Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Blackburn with Darwen

Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 1 SC467268 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately operated home provides care for up to five children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has two registered managers in place who are job sharing.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

Four children were living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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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

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/07/2022 Full Good 25/01/2022 Full Good 10/02/2020 Full Good 15/11/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff develop positive relationships with children, which helps foster a sense of stability and safety. Children say they feel happy and safe. Children say their views are taken into account by the manager and staff and changes are made accordingly. One parent said that they feel their child’s needs are met to a high standard and they ‘wished all children’s homes were like this one’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience a wide range of activities. This is especially helpful given the rural and isolated location of the home. Children can choose from a variety of off- site activities, such as skate parks, trampoline centres and ice hockey teams.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in on-site education and make good progress from their starting points. Staff from the home and school work in partnership to ensure continuity of care and they have two daily handovers. This means that children receive a seamless transition to and from education. A personal education plan (PEP) was not in place for one child. This means there is a missed opportunity to further support their educational needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive consistent routines and boundaries in the home. One child said that this helps them with their emotional development. Another child said: ‘Not going on my computer at night means I get more sleep for school.’ Children have clear behaviour management plans and are provided with an easy-to-read version. This means that children are more engaged in their own care plan.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children can develop their life learning through structured ‘independence days’. These individual days give children an opportunity to develop life skills, such as preparing meals, budgeting and cleaning. Children enjoy this process and it is well used.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Key-work sessions are completed regularly and link to children’s plans and emerging issues. For example, key-work sessions were held with all children following one child being in possession of a bladed article. Leaders ensure that external support is gained in managing incidents of this nature. For example, the local police attended the home to complete a knife crime session with children in school. This demonstrates that children experience a coordinated response to any significant issues. The quality of the direct work is not consistent and can be vague. This means children may quickly lose motivation to complete the work.

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

Staff provide a consistent approach in response to children going missing from home. Staff actively search for children and placing authorities and family members are kept updated. Records of missing incidents are detailed and clear and provide Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 4 important information. Risk assessments are reviewed and updated following missing incidents. One parent reported that her child is not going missing from home as much as he did prior to moving into the home.

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

Children’s risk assessments include details of all known risks and clear strategies required to reduce risks. Risk assessments are reviewed regularly. They are amended in line with any changes in circumstances.

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

Children receive positive consequences for good behaviour. This means children learn to self-regulate their behaviours. Children have clear and comprehensive behavioural support plans. These plans help children to develop a sense of identity and help them to regulate their behaviour. One child said: ‘I don’t swear as much now. When I stop swearing completely it means my goals can change because I have changed that behaviour’. This shows that children are aware of the need and benefit of positive boundaries and routines and that they make a difference.

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

Staff are trained in physical intervention and de-scalation techniques. Leaders and managers are part of the Restraint Reduction Network. When physical intervention is used it is necessary and proportionate. Physical interventions are recorded well.

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

Following any physical intervention, children and staff are debriefed and restorative work is carried out. Children’s views are gathered after each incident to make sure that they feel safe. A parent and a social worker said that they are fully informed about any physical interventions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement

There are some shortfalls in the leadership and management of the home. There are gaps in the monitoring and review systems. Leaders and managers do not always use feedback to help improve the service. Recommended actions from the independent visit reports are not always addressed or met. Leaders and managers accept that this is an area for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement

Leaders and managers do not sufficiently monitor the progress of children through care plans, PEPs and health assessments. It is unclear whether all staff have read and understood children’s placement plans. This means that staff are not always working in line with the local authority plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement

The home environment feels institutionalised in parts. Some children’s bedroom windows have bars across them. The external area for the children to play and socialise in is in need of refurbishment and repair. This resource for children is even more important given the rural and isolated location of the home. The general maintenance of the outside area needs attention.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement

External agencies say that staff communicate effectively with them. School staff reported that they receive a positive and thorough handover each morning and afternoon. This means that school staff are aware of any issues that may impact on children’s school day and prepare and respond to this. Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 5 Staffing is consistent. One staff member said that this is the most stable and supportive the team has been. Staff learn and develop through regular team meetings. Team meetings often have the input from a therapist. This means that the needs of children are discussed and developed. Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 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

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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

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Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(c)(f)(g)(i)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that they use external feedback, such as visits by the independent person and review of quality of care reports, to ensure that the service is regularly monitored. The registered manager(s) must ensure that they have access to all local authority planning paperwork for each child. 20 April 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 7 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 8 The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure the removal of iron bars on children’s bedroom windows and ensure that external parts of the home’s grounds are in a suitable condition for children to use. 20 January 2024

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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: SC467268 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Children’s home details

Registered managers: Patrick Garmory and Carl Atkinson

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Inspector

James Meeks, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC467268 10 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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