Children's home run by Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 1 SC036298 Registered provider: Sefton Metropolitan Borough 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 provides a short-breaks service for up to five children with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and complex health needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children were staying at 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 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: 21 February 2023

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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: SC036298 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/02/2023 Full Good 22/03/2022 Full Good 09/11/2021 Full Inadequate 01/07/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receiving short breaks at the home experience nurturing care. Relationships between staff and children are warm. Staff know the children well and care is personalised to their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The pre-admission assessments put in place since the last inspection are a positive development. They provide a clear written rationale for decision-making about children who may access the service. Admissions take into consideration the needs of the child coming to the service and the other children who use the service. As a result, staff can balance the needs of all children and ensure that they are cared for safely.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents and carers whose children are new to the home say they feel welcome and have the information they need for them and their child. The foster carers for one child said, ‘They do a brilliant job. They know my child really well and always feed back lots of positive things about him.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents and carers welcome the extended offer from the home of regular social events. They can meet up for coffee mornings, some of which also include relevant subjects for discussion with staff. Recent events have focused on sleep issues and children’s sensory needs. Parents and carers welcome this additional support, and they value the opportunity to meet with other adults caring for children with additional needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to make choices and have their voices heard through their preferred methods of communication. Communication boards are easily accessible for children. These give children who use symbols and pictures opportunities to communicate their wishes and feelings to staff. Photos of staff on duty are displayed so that children know who will be caring for them during their stay.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s time at the home is used effectively to help them relax, have fun and develop new interests. Children are helped to try new activities or new ways of doing things.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from high-quality, child-centred care. One child, who has a visual impairment, has been supported by staff to spend time exploring several charity shops for his favourite toys. Staff planned this activity in advance and changed their shift patterns to ensure that the activity could be extended and move at the child’s pace.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to move on from the home to adult services in a timely manner. These moves are not currently informed by written transition plans. As a result, children, families and staff do not have a clear timeline and actions to follow to guide these moves and assess progress. Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 4

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

Children’s placement plans are child centred and comprehensive. They provide information that helps staff to understand each child and enables them to provide personalised care.

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

Staff only intervene physically with children when this is necessary to keep them safe. Records of these events are clear and there is prompt evaluation and oversight from the registered manager. Leaders and managers use visual symbols and prompts to support children who are non-verbal to show how they are feeling after incidents. This practice is inclusive and helps to keep children’s experience of care at the forefront of work in the home.

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

Before children start their stays at the home, staff receive specialist training to understand and meet their individual and sometimes complex health needs. This training ensures that staff can identify and respond to children’s needs and keep them safe.

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

Staff generally administer children’s medication in a safe manner. There have been two incidents since the last inspection when a child was given the wrong dosage of medication. Leaders and managers thoroughly investigated the incidents, and learning points for staff were identified. Staff received appropriate training and support following the investigation to reduce the likelihood of future incidents.

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

The registered manager ensures that information about serious incidents is shared with families, social workers and other relevant professionals in a timely manner. This ensures that practice in the home is open to an appropriate level of scrutiny and that children are safeguarded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leadership and management of the home are strong. The registered manager carries out his management duties while retaining good oversight and involvement in children’s care. He is supported by an experienced responsible individual. Together, they advocate for children’s needs and provide clear leadership and guidance to the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are cared for by a skilled and experienced staff team. Staff are enthusiastic to learn and develop their practice. Good-quality supervision helps staff to carry out their roles effectively. When needed, supervision is used to challenge staff practice and provide them with the clear guidance they need to meet the expected standards of care. Staff value this additional support and learn from this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular team meetings are used to enable staff to reflect on children’s progress and identify for actions staff to take. Staff use this time creatively to share ideas and improve practice. This encourages the learning culture in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 5 Leaders and managers use recommendations made by the independent visitor to the home to reflect on the work of the staff team. This openness to external scrutiny supports continuing practice improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager’s quality of care report is a thorough evaluation of the work of staff and children’s progress and experience of care. Children’s views are included in the review, alongside views of families and external professionals. This consideration of the views of others helps the registered manager to have thorough understanding of how well staff are supporting children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has taken appropriate action to meet all the requirements and recommendations made at the last inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that written plans are in place which support children to have positive, timely and well-planned moves to adult services. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 57, paragraph 11.9)

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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: SC036298 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Town Hall, Oriel Road, Bootle, Merseyside L20 7AE

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Inspector

Dawn Parton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC036298 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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