Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today in Stockport

Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 1 SC008487 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is one of a number of homes run by a partnership. It is registered to provide care for up to six children.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, four children were living in the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2020.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

p.1

outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

p.1

outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

p.1

outstanding

Date of last inspection: 31 January 2023

p.1

outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

p.1

outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/01/2023 Full Outstanding 01/02/2022 Full Outstanding 02/07/2019 Full Outstanding 03/07/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 3

p.2

outstanding

Children living at the home receive high-quality, individualised care. Staff have an excellent understanding of their needs. Staff are highly committed to supporting children, and as a result, all children make exceptional progress. One child said, ‘It’s great living here because all the staff are nice and caring.’

p.3

outstanding

The manager ensures that they develop detailed plans when children move in and out of the home. The plans are child centred. One child, who has lived at the home for several years, has been supported to move to a semi-independent home near their family. Staff supported the child to develop independence skills and purchased items for their new home. The child continues to keep in contact with the staff, which shows the positive relationships they have established. A social worker said that the excellent support staff gave to one child, especially around their development of independence skills, has meant they are thriving in their new place.

p.3

outstanding

Positive relationships develop between staff and children that include genuine warmth and laughter. Children want to spend time with staff and feel supported. Achievements are celebrated. There are photos and memory books around the home of the positive experiences the children and staff share.

p.3

outstanding

Children are encouraged to participate in the day-to-day running of the home. Children attend weekly meetings and are consulted about all aspects of their care. Children are happy to help staff improve the home environment and the garden area. This has led to a shared ownership, where all the staff and children take pride in the home.

p.3

outstanding

Children are enabled to spend time with people who are important to them. Staff support families to rebuild relationships with their children. One child had not seen a parent for several years. The child now sees them regularly, and the parent is playing an active part in the child’s life. The provider has funded summer holidays for children and their families to spend quality time together. This enables children and parents to have positive shared memories.

p.3

outstanding

Staff have high aspirations for children to attend and achieve in education. All children are in full-time education and have excellent attendance; they are engaging and making progress. Children said that they enjoy going to school and have high aspirations for the future. One child recently won an award for his achievement in mathematics. This is developing children’s confidence and self-esteem.

p.3

outstanding

Staff have an excellent understanding of children’s health needs. They support children to attend all health appointments and regularly educate them on health issues. The manager ensures that they are working closely with other health professionals to support children’s physical, emotional and positive mental well- Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 4 being. This ensures that children’s health needs are met and they lead healthy lifestyles.

p.3

outstanding

Staff support children to participate in activities and develop their hobbies. This helps children to develop their social skills. Children have developed friendships and enjoy spending time with their friends both in the community and on activities.

p.4

outstanding

Children receive support to develop age-appropriate life skills and work towards being independent. Staff follow an independence skills plan, and children are encouraged to work towards this each day. One social worker said, ‘[Name of child] is now more independent in their self-care skills. Staff have put in a routine, and [name of child] has adapted well to this and has thrived because of it.’

p.4

outstanding

Children’s safety is consistently at the centre of the staff’s practice. Staff have developed positive, trusting relationships with children. Children said they feel safe, and they feel confident that if they had any concerns, staff would listen to them. There have been no complaints.

p.4

outstanding

Staff have an excellent understanding of children’s vulnerabilities and risks. Risk assessments are clear and give guidelines to staff on how to manage and minimise risks. Children are supported to be involved in their risk assessments through age- appropriate discussions, which include positive relationships, internet safety, personal safety and road and fire safety. This has resulted in children understanding their own vulnerabilities and making safer choices.

p.4

outstanding

Safeguarding practice is excellent. When incidents have occurred, they have been well managed. The manager invites external agencies, such as the fire brigade, knife crime prevention team and the police, to the home to speak to children. This has resulted in a significant reduction in high-risk behaviour.

p.4

outstanding

There has been one incident of a child going missing from home, and this was well managed. Staff took steps to locate the child and ensured that their safety was paramount. They worked with other professionals to ensure the child’s safe return. The child had access to an independent advocate. Due to the work completed with the child, there have been no further incidents.

p.4

outstanding

Positive behaviour is supported by the staff through strong relationships. They support children to identify how staff can help them when their emotions are heightened. Staff talk to children after any incident to look at ways for them to express their frustrations in a safer way. This has helped children, and behavioural incidents have significantly reduced.

p.4

outstanding

Physical interventions have been used on two occasions. Children are supported after an incident to reflect on their feelings and understand why the hold was Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 5 necessary. The manager has clear oversight of each incident record and reviews potential triggers to then provide additional support.

p.4

outstanding

The home environment is well maintained and decorated to a high standard. It is welcoming and bright, and there are age-appropriate toys and games. Children have access to a fully equipped games room and a sensory room, which they enjoy using. All health and safety checks have been undertaken, and there are no outstanding issues. This means that children live in a safe environment.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is qualified, dedicated, highly aspirational, child centred and has high expectations of staff. The manager is experienced and is sharing her knowledge and skills to offer support to other managers in the company. She is supported by a highly motivated deputy manager. This provides consistency for staff and children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has exceptional oversight and regularly reviews the quality of care provided and the progress children make. She is continually looking at ways of developing the care provided to children. The manager is currently in the process of developing a child-friendly app for children to be able to express their feelings and thoughts. One professional said, ‘I currently visit several homes, and I can say that [name of manager] and her team are truly exceptional. I wish I could see their practice replicated at other homes.’

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a highly motivated and stable staff team that shares the same aspirations as the manager. Staff are enthusiastic and support children to reach important milestones. They all stated that they feel supported by the management team. One staff member said, ‘This is one of the strongest teams I have ever worked in. Everyone has lots of strengths to offer, and we all share good practice, which comes from having a great leadership team who lead by example. Staff get good opportunities to share their wishes and views so we can all work together to support our children.’

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and staff have developed excellent working relationships with other professionals to ensure that children’s needs are met. The manager will escalate any shortfalls identified in other services and hold them to account to ensure that everyone is working in the best interests of children. When significant incidents occur, the manager reports these to other professionals. However, on one occasion, the manager did not notify Ofsted of an incident, which is necessary to ensure transparency with the regulator.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

There is a comprehensive training programme in place, and all staff complete mandatory training. Before a child moves into the home, the manager and the in- house therapist identify and facilitate any additional training that the staff will need to meet the needs of the child. Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 6 The manager creates opportunities to develop staff knowledge and skills. All staff have completed a counselling qualification. Staff are supported in their learning and development by an in-house therapist who oversees the trauma-informed model of care. This gives staff the confidence that they can meet children’s needs.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff have opportunities to reflect on their practice through regular supervision sessions, appraisals and team meetings. This enables the staff to share their knowledge and experience. It also gives them an opportunity to identify any further training and development that will help them have the skills and knowledge to support children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 7

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that Ofsted are notified of all serious events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)

p.7

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: SC008487 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today

p.8

Children’s home details

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

p.8

Inspector

Simon Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC008487 9 regulates and inspects 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.8

Inspector

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.9

Inspector

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

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9