Children's Home run by Essex County Council in Essex

Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 1 SC044975 Registered provider: Essex County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority home is registered to provide care for up to four disabled children at any one time. One of these children may live at the home permanently and the other children receive short breaks.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is registered and has been in post since 2017.

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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: 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: SC044975 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/10/2022 Full Good 19/04/2021 Full Good 04/02/2020 Full Good 18/07/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, there was one child living at the home. The previous child moved on in a planned way to supported accommodation.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The short breaks provision ended in June 2023. This happened in a planned way ensuring children were able to attend other short breaks provision. Several parents expressed their sadness at the provision ending but were highly complementary about the service provided.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive high-quality care and support from a consistent and experienced staff team that can meet their complex individual needs. Staff respond to children in an emotionally warm and playful way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are assessed and responded to quickly when they arrive at the home. There is strong cooperation with health professionals to ensure children receive good health care. For one child a strong working relationship between the home and the dietician ensured that the child was more willing to try a variety of foods. This had a positive effect on the child’s health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are committed to supporting the children’s education. For example, one child was assisted to attend a full-time alternative provision which met their educational and social needs. Liaison between the home and teachers ensured a multi-agency response.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Caring language is used widely in both written documents and speech. Some records are written to children. These are lovely to read and will help children in later life make sense of events and how adults cared for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from having a consistent and experienced staff team that supports their needs. Staff have positive interactions with children and children thoroughly enjoy the company of staff. For one child they have benefited from attending karaoke sessions with staff. Children’s interests and wishes are at the forefront of all activities planned.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s bedrooms are arranged and decorated to suit their needs and interests. The home is undergoing renovation and staff have worked hard to ensure the impact on children is minimal.

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

Staff ensure that children feel safe and are safe. Suitable safeguarding training is in place for all staff. Staff understand their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. They are confident to raise concerns to keep highly vulnerable children safe. Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 4 Since the last inspection there have been no incidents of children going missing from the home. Staff are confident to deal with missing from care incidents and have received appropriate training. Missing from care profiles are on children’s files and information is shared with the police.

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

Since the last inspection a small number of physical interventions have been used. These were proportionate and necessary to ensure the safety of the child, staff and the general public. Physical interventions are well recorded, and strategies to de- escalate incidents are clear.

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

Highly detailed care management plans are in place which guide staff in managing behaviours that challenge. Incidents involving children were well managed, well recorded and had good management oversight. Risk management plans for children, particularly when on outings, were individualised and understood by staff. New and emerging risks were identified quickly. As a result of the knowledge that staff have of the children, incidents for one child in particular have reduced.

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

Comprehensive recruitment checks are completed by the provider. These are then double checked by the manager. Safer recruitment training has also been provided.

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

When one child raised specific safeguarding concerns these were well recorded and investigated appropriately. However, leaders and managers did not ensure that Ofsted were notified. This meant that Ofsted was not aware of all significant incidents that had occurred at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met two requirements and both recommendations raised at the previous inspection. One requirement has been restated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is highly experienced and suitably qualified. They have a strong and consistent approach. They work with a full-time deputy manager. In addition, a project manager employed by the provider is overseeing the change in provision and the renovation works to the building. Combined, this provides good managerial oversight and action.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are confident and ambitious. In respect of the changes to the home, an external charity has completed research and consultation with care experienced children and young people, staff, external agencies and partners. This has helped ensure the provider has a good understanding of these views and can use them to inform decision making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and deputy manager have helped foster a culture of high expectation. All staff talk about working in a warm and positive home where training and high standards of care take priority.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The monthly monitoring and tracking completed by the manager is highly comprehensive and focuses on the quality standards. An independent visitor ensures Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 5 further scrutiny and feedback gained from children, parents and professionals is evident. Leaders and managers use this feedback to make improvements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff training is of exceptionally high quality and covers a variety of topics such as autism and neurodiversity, harmful sexual behaviour, LGBTQ awareness, attachment and relationship-based practice and trauma. A comprehensive training plan and use of a training consultant have been implemented ready for the new cohort of children arriving in 2024. However, two members of staff have not completed the level 3 diploma within the required timescales. This means they do not have the additional knowledge provided by this qualification. This was raised at the last inspection and is restated. Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 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

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1 April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1 April 2014, 1 April 2016. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This was raised at the last inspection and is restated. 31 March 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 14 December Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 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: SC044975 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Market Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1QH

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Inspector:

Emily Stevens, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC044975 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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