Children's home run by Esland North Limited in Amber Valley

Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 1 SC489516 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home is owned by a private company. The home is registered to provide care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

One child was living in the home at the time of the inspection, and one child has moved out of the home in this inspection year. The manager is suitably experienced, and registered with Ofsted on 14 December 2022.

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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: 10 January 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: SC489516 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/01/2023 Full Good 22/06/2021 Full Good 06/08/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 30/10/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to make the home feel homely. The home has plenty of space and a calm atmosphere. Staff and children eat together at a large table. There are areas for them to sit, relax and watch TV together. Some areas of the home are currently being repainted. Children’s bedrooms are personalised to reflect their likes and dislikes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise that children who live at the home have often missed important developmental milestones and opportunities to play. Staff have bought lots of board games to play with children, and have regular ‘Monopoly nights’. Staff also read children bedtime stories. Staff have also bought one child dummies, rubber ducks and fidget toys. These help the child to soothe themselves rather than self-harm at times when they are feeling heightened in emotion.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children access appropriate services to meet their health needs. Staff help children to attend routine appointments. Children are encouraged to eat healthily, with fresh food cooked daily by staff. Children are also encouraged to enjoy outdoor activities. These include walking, skateboarding and gardening. One child entered the local ‘town in bloom’ competition. Staff have plans to start a vegetable plot in the large back garden. These activities help children to feel fit and active. They also help to build trust and empathy between the children and the staff who care for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager understands the importance of education to the children in her care. When one child came to live at the home, their school had served notice. This potentially left the child with no formal education arrangements soon after moving in. The manager spoke with the child’s headteacher and was able to agree an extension. The headteacher noted the child’s progress since living at the home. They said, ‘In just a week we have noticed a distinct improvement in [name of child’s] engagement with staff.’ As a result, the child was able to continue attending school and maintain important friendships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that when children move into the home, or out of it, their moves are planned. Children are supported to be an integral part of the move, as are their family. One child had a sleepover and cooked their family a meal before moving into the home. The child’s parent said that they felt reassured and ‘hugged’ the moment they visited the home. They felt relieved that their child would be safe, and said that their child’s move ‘couldn’t have been any better planned; no stone was left unturned’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to maintain relationships with their family and friends. One child has been encouraged to invite a friend to visit them at the home and to spend time in the local community after school. This is important, as it begins to break down some of the barriers and shame that children may experience when they are Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 4 living away from their family home. It also helps children to build relationship networks that will support them into adulthood.

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

Children feel safe. Children can identify a trusted adult to talk with about any concerns they may have. Children’s individual risk assessments are good and provide staff with accessible and detailed guidance.

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

Staff are warm and available to children, and the language that they use to record their time together is generally child-centred. However, at times, staff respond to children’s behaviour reactively, rather than reflectively. This lack of curiosity at times has led to staff missing important moments for connection with children. It has also led to the significance of one child’s experience of loss being missed in planning activities and rotas.

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

Staff understand the potential risks associated with internet use. Children and staff agree on a safe internet policy when children move into the home. Staff use an app to monitor children’s access to the internet. This encourages children to sleep better and maintain healthy routines.

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

Staff are not risk-averse. They support children to take safe risks. One child has been able to attend their first festival in this inspection year. They have also been able to experience a Grand Prix race. Another child has been encouraged to continue with their skateboarding hobby.

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

No children have gone missing from the home or have had to be physically restrained during this inspection year. Incidents have been generally well managed by the manager. However, staff still incorrectly record some incidents as consequences. This can suggest that a child is to blame for their own vulnerability and has the potential to undermine the work that staff put into building trusting relationships with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a tenacious advocate for children, and is consistently aspirational for the children in her care. During this inspection year, she has supported one child to make a complaint and escalate their concerns to the Children’s Commissioner. This resulted in the child being invited to a Children’s Summit and being a representative on the agency Children n Care Council The child recognised the significance of the support that they had received from the manager. They felt that this was ‘fundamental’ to their progress and contributed to ‘where I am now’. The child said that the manager ‘always has my back’ and that she was ‘one of the greatest managers ever’. Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 5 The manager is supported by a responsible individual who is experienced, calm, approachable and warm in her manner. She ensures that the manager has regular, reflective supervisions that support and challenge her.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has gone above and beyond to support staff’s well-being. She has ensured that staff receive appropriate support about matters both in the home and in their private lives.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The current staff team members are all relatively newly recruited. The manager has worked hard to support her team to build a cohesive team identity. She eats lunch with the staff every day and sets aside time for regular, reflective supervisions, team meetings and ‘lessons learnt’ sessions. Staff are positive about the management team and feel supported in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a level of oversight of the home. However, this is not consistent, and there are significant gaps in her general oversight. The manager has missed important opportunities to challenge staff’s inaccurate recordings and to support them to empathise with the child rather than blame them. As a result, both children have received disproportionate consequences this inspection year, and staff have had to change shifts at short notice to cover a day when the rota was showing that no staff member was on shift. Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 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 registered person must ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (2)(d)) 1 May 2024

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Requirement Due Date

The registered person must further develop monitoring and review systems to make improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. In particular, ensure that processes are developed which ensure a consistent level of management oversight and identify areas for improvement and development within staff’s practice. (Regulation 13 (2)(h)) 1 May 2024

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff understand that they have a responsibility to observe, notice and respond to children who are expressing their views, acknowledging that it is not the sole responsibility of the child to ‘tell’. They should also understand how children might communicate their feelings through their behaviour, or non-verbally. In particular, that staff reflect on the significance of certain dates and events for children and the emotional impact that this may have on the child’s presentation. The registered person should also challenge and support staff to reflect and empathise with the child, rather than react to presenting behaviours. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.10)

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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: SC489516 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Ltd, Suite 1 & 5 , Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kathleen McGowan

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Inspector

Majella Russell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC489516 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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