Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in Preston

Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 1 SC479654 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is one of a number of homes operated by a private company. The home is registered to provide care for up to six children of the same gender. Children living in the home also have access to the organisation’s school and therapy departments.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspectors only inspected the social care provision at this site.

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Information about this children’s home

There were five children living in the home at the time of the inspection. They all spoke with the inspector about their experiences of living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has submitted her application to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector was aware during this inspection that serious child protection allegations were being investigated by the appropriate authorities. While Ofsted does not have the power to investigate allegations of this kind, actions taken by the setting in response to the allegations were considered alongside other evidence available at the time of the inspection to inform the inspector’s judgements.

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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 requires improvement to be 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 Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 2

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

Following a full inspection on 19 and 20 July 2023, Ofsted judged the home to be inadequate. Serious shortfalls were identified in relation to the leadership and management of the home and the oversight of safeguarding practices. One compliance notice was issued, under section 22A of the Care Standards Act 2000. This related to Regulation 13, the leadership and management standard. On 19 September 2023, a monitoring visit took place to monitor the actions taken by the provider in relation to the compliance notice. The provider had acted to meet all the steps in the compliance notice served under Regulation 13. Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/07/2023 Full Inadequate 07/03/2023 Full Good 08/02/2022 Full Outstanding 25/02/2020 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are incredibly happy living at the home. Children have positive relationships with the staff team and have developed friendships with each other. They feel listened to and can talk openly to staff. One child told the inspector that the staff team is like their family. This is because of the trusting relationships they have developed with staff and the nurturing way that they are cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Social workers are positive about the care that children receive. They recognised the improvements to the quality of care since the last inspection. Families were equally complimentary of their children’s care, with one parent stating that the care of their child was amazing. Staff promote regular family time for children and those important to them and help children to rebuild their relationships with family members.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress living in the home. The in-house therapists are integral to helping children to make progress. Additionally, they support them to develop their emotional resilience. Children have good school attendance, and they are supported by staff to progress in their learning. Children receive rewards regularly for positive behaviour.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views are at the heart of everything that the staff team does. Children attend regular house meetings where they can discuss how they are cared for, make suggestions about the daily running of the home and receive regular feedback about their requests. In addition to this, the manager has introduced a monthly consultation with children, which is a good opportunity for them to discuss any concerns directly with her. The manager then provides individual, personalised letters to each child to recognise their progress and acknowledge their views.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Records of direct-work sessions provide evidence that children engage well with staff and are comfortable talking with them. Direct-work planners are effective in ensuring that staff target specific areas with children in line with their current needs and therapeutic guidance. This means that children have regular opportunities to discuss their feelings and emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have fun together; their interests are promoted, and achievements are celebrated. However, for one child, the staff team has not been proactive in encouraging them to actively explore their interests based on their personal preferences and abilities. This is key to ensuring that all children are supported to build confidence in social situations and be less isolated from their peers.

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

Children feel safe and secure, and for some, they are the most settled they have been in residential care. Children told the inspector that staff help them to feel safe Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 5 and to make safer choices by working with them to enhance their understanding of personal safety. This is evidenced in the direct-work and therapy session records for children.

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

Children know how to make a complaint. However, they have not needed to raise any complaints about the quality of their care. This is because they are regularly consulted with about their experiences of living in the home. One child has been provided with the appropriate support from the staff team to raise a complaint with their placing authority about their plans to move them from the home. The staff team has ensured that the child has accessed suitable advocacy, and consequently, the child’s requests have been listened to.

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

Children have not gone missing from the home, and there has been no use of restraint or serious incidents since Ofsted’s last inspection. This is because children feel settled and supported in their home and the staff team understands how to de- escalate situations effectively. Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding children. Detailed therapeutic support plans and risk assessments provide staff with clear guidance to keep children safe, including working with external safeguarding agencies.

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

The manager’s oversight of incident reports, accidents and room searches is thorough. She understands the children’s behaviour and provides reflective evaluations of each situation so that, when required, changes can be made to staff practice, children’s routines and boundaries. Consequences are rarely used. When they are used, they are carefully considered in relation to children’s needs and views to ensure that they are balanced and effective.

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

Some systems have been adapted to ensure that the safety, protection and well- being of children are at the centre of staff practice. Safer recruitment has been made more robust. Leaders and managers ensure that all necessary checks are obtained so that staff working with children are safe to do so. Medication management and monitoring have improved. This is a result of regular oversight of the recording and administration of medication by the manager and the staff team.

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

The location risk assessment does not consider the broader risks for children in preparation for them spending increased independence time in the community as part of their individual plans. In addition to this, the manager has not considered feedback from relevant professionals or children to inform the location risk assessment.

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good

The senior leadership team members have developed more effective relationships to ensure that they are working collaboratively together. They advocate on behalf of children and challenge professionals when necessary to promote positive outcomes for children. In addition to this, they have strengthened their relationships with Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 6 parents by addressing any concerns raised by them to restore effective communication. The manager recognises the home’s strengths and areas for development. Together with the staff team, she has worked hard to make improvements to the quality of care and to address all the requirements raised at the last inspection.

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good

The manager requires time to embed and sustain the positive changes that have been made to the operation of the home. In addition to this, the manager needs to develop more confidence in her autonomy to challenge decisions made by senior management in relation to the service and structures in place to meet children’s needs.

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good

The manager has better oversight of training for staff. However, while the manager is sourcing some external training that is specific to the needs of the children, internal training has not been provided to staff in key areas such as LGBTQ+ and autism in the meantime.

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good

Staff say that the senior leadership team supports them. They receive regular supervision. The manager oversees all staff supervision records and provides feedback about their practice. This has given her greater oversight of her staff team’s skill set and their individual professional development. New staff have been recruited to fill vacancies. The senior leadership team is working through an organised process to induct the staff to the home. This includes a system to buddy new staff with senior workers to provide them with access to additional support.

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good

The introduction of weekly team meetings has been effective. They are well attended, child focused and reflective. The meetings are used as a forum to share good practice and children’s views. The in-house therapist regularly attends the meetings to deliver training and to share information associated with children’s individual therapy plans.

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good

The manager’s monthly monitoring and audit systems have improved. They provide scrutiny and ensure that records and case files are up to date. The senior leadership team has better oversight of daily processes, including handovers, direct work with children and care planning.

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good

The independent visitor reports provide appropriate recommendations to identify areas for improvement in the quality of care for children. Children and their families’ views are sought more frequently during these visits. The manager’s review of the quality of care report is more evaluative. However, the report does not yet include or consider the feedback obtained from children, staff, parents and professionals to assess children’s experiences of living in the home effectively. Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 7

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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

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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the manager requires time to embed and sustain the positive changes that have been made to the operation of the home and needs to develop more confidence in her autonomy to challenge decisions made by upper management in relation to the service to meet children’s needs. 29 December

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard).

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Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1) (2)) 29 December Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are proactive in identifying and providing appropriate opportunities for children to develop themselves in accordance with their wishes and feelings and as part of the home’s plan for their care. Each child’s talents and interests should be understood and nurtured, with children selecting activities based on their personal preferences and abilities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 31, paragraph 6.4)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs, and they should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. Specifically, the manager should take account of and include feedback obtained from children, staff, parents and professionals in their review of the quality of care report to demonstrate children’s experiences of living in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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Information about this inspection

The inspector 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: SC479654 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hexagon Care, 1 Tustin Court, Port Way, Ashton- on-ribble, Preston PR2 2YQ

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Inspector

Cheryl Field, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC479654 10 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 children who are looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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