Children's home run by ROC Family Time Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 1 Registered provider: ROC Family Support Limited 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 company. It provides care for up to two children who experience social and emotional difficulties and who may have learning disabilities, physical disabilities and sensory impairment.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since 20 June 2023. The current manager is in the process of registering with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were 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

Date of last inspection: 28 November 2022

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children build trusting relationship with staff because they provide warm and nurturing care. Children can identify staff members who they can talk to, which helps them to feel safe and confident to ask for help and support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children regularly attend education. The staff at the home maintain communication with education professionals to share relevant information. One child, who had not attended an education provision for several years, has made exceptional progress. This includes completing end-of-year exams. Staff identified that a gap in education during the summer holidays could have a detrimental effect on one child and secured support from an education provider to prevent this. This has helped the child to progress to further education where they can continue to learn and improve their future life options.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s individuality is respected by the staff. Activities are personalised and help the children to learn as well as have fun. Photos of opportunities and special events are captured for children’s memory books. This shows children that their experiences are valued. Children enjoy building their memory book, which gives them a sense of responsibility and achievement.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s social skills improve due to being involved in community activities. Since moving in, one child has made considerable progress to be confident enough to engage in activities, for example raising money for charity. This improves children’s confidence and self-esteem. Additionally, this helps children to develop empathy and understanding of other people’s situations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to improve their self-care and independence skills in line with their age and stage of development. Children embrace tasks such as cooking on a budget and shopping, which helps them to understand important life lessons, such as financial skills and problem-solving.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s health and their engagement with health services. Children attend routine health appointments. When children find this difficult, staff use creative ways to remove any barriers, for example showing children pictures of the health services. This helps to reassure children and remove some of the anxiety that they experience when attending these appointments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are listened to and respected. Children have a say in what happens in their home, such as meal choices, decoration and furniture. Children’s bedrooms are personalised in accordance with their interests. This helps children to have a sense of belonging in their home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 4

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

Children have detailed and individualised risk assessments. These are regularly reviewed and updated. They provide staff with clear information about the risks children face and how to respond. This helps staff to recognise risks and protect children.

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

Children are supported to take age-appropriate risks, such as developing relationships and being independent in the community. One child has made considerable progress and now feels confident to use public transport. As a result, children develop resilience and the ability to make informed choices.

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

Staff adopt a therapeutic approach when responding to children’s needs. The language used by the staff celebrates successes and sensitively captures concerns or incidents. The non-judgemental language makes it easier for children to understand. For children who may access their records in the future, it will be clear that they are cared for and valued.

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

Praise and natural consequences are used to help children understand their feelings and behaviours. Incentives are individualised and are a motivator to encourage positive behaviours. When unwanted behaviours occur, strategies are in place to help reduce incidents.

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

Staff rarely need to physical hold children to keep them and others safe. When restraint is used, staff respond and record information appropriately. Children are given the opportunity to discuss and reflect on the incident. This helps children to share their views and to understand why they were held.

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

Staff have knowledge of children’s complex needs and vulnerabilities. Targeted discussions and work are carried out by staff to educate children and reduce risks, for example around self-care, independence and safety.

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

Children are helped to spend time with their family and the people who are important to them. Staff are proactive to remove any logistical barriers and offer solutions to ensure that the children do not miss out. When children resist spending time with family members, staff provide support and reassurance. Staff are respectful of children’s feelings and support the child’s decisions to prevent the possible trauma that family time could bring.

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

Allegations and complaints made are taken seriously. The manager and senior leadership team respond swiftly, with the child’s welfare at the centre of any decisions. When enquiries conclude that staff have not acted in line with expectations, action is taken to protect the children and prevent future occurrences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been staff changes in the home since the last inspection. The disruption this can bring has been minimised for the children as the responsible individual and Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 5 senior leadership team are visible in the home. This has provided familiarity and consistency for the children during times of change.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has a new manager, who is supported by the provider’s other registered managers and senior leadership team. This has established some stability in the home. Staff say that they have seen improvements in the brief time that the new manager has been in post. Staff speak of being listened to and supported. This has helped staff to develop their confidence and feel valued as members of the team. Consequently, this helps to improve staff morale and there is an improved atmosphere in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has high expectations of staff and for the home. She is motivated to ensure that children receive good-quality care through a therapeutic approach, and she works to improve staff’s knowledge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from observations of their practice, and they receive regular supervision. This includes reflective discussions about children’s needs, as well as looking at staff welfare. This helps the manager to maintain oversight of staff practice and the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and family members speak positively about the care that staff provide and the progress that children make. The manager has good oversight of the home. She regularly reviews incidents and daily records, which means that practice is always meeting children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

However, some children’s records do not include their most recent statutory documents, which includes review minutes and care plans. Additionally, the manager has not followed the home’s escalation policy with the placing authority when information is not received.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New members of staff have a good induction and training package available. This provides resources to help staff to care for the children and keep them safe. However, some of the bespoke training identified is not completed in a timely manner. This means that some staff have not received training that would help them to care for children and respond to their needs more effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c)) 15 December

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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)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to children’s statutory review documents and plans 15 December

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to respond to the health needs of children, and, where necessary, meet specific individual health needs arising from a disability. In particular, the registered person should ensure that staff receive necessary training to enable them to understand and meet children’s needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 34, paragraph 7.12) Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 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: 2688209 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: ROC Family Support Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hope House, Burnhope, Newton Aycliffe, Durham DL5 7ER

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Inspector

Cat Makel, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 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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