Children's Home run by Future Focused Ltd in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 1 Registered provider: Future Focused 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 operated by a private provider and is registered to provide care for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, three children were living in the home. Children spoke to the inspector about their experiences living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/10/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 05/10/2021 Full Good 15/10/2019 Full Good 14/03/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living in the home are settled and happy. They say they like living here. One family member said, ‘[Name of home] is the best place [name of child] has ever been.’ Children have meaningful relationships with staff they trust. As a result of their secure base, children make progress in many areas of their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to express their personalities and interests. Children wear clothes and accessories in line with their individual styles. Children personalise their own spaces with artwork, gaming equipment and pets. Staff support the children to change their bedrooms when their interests change. Children are encouraged and supported to express themselves and are valued as individuals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prioritise celebrations and events for the children. At the time of the inspection, staff and children were celebrating Halloween. They had decorated the home, taken part in seasonal arts and crafts and were dressing up. One child said, ‘My favourite thing about living here is Christmas time.’ Staff plan parties for the children’s birthdays and ensure that the people who are important to the children can attend the parties and enjoy the celebrations. This helps children to have positive experiences and good memories of key times in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff respect children’s relationships with the people who are important to them. Staff support children to spend time with their family and previous carers, even when this is over long distances. Staff recognise the importance of having positive relationships with children’s families. This helps children to maintain their relationships with family members, which supports their identity and emotional well- being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend full school time. Staff take children to and from their schools and communicate regularly with school staff. Staff encourage children to attend extra- curricular activities, such as performing arts. Children have high levels of attendance and punctuality, and they attend school well presented. The in-house therapist consults with schools to assist them to support children when they are at school. Children are making progress in their education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff monitor the children’s movements with the use of internal door alarms. There are no current safeguarding or welfare needs which would require increased surveillance. Therefore, monitoring is more intrusive than necessary and does not have regard for the children’s privacy. A requirement has been made in relation to this. Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 4

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

Staff know the children well. They understand their risks and specific behaviours. Risk assessment documents are detailed and updated regularly. They include clear guidance and strategies for staff to follow.

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

Staff and children have access to an in-house therapist who visits the home on a weekly basis. Consultations with the therapist support staff to understand children’s individual needs and adapt their practice where required. This helps staff to consistently support positive behaviour.

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

As a result of the positive relationships with children, staff can de-escalate most incidents of challenging behaviour. Staff are trained to safely hold children if this becomes necessary. When staff hold children, this is a last resort and proportionate to the risk to the children. Incidents of staff holding children are rare. One child has had a significant reduction in incidents of restraint. Staff talk to children after incidents to help them think about what has happened and to check on their emotional and physical well-being. The manager evaluates incidents and reflects with staff to identify learning and good practice.

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

Children know how to make complaints. They feel safe to make complaints and have confidence that staff will address their issues. One child made a complaint following an incident at the home. The manager acknowledged the complaint promptly, sought multi-agency agreements to the solution and ensured that the child was happy with the outcome.

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

Children do not go missing from the home. However, staff are aware of what to do should a child go missing from the home, to minimise the risk to the child. Missing- from-home plans are in place and are individual to each child. They outline clear processes to follow should a child go missing from the home.

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

Staff rarely carry out room searches. These are only done when there is a clear safeguarding reason to do so. Staff explain the reasons for the search to children and encourage children to be present, to protect their dignity and privacy.

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

Children are safe online. Staff receive training in e-safety and carry out regular device checks. There are restrictions on the internet and the devices to prevent access to inappropriate content. Staff carry out work with the children about keeping safe online, including extra sessions in response to arising risk. Device checks demonstrate that children have understood the learning and use it to keep themselves safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager, although newly registered, knows the children and the staff team well. The manager worked in the home for a significant length of time before becoming the registered manager. Staff say that the manager is approachable and seeks their views on how to improve the quality of children’s care. Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 5 The manager provides staff with access to a variety of training to meet the specific needs of the children. This has included training on subjects such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and sexuality and gender identity.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager identifies when staff need support and extra training. Equally, the manager identifies staff who show potential to develop their careers and has enrolled one staff member on an advanced diploma. The manager has a good understanding of staff’s knowledge and skills and ensures that they can meet the needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision, which is child focused and reflective. The manager sets targets to ensure that staff are aware of key information. Staff say that supervision is useful and helps them to improve their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a gender imbalance in the staff team. The manager recognises this and has targeted recruitment to address it. The manager listens to the views of the children when recruiting new staff. The manager follows safer recruitment procedures to ensure that staff are safe to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring and review systems are embedded in practice. The manager uses monitoring systems to identify shortfalls and good practice. The manager addresses shortfalls identified during supervision sessions and team meetings. The manager carries out a review of the quality of care every six months. However, this does not include the actions the manager takes following the review. A recommendation has been made in relation to this. Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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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

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that consideration is given to the blanket use of door alarms in the home. 8 November 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should carry out a review that focuses on the quality of the care provided in the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. The report should clearly identify any actions required for the next six months of delivery in the home and how those actions will be addressed. The whole review process and the resulting report should be used as a tool for continuous improvement in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, pages 64 and 65, paragraphs 15.2 and 15.4)

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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 for 1270301 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Future Focused Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Future Focused Limited, Crows Nest Business Park, Ashton Road, Wigan WN5 7XX

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Inspector

Sarah Huntbatch, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home for 1270301 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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