adults who are suitable to work with children are employed.

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

There have been two serious incidents that were not reported to Ofsted. Consequently, a requirement has been set under regulation 40.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is very committed to her role and dedicated to improving outcomes for children. She has high expectations and is a positive role model for the staff. The manager has a hands-on approach that inspires her staff to continually deliver good care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. Key issues are discussed, and staff are provided with the opportunity to reflect on their work and consider improvements to their practice. Staff have opportunities to attend relevant training. Specific training is identified and commissioned if staff require it. This provides staff with greater insight and knowledge and ensures that they can respond to the children’s specific needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are held each month. At the end of these, a reflective discussion is led by a clinician. This discussion helps staff to explore any issues relating to their work with children and how they can develop as practitioners. This support is appreciated by the staff and helps them to manage the current issues impacting on the home and themselves.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works hard to develop and maintain good relationships with children’s families and external agencies. She recognises that partnership working is key to effective care planning. Professional feedback shows that children are progressing. This is attributed to the care and support provided by staff. Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 5 There have been some challenges within the home over the last few months relating to the recruitment and retention of staff. The staff recognise the importance of consistent carers for the children, so they have been covering extra shifts. This has impacted on the resilience of the team and some tasks are being overlooked. An example of this is the workforce development plan and the manager should ensure that this document is produced. Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 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, 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 registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 9 October 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have a workforce development plan which can fulfil the workforce requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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Recommendations

 The registered person is responsible for ensuring that all staff consistently follow the home’s policies and procedures for the benefit of the children in the home’s care and sign the documents to acknowledge that they have done this. (Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.20) Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 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: SC374405 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pathway Care Solutions Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton, Greater Manchester BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Lizette Watts, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC374405 9 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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