Children's Home run by Cannon Children Services Ltd in North Northamptonshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 1 Registered provider: Cannon Children Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

An independent provider owns the home. The home is registered to provide care for up to two children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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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: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

Due to the concerns identified at the previous full inspection, it was deemed that children could be at risk of harm if further children moved into the home. Therefore, a notice restricting accommodation and a compliance notice were issued. At a recent monitoring visit, it was found that considerable progress has been made. This resulted in the notice restricting accommodation being lifted and the compliance notice being assessed as met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/07/2023 Full Inadequate 01/02/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, no children were living at the home. One child recently moved out in a planned way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well decorated and has a homely feel. Bedrooms have been prepared in readiness for new children to move into the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

An increased commitment by staff to vary and tailor the topics covered with children in one-to-one sessions has improved engagement. Staff acknowledge the importance of these sessions to strengthen their relationships with children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place value in capturing the child’s voice. There are now several methods established where children can share their thoughts and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of considered and meaningful moves from the home. Staff supported the child who recently left the home to learn essential life skills in readiness for their independence.

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

The staff and the manager understand children’s vulnerabilities and risks.

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

The child who recently moved out had stopped going missing from the home since the last inspection.

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

There are now clear processes in place to enable a child to make a complaint or an allegation. The manager recognises the importance of keeping the child up to date with the outcome of any investigation. There have been no complaints since the last inspection and positive feedback from the child was received when they moved out.

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

Staff are now more confident in managing children’s challenging behaviour. There is a focus on de-escalation and supporting children to make good choices. Where physical interventions are required, there is now a suitable system in place to record these incidents and to offer debriefs to children and staff.

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

There are new processes in place for the safe administration of medication.

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

The manager has been proactive to address the shortfalls in recording processes previously identified. Staff now understand the importance of clear and objective recording of incidents when they take place. Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 4

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a new manager in post. The manager has been able to quickly identify the areas that need to improve.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has encouraged all staff to engage in an induction to the home, including more-experienced staff. This has helped to develop the staff’s understanding of the processes in the home. As a result, they speak of feeling more confident about their role.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training at the home is now good. Staff have been offered various face-to-face and online courses and feel they have been able to draw on their learning when working with children. The manager has encouraged all staff to attain the necessary qualifications in residential childcare, and staff retention is now good.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are offered regular supervision, probation reviews and team meetings. However, these are not yet enabling the staff to reflect and act on how their own feelings can be impacted by the behaviour of the children they care for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has developed an effective system to monitor and evaluate the care offered to children in the home. There is an intention to use this information to understand patterns of behaviours and encourage staff learning. However, at present, this does not extend to the review of the quality of care reports.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands the importance of reporting to Ofsted. He is ambitious for the home’s future in providing children with positive experiences. Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that a review of the quality of care is carried out at least once every six months to monitor the matters set out in the regulation. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.2)  The registered person should ensure that staff supervision enables the staff to reflect and act on how their own feelings and behaviour may be affected by the behaviour of the children they care for. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.15)

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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: 2691235 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cannon Children Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 Calais Hill, Tyler Hill, Canterbury CT2 9LT

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Inspector

Louise Copping, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2691235 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 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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