Children's home run by After Care (NW) Limited in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 1 SC037181 Registered provider: After Care Northwest Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2014.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home. The child spoke to the inspector about their experiences living in the home.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/03/2023 Full Good 05/01/2022 Full Good 26/02/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good 17/05/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child said they are happy and that they like living in the home. They have recently moved into the home after spending a period away from the area. They are now nearer to their family and are being supported to spend time with them. The child’s social worker is positive about the progress the child is making and describe the team as being ‘child focused’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has recently moved on to semi-independence after living in the home for three years. This was a positive move for the child, and they were supported to move on in a planned way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is well supported. The child is now attending school and is on track to sit their GCSEs this year after being out of school for a length of time. The child who has recently moved out of the home was supported by the provider’s tutors to continue their education when they struggled to maintain a college placement. This helps children to achieve their academic potential and enables them to have aspirations for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are skilled at compiling memory books for children. These books display photos, milestones and charity work and enable children to look back on memories of their time in the home. This helps children to remember positive experiences and achievements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children feel listened to. Staff know the children well and talk to them about what is going on for them. Key-work sessions take place regularly and cover a variety of issues that are important to children, such as healthy relationships, safety in the community and internet safety. These sessions help children to make informed decisions and prepare them for becoming more independent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from clear, structured independence work that helps them to develop skills in preparation for adulthood. This work also helps children to feel included in decisions about their future.

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

Children are cared for by staff who know them well. Staff understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities and know how to respond to keep them safe. Risk plans are detailed and are reviewed regularly to ensure that they are up to date. When new risks emerge, staff respond quickly to ensure that children receive a consistent response.

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

Positive behaviour is supported and encouraged. Children have incentive plans that help them to achieve their individual targets through earning rewards and Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 4 incentives. These plans are regularly reviewed to ensure that they remain effective and are supporting children to make progress.

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

Children’s health is promoted. Children who smoke or vape are consistently encouraged to access smoking cessation services. Medication is stored safely, and the records are well maintained.

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

When children go missing from the home, staff work with external professionals to keep children safe. However, records lack detail, and expectations of staff are not always clear. This limits opportunities to ensure that practice in the home is consistent and that information is shared effectively with other professionals. Staff carry out work with children on their return. This helps children to understand the reasons why they may go missing and has led to a reduction in incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably skilled and experienced. She is a positive role model to children and staff. The manager has high expectations of staff and is committed to promoting positive outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from regular and meaningful supervision sessions and team meetings. They can reflect on children’s progress, their practice and other key issues. The manager also provides direction and support to improve practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is proactive in ensuring that children’s plans are up to date and reflective of their needs. She was tenacious about obtaining a child’s education plan. However, the child’s care plan was not in place. This limits opportunities to ensure that children are cared for in accordance with their statutory plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s rosters do not include the hours the manager works at the home. This does not provide an accurate reflection of when staff are working at the home or who is providing care to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children benefit from support from the organisation’s clinical and education team. However, the clinical supervision details for the home’s therapist and tutors are not included in the home’s workforce development plan. Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 5

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the 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

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the responsible person must ensure that children have an up-to-date care plan to enable their care to be tailored to their individual needs. 30 May 2024

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date; and

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Requirement Due date

retain the records for at least 15 years from the date of the last entry. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the responsible person must ensure that hours worked by all staff, including the manager, are included on the staff roster. 30 May 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s workforce plan clearly reflects the experience, qualifications and supervision details of health and education professionals who work with children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person should specify the procedures to be followed and the roles and responsibilities of staff when a child is missing from care or away from the home without permission and how staff should support the child on their return to the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.28)

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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: SC037181 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: After Care Northwest Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 45 Kensington Road, Southport, Lancashire PR9 0RT

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Timothy Blundell

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Inspector

Colin Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC037181 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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