Children's Home run by Acorn Care (UK) Limited in Darlington

Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 1 SC390751 Registered provider: Acorn Care (UK) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to five children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

This home was registered with Ofsted in April 2009 and is led by a suitably qualified and experienced registered manager.

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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 outstanding

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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: 25 October 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: SC390751 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/10/2022 Full Good 15/11/2021 Full Good 09/01/2020 Full Good 19/03/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well-maintained and provides a safe, spacious and modern environment for children to live in. Children’s rooms are personalised and reflect their individual tastes and interests. The children and staff take huge pride in the home. It looks like and feels like a family home for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of relationships between staff and children is good. Staff have a good understanding of the children’s individual needs and provide care that is nurturing and trauma informed. This helps children to build trusting relationships with them. A family member of one child described the staff as ‘brilliant’ and ‘so supportive’ of the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living in this home are given many opportunities to enjoy and achieve, such as going on holiday with staff, pursuing their hobbies and interests and spending time in the home baking and cooking with staff. These activities enhance children’s day-to-day experiences and help them to have fun, build their self-confidence and gain skills that will serve them well in adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff support children with their health. Children have access to health services, and staff encourage and support them to be healthy through attending all routine and specialist health appointments. One professional stated that the child is ‘fitter and healthier’ than they have ever been due to the care given by the staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children living in the home have good school attendance and are making progress with their education. When one child experienced a sudden end to their education placement, the registered manager and deputy manager worked closely with the head of the virtual school to quickly find suitable alternative education provision. This helped the child to continue with their studies.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are listened to by staff and contribute to their care plans. This helps children to feel involved, develop a sense of ownership, understand the progress they are making and enhance their feelings of being valued and respected. One child said that since living in the home, they have made progress with their feelings, and this has helped them to ‘feel better’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to develop relationships with their friends and family. This has helped the children spend time with the people that matter most to them, and it has promoted their sense of identity and belonging. It has also helped them to develop a support network outside of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s records reflect their everyday lives, their achievements and the support given to them when they make a complaint. However, not all records have enough detail about the work that is carried out with children or are written in a way that is Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 4 easy for them to understand. This weakens transparency and does not help children to have a good understanding of their time in the home. The registered manager and responsible individual have taken steps to remedy this by sourcing relevant training for staff.

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

Since the last inspection, three children have left the home, and two children have been welcomed in. The registered manager and staff help children during these important times through careful planning that considers the children’s individual needs and their wishes and feelings. One child and their parent spoke positively about the help they received from staff when the child was leaving the home and the difference this made to their lives.

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

Children living in the home feel safe. They have built trusted relationships with staff and feel comfortable talking to them if they have any worries or concerns. One child scored living in the home as 10 out of 10 as the staff are ‘nice’ and keep them safe.

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

Staff help children to take appropriate risks for their age and level of understanding. This helps children to develop their independent living skills. One child said that they value the freedom that they get.

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

The model of care delivered by the home is well understood by the staff team and has helped children to understand and express their emotions in a safer way. Feedback from professionals is overwhelmingly positive about the model of care used by the staff and the positive impact that this is having on the children’s lives.

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

There have been no missing-from-care incidents since the last inspection. Staff know what action to take should a child go missing and what they should do when the child returns home.

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

Staff are aware of safeguarding procedures and the whistle-blowing policy should they have concerns about the conduct of a member of staff. Staff are recruited in line with safer recruitment procedures.

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

The home’s risk assessment is comprehensive and promotes a safe environment for children to live in. The location risk assessment is regularly reviewed and updated by the registered manager to reflect any known risks to the children in the community. There is good collaborative working with other agencies. This helps staff to keep children safer when they are not in the home.

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

While the current system for recording and storing children’s record does not impact on staff helping and protecting children, it is not easily accessible to those with a legitimate need to view them, including children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is managed by a suitably qualified and experienced manager. He inspires confidence in his staff and is ambitious for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The responsible individual, registered manager and deputy manager are united and have a shared set of values and vision for the home and the children in their care. The staff are passionate about their roles and are influential in changing children’s lives. The workforce development plan and continuous improvement plan set high expectations for the staff and promote a culture of continuous development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff enjoy working in the home. They learn from one another and work together to provide consistency and stability for children. Staff feel supported in their role. They have access to training, regular practice-based supervision, team meetings and support from a consultant psychologist. This helps to promote staff learning and development and enables staff to give high-quality care to children that is tailored to their individual needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Professionals and family members are very positive about the care that the registered manager and staff provide and the progress that children make.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager and deputy manager have positive working relationships with external professionals. This ensures that communication is open, transparent and up to date.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The leadership and management understand the home’s strengths and areas for development. They learn from feedback from children, family members, partner agencies and those employed to carry out external monitoring of the home. This helps them to understand gaps in the service and identify plans to remedy them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager ensures that notifications of all significant events that relate to the safety and welfare of children living in the home are made to the relevant agencies. He takes the required action following an incident to make sure that the child’s needs are met, that they are safe and that the risk of harm is reduced. Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s records for each child are a significant contribution to their life history. They must be written in a way that is sensitive and non-judgemental and enables the child to understand their time at the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)  The registered manager must ensure that information can be easily accessed by anyone with a legitimate need to view it and be produced in a legible form. Doing this supports the transparency of the quality of care provided in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.2).

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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: SC390751 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Acorn Care (UK) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 33 Kellaw Road, Yarm Road Business Park, Darlington, County Durham, DL1 4YA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Julie-Ann Foxton

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Inspector

Shirin Khan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC390751 8 regulates 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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