New Spring Family Care Limited

Inspection report for residential family centre 1 New Spring Family Care Limited 316 Blackpool Road, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire PR2 3AE Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this residential family centre

This residential family centre is registered to accommodate up to five families at any one time. The centre is privately owned. Families access the centre at the direction of the family court or the local authority for the purposes of assessment.

p.1

Information about this residential family centre

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2017, when the residential family centre became operational. She is due to step down from this role. A new manager has applied to Ofsted for registration, and this is currently being progressed.

p.1

Information about this residential family centre

At the time of this inspection, there were three families living at the centre.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and parents, taking into account good

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

How well children and parents are helped and protected good

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

The residential family centre provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

Date of previous inspection: 22 February 2022

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for residential family centre 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

Families are provided with high-quality support from staff who are nurturing. They understand parents’ individual circumstances and approach the care and guidance they provide to families with sensitivity. The centre is homely, welcoming and a positive environment for families. This helps families to feel settled and relaxed during their assessment.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

The staff team works hard to develop positive relationships with all parents. Staff are appropriately skilled to support parents to develop their parenting skills and are focused on obtaining the best outcomes for parents and their children. The teaching programmes and additional activities to support bonds between parents and their children are effective. Staff are creative and engage parents well.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

Inspectors obtained positive feedback from partner agencies about the quality of support and guidance that is provided to parents. Staff help parents to access additional external agencies so that their needs are met holistically. This includes accessing support for their emotional well-being, therapeutic parenting work, and support for transitions out of the centre, including at times when this is under difficult circumstances.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

Of the parenting assessments sampled, inspectors found that most of the assessments accurately reflect the evidence gathered during the assessment process and the parent’s capacity to change. The assessing social worker makes clear and proportionate recommendations about the family’s future. However, one report did not contain a comprehensive evaluation about whether the parents could care for the child safely, and there were no clear recommendations for the child’s future care.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

Parents’ views and feelings are prioritised. They are provided with opportunities to express their opinions throughout the assessment process, and they engage in regular detailed and purposeful key-work sessions with an allocated key worker. The sessions help parents to understand routines and safety and develop their parenting skills. Staff praise parents’ progress and provide honest feedback about areas of their parenting that require further development.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and parents: good

Parents are encouraged to live with one another respectfully. Parents are helped by the staff team to resolve any issues that they may have with each other at an early stage, to prevent any issues from escalating further.

p.2

How well children and parents are helped and protected: good

Parents feel safe and secure at the centre. This is because the staff team is well trained and experienced in areas that are relevant to ensuring families’ safety. Inspection report for residential family centre 3 Staff use their trusting relationships with parents to provide them with advice and guidance to help parents to understand any potential risks to their children and how to minimise them.

p.2

How well children and parents are helped and protected: good

Parents’ circumstances are assessed prior to moving in to the centre. Careful consideration is given to any impact on other residents already living in the centre and additional training required for staff to meet the family’s needs. Families’ individual risk assessments are updated regularly to ensure that staff are provided with up-to-date strategies and support systems to enable them to work consistently with parents.

p.3

How well children and parents are helped and protected: good

Chronology of events records are part of the parenting assessment and identify any concerns regarding parents’ presentation, mental health or parenting capabilities. They evidence that staff respond promptly and take appropriate action to ensure that children’s safety is not compromised. The staff team liaises regularly with placing authorities to ensure that they are working effectively together throughout the assessment process.

p.3

How well children and parents are helped and protected: good

Parents receive help to manage their emotions appropriately. Positive behaviour and recognition are promoted in the centre. When necessary, leaders and managers make prompt decisions to end family’s placements to safeguard children, if parents consistently struggle with the programme or make decisions that place children at risk.

p.3

How well children and parents are helped and protected: good

The use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) and monitoring is needs-led and based on risk levels for individual families. Parents are helped to understand the purpose of CCTV upon admission, any changes to the level of monitoring, and reasons for the changes.

p.3

good

The manager and senior team are focused on implementing changes to the operation of the centre to secure improvements in the standards of care and support for families. This will require some time to embed and to sustain some of the changes that have been made group wide.

p.3

good

The responsible individual is in the process of formalising arrangements for all parents’ assessments to be quality assured by an externally commissioned social work organisation. In the interim, a social worker from another residential family centre within the company, quality assures the assessments. However, it is unclear as to whether leaders and managers consistently oversee and review the quality of the assessment reports, as it is not always evidenced within the report.

p.3

good

Leaders and managers respond appropriately, and without delay, to complaints received from parents and others. However, they were unable to evidence the action that has been taken with the staff involved or to provide a clear written record of Inspection report for residential family centre 4 how some complaints had been investigated. It was therefore unclear if staff had undertaken reflective learning or additional training in response to the complaints.

p.3

good

On one occasion, there has been a significant delay in the provider notifying Ofsted of a serious injury to a child and the instigation of a section 47 investigation. Although leaders and managers have taken suitable action to address this with the person in charge at the time, this was a requirement at the last inspection.

p.4

good

The manager’s review of the quality of care report and the independent person’s visit reports do not always effectively evaluate the quality of care provided to families, to enable leaders and managers to identify strengths and areas of development required to the service. Arrangements have been made for an independent company to undertake the independent person visits, so that there is additional oversight and scrutiny of the service provided to families.

p.4

good

Leaders and managers are positive role models in their approach to working with parents. Parents told inspectors that they found the senior leadership team to be approachable and they make themselves available to families.

p.4

good

Staff talk positively about the support that they receive from leaders and managers. Staff have been responsive to the changes made to improve the service. They attend regular team meetings and have been provided with all the necessary training to meet the needs of the families. However, staff are not provided with regular practice-related supervision, which means that they are not provided with the opportunity to regularly discuss, reflect on, and review their practice. Inspection report for residential family centre 5

p.4

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, Residential Family Centre Regulations 2002 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the parents’ capacity to respond to the children’s needs and to safeguard their welfare is monitored or assessed by a suitably qualified person in accordance with the requirements of this regulation.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that conclusions or recommendations are made as a result of the assessment or monitoring and that—

p.5

Requirement Due date

such conclusions or recommendations are objective and based on verifiable evidence; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

the evidence on which they are based is capable of being presented in a manner that is clear, accessible and appropriate to the persons who will need to consider them. (Regulation 13A (1) (4)(a)(b)) 25 January 2024

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person shall establish a procedure ("the complaints procedure") for considering complaints made to the registered person by a resident or a person acting on behalf of a resident.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person shall ensure that any complaint made under the complaint’s procedure is fully investigated.

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a written record is made of any complaint or representation, the action taken in response, and the outcome of the investigation. (Regulation 20 (1) (2) (6)) 25 January 2024

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person shall ensure that all persons employed by him—

p.5

Requirement Due date

receive appropriate training, supervision and appraisal. (Regulation 17 (5)(a)) 25 January 2024 Inspection report for residential family centre 6

p.5

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that there are clear and effective procedures for monitoring and controlling the activities of the centre. Specifically, the manager’s review of the quality of care report and the independent person’s visit reports should effectively evaluate and assess the quality of care provided to families. (‘Residential family centres: national minimum standards’, 19.1, page 29)

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that there is an effective system in place to notify the appropriate authorities within 24 hours of the occurrence of significant events in accordance with regulation 26. (‘Residential family centres: national minimum standards’, 21.1, page 31)

p.6

Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and parents 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 Residential Family Centre Regulations 2002 and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential family centre 7

p.6

Residential family centre details

Registered provider: New Spring Family Care Limited

p.7

Residential family centre details

Registered provider address: 316 Blackpool Road, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire PR2 3AE

p.7

Residential family centre details

Email address: admin@newspringfamilycare.co.uk

p.7

Inspectors

Cheryl Field, Social Care Inspector Charlie Bamber, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential family centre 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.7

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.8

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.8

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 4234 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.8