Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report for children’s home: 2526893 1 Registered provider: 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 home is owned by a private company that operates several children’s homes across the country. The home is registered to provide care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties. The home offers children of school-leaving age support to gain skills in preparation for independent living.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since the home opened in October 2019 and has a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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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 outstanding

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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: 28 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: 2526893 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/02/2023 Full Good 11/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2526893 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home . Since the last inspection, two children have moved out of the home and one child has moved in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, well maintained and well presented. The staff team has high standards for the home and is invested in making it a positive and welcoming place for children to live.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have excellent relationships with staff. Staff’s approach to care is consistent and nurturing. This supportive environment has enabled children to explore emerging identity needs and to develop self-confidence and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are committed to children even when faced with challenges. They support children to make complex decisions about their life. For example, staff supported one child to change their name.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children are not in education, staff work hard to identify a plan and liaise effectively with external professionals to ensure that they are being educated. Although progress has been slow, staff are taking action to support a child to return to education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children’s health needs. When children are worried about attending appointments, staff discuss the importance of accessing health services with them. This practice has resulted in a child receiving the correct medication and therapeutic support to meet their health needs. As a result, children’s emotional and physical well-being improve.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff welcome children into the home and support moves into and out of the home well. Staff work hard to get to know children’s individual needs and interests and quickly build effective relationships. When children leave the home, they continue to share positive relationships with staff and sometimes return to visit.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make a complaint. When a child did not agree with their care plan, staff arranged for them to have an advocate and supported them to make a complaint. This enabled the child to live at the home for a longer period so that further work could be done to support them in moving on.

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

Since the last inspection, there have not been any incidents of children going missing or any use of physical intervention. This is due to the positive relationships staff have built with children living in the home. Children are protected from harm because staff know how to keep them safe. Inspection report for children’s home: 2526893 4 Children have individual risk assessments in place which consider their needs and any known risks. These are regularly updated and reviewed by the manager. As a result, staff know how to actively reduce risks and prevent children from being harmed.

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

The manager and staff have effective working relationships with partner agencies such as the police. They arranged for police to attend the home to talk to a child about substance misuse. This improved the child’s awareness of risks and understanding of substance misuse.

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

Staff support children to develop independence skills in readiness for when they leave the home. Individualised independence plans are in place, which are reviewed regularly.

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

Staff understand online safety and implement systems to ensure children using the internet are safe, which reduces the risk of harm to them.

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

There is careful recruitment of staff and safer recruitment practices are followed so that children are cared for only by suitable adults who do not pose a risk to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

A committed, experienced and child-centred manager manages the home. She knows the children exceptionally well and understands what they have achieved since coming to live at the home. The manager has an ambitious vision for every child who lives at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager challenges other agencies effectively when they do not act in the best interests of children. For example, she challenged the local authority when she was concerned about decision-making for a child which resulted in a positive outcome for them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager ensures that the home has a stable and skilled team of staff who can meet children’s needs. Staff say they feel well supported by the manager. Staff’s positive relationships with the manager encourage them in their work with children. The manager’s enthusiasm for the children and her dedication in helping them achieve their full potential is clear to staff. They know the manager has high expectations for them and they clearly understand their roles and responsibilities.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is robust management oversight of the home. The manager uses effective systems to monitor the home’s strengths and to help identify any areas for development. In addition, the recommendations of the independent visitor are acted on in a timely manner. The manager spoke of her commitment to having effective systems in place to ensure that continuous improvements are made to the care offered to children living in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2526893 5 Case records are clear and the language used is sensitive and child-centred. Records reflect the everyday support that is in place for children and the commitment of staff and the manager to improve outcomes for children in their care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive high-quality supervision, which is held with the required frequency and has a clear agenda. The manager sets individual targets for staff to support children in areas such as well-being and independence. This encourages staff to discuss the care that they provide and promotes a reflective culture. The manager is also able to identify her own learning and development needs and recently reviewed the supervision templates to improve her supervision of staff. Team meetings take place regularly where research is discussed to inform care practice. This enhances staff knowledge and supports them to offer individualised care to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff training is tailored to children’s individual needs and staff are regularly supported to access further training opportunities to develop their knowledge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has formed highly positive relationships with external professionals and feedback from them is excellent. They consistently said that the communication is of a very high standard. One said the manager had gone above and beyond to support a child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

No requirements or recommendations were made at this inspection.

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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: 2526893 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: 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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Inspectors

Charlotte Love, Social Care Inspector Helen Dunn, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2526893 7 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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