Children's Home run by Care 4 Every Child Limited in Kirklees

Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 1 Registered provider: Care 4 Every Child Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that if they cannot live at home with their family, then they would choose to live in this home. They say that they are happy and describe the home as ‘nice’ and how staff are ‘kind’ to them. Children say that they enjoy mealtimes in the home and the food that is cooked for them, particularly one member of staff’s barbecue chicken wings and rice.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with their family and the people who are important to them. One parent said, ‘They (staff) are absolutely amazing, [name of child] loves it there. I could not wish for a better place for my child to live.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children say that they are regularly praised for their positive behaviour. They say that staff help them to recognise when things are not going so well. One child said, ‘They (staff) tell us what we are doing that is good and also what we need to work on.’ A second child said, ‘[Name of manager] helps me to reflect.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from living in a home that is well maintained with a homely feel. They feel a sense of belonging in the home and are encouraged to personalise their own space. One child has decorated their bedroom with their own artwork drawn on the walls. This supports the child’s individuality and gives them a sense of pride and achievement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into this home, the transition is well planned. The needs and risks for all children in the home are considered. The manager visits the children before they move into the home. Children are supported to visit the home and to meet the staff. When new children are due to move into the home, the children who already live in the home are provided with relevant information to help prepare them for the changes that are to come. This helps all children to have a positive experience as soon as possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While there is evidence of a structured education plan for one child, who at the time of the inspection was being home-schooled, structured plans are not evident for all children. Two children have been encouraged to participate in educational activities, such as going to a museum. However, for parts of the school day, they were observed to be playing on their game consoles.

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

Children say that they feel safe living in this home. One child spoke to the inspector about feeling safer in this home than any other. Staff’s nurturing approach has helped children to build positive and trusted relationships with them. Children say that they would speak to the manager and staff if they had any worries or concerns. Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 3 Children are spoken to after all incidents. They are encouraged to engage in restorative conversations that help to repair any harm that may have been caused. One professional said, ‘They (staff) have helped [name of child] to be less guarded. [Name of child] talks about things that have happened more.’ This gives the children the best opportunity to learn from any incidents and helps them to understand how best to reduce the risk of them happening again.

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

Staff understand the value of meaningful conversations with children. Children are supported through regular key-work sessions to discuss topics that are relevant to them. They are encouraged to think about the dangers of substance misuse and bullying. Children are spoken to about using kind words when speaking to others and how best to keep themselves safe.

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

Children’s bedroom door alarms are activated during the night. While staff have obtained consent from children’s local authorities to do so, it is not evident that this monitoring is required for the purpose of safeguarding the children.

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

Managers and staff know the children and any risks to them. They know how to keep children as safe as possible. However, at the time of the inspection, children’s risk assessments did not contain up-to-date information. For example, one child’s risk assessment states that they should receive one-to-one supervision from staff when they are out in the community. This risk has decreased due to the child’s progress, but the risk assessment does not yet reflect this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager sets a clear ‘children first’ culture in this home. He is passionate about his role and has children’s best interests at the centre of his practice. He knows the children well and they know him. This gives him a good oversight of the progress that is being made by each child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager works hard to give children a voice. He advocates on their behalf and ensures that the correct services are in place for them. The manager has difficult conversations with others to ensure that children’s needs continue to be met. He escalates concerns appropriately when he feels that the child’s voice is not being heard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager responds to issues with staff performance and practice when they arise. He supports staff with clear action plans to help improve practice when needed. The manager delivers regular staff supervision sessions, which staff say are helpful. He speaks to the children to gain their views of the staff and their feedback is included in the supervision sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The current staffing arrangements do not always allow for contingency planning. One child feels that an extra staff member would help to reduce their journey time to school. Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 4 Staff speak positively about the training that they receive and of their induction to the home. However, there are some gaps in records of the training that staff have completed, and some induction plans have not been updated. These shortfalls have been identified in the manager’s monitoring and review process and he has a plan in place to address them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals speak positively about the manager and the staff. One social worker said, ‘[Name of manager] has a really good way of working with [name of child]. He engages with them so well and responds to their needs.’ A second social worker said, ‘I cannot sing their (staff's) praises enough.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 5

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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 leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)) 9 November 2023

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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. (Regulation 24 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the use of alarms on children’s bedroom doors. 9 November 2023

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children living in the home who are not taking part in education, because they have been excluded or are not on a school roll for some other reason, have an interim plan in place so that the child is supported to sustain or regain their confidence in education and engage in suitable structured activities. In particular, the registered person should support children to engage in structured educational activities during the school day. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.15)  The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, the registered person should update children’s individual risk assessments when Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 6 their risks change. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the

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Recommendations

quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should lead and manage the home in a way that delivers the ethos, outcomes and approach set out in the home’s statement of purpose. In particular, the registered person should ensure that staff’s training records are clear and in line with the home’s statement of purpose. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.4)

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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: 2716222 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care 4 Every Child Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Library Chambers, 48 Union Street, Hyde SK14 1ND

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Inspector

Jo Birtwhistle, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2716222 8 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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