Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited in Preston

Inspection report children's home: 1212704 1 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children's home

The home is operated by a private organisation. The home provides care for up to three children who may have social and emotional needs.

p.1

Information about this children's home

The home registered with Ofsted in September 2016 and the manager registered in December 2020.

p.1

Information about this children's home

There were two children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children's home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: 7 February 2023

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 1212704 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/02/2023 Full Good 26/01/2022 Full Good 13/08/2019 Full Good 08/11/2018 Full Good Inspection report children's home: 1212704 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with the manager and staff. One child said that they feel safe and happy at the home. Children receive individualised care. The children’s plans are understood and followed by staff. Consequently, children make good progress in all aspects of their lives.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff ensure that children’s views, wishes, and feelings are listened to and are central to their care planning. For example, one child requested to be able to care for pets in the home and one child wished for their bedroom to be decorated in the colour of their favourite football team. Both requests were honoured. This helps children to feel valued and have a sense of belonging.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress in their education from their starting points. Both children regularly attend the onsite education provision. Staff work therapeutically with the children to overcome any barriers to learning and support and encourage their daily attendance. Opportunities are provided for the children to learn informally such as; working on their emotions, developing independence skills and problem solving skills. This demonstrates that children are supported to achieve their educational potential and are encouraged to have aspirations for the future.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health and attend regular routine health appointments. However, on one occasion when a child required medical attention staff provided first aid, however, medical advice was not sought. This was a missed opportunity to ensure that the child did not require additional medical attention.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to keep in touch and see people who are important to them. Staff have formed good relationships with the children’s family members. This helps children to maintain their sense of identity and to maintain meaningful relationships with the people who are important to them.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions for children moving on from the home are variable. Two children left the home in a carefully thought out planned way, one child successfully returned home and one child moved back to their local area. However, two children left the home in an unplanned way.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager advocates well for children and works closely with placing authorities when shortfalls arise to address and source the correct support to meet children’s emerging needs.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is decorated and furnished to a good standard and is clean and tidy. The children have access to a large garden area. The home is maintained well and free from hazards. Inspection report children's home: 1212704 4

p.3

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

The safety and welfare of children are at the centre of staff practice. This helps staff to keep children safe. Childrens risk management and positive support plans address their vulnerabilities, include clear strategies for staff to follow and are reviewed regularly. This supports staff to understand the children’s risk taking behaviours and take effective action to manage incidents.

p.4

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

One child identified a trusted adult in the home who they felt they could speak to should they have any concerns or worries. The shared that they get on well with the staff and the manager and know how to make complaints. This helps the child to feel a sense of safety.

p.4

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

Staff receive training in safeguarding children and child protection. This covers numerous risks faced by the children in their care such as self-harm, online safety and managing crisis. However, staff would benefit from receiving training in substance misuse and sexually harmful behaviours to further strengthen their knowledge and care planning.

p.4

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

On occasion’s two children have left the home without permission. Staff have followed missing from home protocols, worked with the police and actively searched for the children to ensure that they returned home safely. The children are offered an independent return home interview, however, not all of these have been completed within timescales. This is a missed opportunity to consider any triggers and strategies to manage the risk taking behaviour sooner.

p.4

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

Staff are trained in physical intervention and de-escalation techniques. Staff have held children on a number of occasions. Managers have reviewed the records relating to physical intervention. Physical interventions are proportionate and necessary to keep everyone safe. However, it is unclear when the interventions were recorded and on one occasion the manager failed to carry out a de-brief with the staff members after a hold. This does not support the manager to robustly analyse and evaluate staff practice or to identify any changes required to staff practice to reduce the number of holds in the future.

p.4

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

Children have been given consequences in response to their behaviour, however, this is not always restorative or effective in nature. The manager does not evaluate the consequence or speak to the member of staff who gave the consequence. This is a missed opportunity for the manager to review the effectiveness of consequences and take action to improve staff practice.

p.4

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

Incidents are managed well and all serious incidents are notified to Ofsted. This allows the regulator to have sufficient oversight and scrutiny. A therapist who works with the children said, ‘I think staff do really care about the children and they want to do their best for them. They know the children well. It is quite rare that I will ask them something and they don’t know the answer. They attune to the child and their needs.’ Inspection report children's home: 1212704 5

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and has a relevant childcare and management qualification. The manager and staff adopts a therapeutic approach to the care provided to children. Staff have high aspirations for the children, and they share a good sense of teamwork. One member of staff said, ‘I, and those around me give their absolute best for the children in our care, and care for them as though they are family. Our model of care is put into practice every minute of every day, and it is evidenced by the progress the children make when they are with us.’

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff receive a thorough induction that provides them with a detailed programme of training and guidance to support them in their new role. The manager and staff receive regular supervision and take part in regular team meetings. This enables them to reflect on their practice and adapt it when necessary to meet the needs of the children in their care.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak highly of the management team and say that they enjoy working at the home and feel valued and supported. One member of staff said, ‘The team works closely and coherently with excellent leadership from the deputy and general managers. If I need support on my shift, I can turn to my supervisor who has worked with me closely on a one to one basis.’

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and deputy manager have had their practice appraised and targets, goals and actions set. However, the appraisal does not capture feedback from professionals working with the managers or the children who live in the home. This is a missed opportunity for further reflection on practice.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management team gather feedback from professionals, children and staff to inform care planning and the development of the service. However, limited feedback is obtained from parents and family members, his is a missed opportunity to further strengthen the care provided.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management team have good monitoring systems in place. This helps them to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the service. This means they are able to plan and take action to address any shortfalls. The manager reviews the quality of care on a six monthly basis. This gives a clear overview of the service and areas for development. Inspection report children's home: 1212704 6

p.5

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, 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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

p.6

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)(b) (2)(a)(b)(iii))

p.6

Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that children receive effectively planned care by experienced and skilled staff to meet the needs of the children. Also, that children receive thought out planned moves in and out of the home. 21 April 2024

p.6

Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

p.6

Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure; 21 April 2024 Inspection report children's home: 1212704 7 the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

p.6

Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

p.7

Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

p.7

Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

p.7

Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure; within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

p.7

Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

p.7

Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that records of physical intervention and consequences are completed within timescales, staff de-briefs take place and consequences are reviewed.

p.7

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children's health and well-being needs are met by seeking medical advice for children when required. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations, including the quality standards', page 33, paragraph 7.3) Inspection report children's home: 1212704 8  The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations, including the quality standards', page 45, paragraph 9.30)

p.7

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they develop effective working relationships with each child's parents or family members to gain feedback to inform the care planning and development of the service. ('Guide to the Children's Home Regulations, including the quality standards', page 52, paragraph 10.3)

p.8

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff appraisals include the views of other professionals who have worked with staff over the year, and the views of children who have been cared for at the home. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.5)

p.8

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 children's home: 1212704 9

p.8

Children's home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

p.9

Children's home details

Registered provider address: Unit 1 Tustin Court, Riversway, Preston, Lancashire PR2 2YQ

p.9

Inspector

Julie Elder, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 1212704 10 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.

p.9

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.10

Inspector

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

p.10

Inspector

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

p.10