Children's home run by Reflexion Care Group Limited in Shropshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 1 SC366093 Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns and manages this home. It is registered to provide care for up to three children who have had adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours.

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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: 18 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: SC366093 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/01/2023 Full Good 09/06/2021 Full Good 24/09/2019 Full Good 14/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children live in the home. Both children have lived there for several years and are settled. Both children spoke positively about living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are extremely positive about their relationships with staff and the manager. One child said, ‘I cannot say a bad word about any of the staff. I could go on about them for days. I have changed a lot in five years because of the support from them.’ These positive relationships help children to develop a sense of permanence and belonging. This supports children to make progress and achieve good outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff are committed to supporting children to achieve good educational outcomes. Staff supported one child to apply for a university of their choice to pursue their studies in computing. Another child has settled well in school, and they are now receiving rewards for positive behaviours and engaging with the curriculum.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers invest time in listening to children. They take action to ensure that children’s views are acted on where appropriate. Staff and the manager are good advocates for children. One child is now spending time with people who are important to them because they shared their views about this with staff and managers. This practice assures children that they are listened to, and their views are taken seriously. This helps children to feel valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with individualised care and support to prepare them for their future. The manager and staff consult with children regarding all areas of their care. One child said that the support from the staff adequately prepares them for adulthood. Children are supported to develop independence in line with their individual needs, including those arising from neurodiversity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager appropriately challenges placing authorities about children’s plans, transitions and any delays to care planning. Although this has been effective, for one child there were missed opportunities to raise concerns at an earlier stage. As a result, a child has experienced significant delays and has worries about the plans for their future. This has an impact on the progress some children make when they approach adulthood.

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

Children said that they feel safe and that their concerns are taken seriously. Children identified trusted adults who they can talk to about any worries they have. The manager and staff know the children well. This enables them to promptly identify and assess risks and to provide support to children to ensure that they are safeguarded and protected from harm. Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 4 Risk management and individual support plans identify any known vulnerabilities for children. Children’s plans are reviewed regularly and updated when necessary. Staff understand children’s plans and follow them in practice.

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

Children are educated about risks, and they understand how to protect themselves from unsafe people and situations. Children are supported to understand and take managed risks in line with their development and independent living skills. This approach contributes to a strong safeguarding culture which helps children to make safe decisions. As a result, incidents where children are at risk of harm are rare.

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

There has been one occasion where staff missed an opportunity to support a child to safely explore and understand behaviours that could place themselves or others at risk. The manager instructed staff to offer support to the child with this issue, but this was not actioned. This was a missed opportunity to educate the child to enable them to be safe.

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

Restraint is used only as a last resort. Incident records are clear, setting out de- escalation techniques that are in line with the home’s therapeutic approach. Reflective discussions take place promptly with staff and children when restraint has been used. This practice ensures that children are given an opportunity to reflect on their actions and for staff to reflect on their practice. As a result, there has been a significant reduction in incidents where children are restrained to keep themselves or others safe.

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

Leaders and managers did not appropriately explore concerns relating to an employee before inviting the individual to visit the children’s home. The manager was not aware of the safeguarding concerns until these were brought to her attention during the inspection. This shortfall does not prevent unsuitable adults from having contact with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A suitably qualified manager leads the home. The manager is a child-centred practitioner who is keen to find different ways to enhance her knowledge and skills in order to improve the quality of care provided to children. The manager has high aspirations for children and the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and family members are extremely positive about the quality of care provided to children. One family member commented that the support from staff and managers has made their child the happiest they have ever been.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An experienced and motivated staff team supports children. All members of staff spoke positively about the support from the manager. One staff member said the manager ‘is always readily available and goes above and beyond with the support and guidance she provides’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff receive a robust induction programme to adequately prepare them to provide good-quality care for children. Staff receive monthly supervisions that are Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 5 child-centred and also consider staff well-being and development. Staff and managers use team meetings to reflect on their practice and the quality of care provided to children. During the meetings, the manager has a clear focus to ensure that staff understand and manage children’s behaviours using the home’s therapeutic approach. This leadership style is effective in ensuring that children receive individualised care that supports them to make progress and overcome any adverse childhood experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses a range of reviewing and monitoring systems to maintain oversight of the home and the quality of care. These systems are effective in ensuring that children are safe and that they are making progress from their starting points. On occasion, the manager has not taken notes when she has attended meetings to discuss children’s care plans and their progress. This practice does not support effective care planning. Without a record of decisions made at the meetings, staff cannot be sufficiently informed of children’s plans and decisions. This could have an impact on the individualised care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent person does not consistently ascertain children’s views as part of external monitoring. The manager and the responsible individual have taken steps to address the shortfalls identified during the inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 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 care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(b)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the provider ensuring the following:

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Requirement Due date

that delays to children’s transition to adulthood are challenged and escalated promptly by the registered manager;

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Requirement Due date

that children have the relevant plans and assessments to support a child-centred transition to their next stage of life.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to the registered manager ensuring that the home makes a record of any meetings attended where children’s care plans are being discussed and that the information is available to staff while awaiting the local authority’s copy of children’s plans and reviews. 30 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

promotes their welfare. 30 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that monitoring and reviewing systems are effective in identifying shortfalls with children’s care planning, safer recruitment and the quality of care to children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the provider ensuring that adults who are working with children are vetted and all concerns in relation to schedule 2 are known and assessed for risk before they visit the children’s home. 30 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person— 30 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 8 if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives, and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered provider ensuring that during their visit, the independent visitor consistently consults children to gain their views about their daily lived experiences in the home.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff support children to be aware of and manage their own safety, both inside and outside the home. This specifically relates to staff supporting and educating children to safely explore concerns and behaviours that could place them at risk. This will help children understand how to protect themselves, feel protected and be protected from significant harm. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.9)

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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: SC366093 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Reflexion Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fitzroy Academy, Cruckton, Shrewsbury SY5 8PR

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Inspector

Nateisha Cardoza-Evans, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC366093 10 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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