Children's home run by Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 1 Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and run by a private company. It 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 previous manager left in December 2023. The new manager started in January 2024 and is yet to register with Ofsted. She is the manager of two homes run by the company.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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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.

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outstanding

Date of last inspection: 25 January 2023

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/01/2023 Full Outstanding 21/02/2022 Full Outstanding 22/10/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 3

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outstanding

Staff consistently build highly effective relationships with children. Staff maintain these relationships with children, even when they are not in work. Staff are always thinking of the children, coming to visit them when they are on leave and attending important events, such as the school’s parents’ evening and sports day. This helps children feel connected, cared for and loved.

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outstanding

Children make excellent progress in education, exceeding targets. Staff support this progress through being aspirational for children and advocating for them effectively. They scaffold learning outside the school environment, regularly reading with children, which provides the encouragement that a conscientious parent would.

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outstanding

Children’s care is frequently reviewed with psychologists. Staff follow the clinicians’ advice on how to create a therapeutic environment for children. When children are diagnosed with a specific vulnerability, which could make it hard for the child to control their emotions for example, then staff attend training to ensure that they better understand the children’s needs. The team also regularly meets and agrees on how to implement learning and advice into its practice. This results in high- quality, consistent and highly personalised care for children.

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outstanding

Children’s views are central to all decisions made. The team has a variety of ways to gather children’s wishes and act on them. These views and subsequent actions are then tracked by staff. Staff also recognise when they need to involve others to advocate for children. Staff are exceptionally skilled in using incentives and goals to motivate and reward children. This drives steady progress.

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outstanding

Since the last inspection, there have been no behavioural incidents or times when children have needed to be held to keep them safe. This is because staff skilfully meet children’s needs. This leads to a calm and loving feeling in the home.

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outstanding

Children have life-enriching experiences while living in the home. This includes holidays, when children go away with their favourite staff to resemble a stereotypical two-parent family. This is planned in preparation for children to return to live in a family in the future.

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outstanding

Staff support children to try new activities, which helps children to become more socially confident. Staff also acknowledge children’s worries about trying new things. In response, staff provide reliable support at times when children need the reassurance of care from a familiar adult.

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outstanding

Children are encouraged to develop a sense of their own identity. Staff support children to express their individuality through personalised bedrooms. This Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 4 celebrates children’s uniqueness and validates their choices. The rest of the house is well decorated and maintained and looks like a typical family home.

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outstanding

Since the last inspection, there have been no significant events, no incidents of children going missing from home, no allegations against staff and no physical interventions. This is a highly positive reflection of the skilled way that staff support children. Children feel safe, happy and content in this home, and they are emotionally attached to the staff.

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outstanding

While there are relatively few current identified risks for children, any emerging concerns are immediately responded to. The potential for risks online has been mitigated by effective and proactive monitoring of children’s online activity. Staff are appropriately trained to understand these risks, and they act consistently. This supports children to make age-appropriate use of the internet with a good safety net below them.

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outstanding

There is a persistent approach to seeing any medical investigations or assessments through to conclusion in order to help children. This supports the team to understand the best ways to support children. The clinical team confirms that staff maintain excellent communication with them and implement advice consistently and to extremely good effect.

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outstanding

Children are helped to overcome barriers to education. Staff implement highly effective support plans to assist children to transition between schools, working at the child’s pace to minimise any anxiety this could cause.

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outstanding

One child had significant barriers to oral hygiene and health. Staff worked tenaciously and creatively to help the child make improvements. This included staff role modelling at their own dental appointments and brushing their teeth alongside the child. This supported the child to overcome deep-seated fears.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The previous manager left in December 2023, and there is a new manager in post. She has made an effective start by maintaining consistency for children, recognising that this is a fundamental factor affecting their well-being.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There have been some issues with obtaining statutory documentation from social workers. Leaders and managers have identified this, and there has been strong challenge and escalation to resolve this. They understand that a lack of up-to-date documentation could result in the staff’s actions not aligning with the wider network, and they have therefore been determined in pursuing this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite the short time the manager has been in post, she has a sound understanding of the needs of the children and staff. She has a clear vision of what Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 5 she wants to achieve and has an ethos that chimes with the core team. This promotes a shared approach where they are all working to enable children to return to live in a family setting where possible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and staff are held in high regard by family and professionals, who unanimously praise the high quality of relationships between staff and children. One professional said that staff and children have a ‘brilliant relationship’ and that staff know children well and advocate for them. They also commented on positive and regular communication between themselves and the staff team. Staff and professionals collaborate effectively.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff benefit from regular reflective supervision that has a strong focus on children. Mandatory training is complemented by additional bespoke sessions to support staff development and drive up the quality of care. The workforce development plan collates raw data on training, supervision, reviews and staff movements within the company. However, there is no narrative or evaluation in the plan, which misses opportunities to check that staff will have the right skills to move the home and children forward. Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have a detailed, evaluative workforce plan that can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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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: 2523037 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Time-Out Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 2, Ripponden Mill, Mill Fold, Ripponden, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 4DH

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Dominic Macauley

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Inspector

Rachel Ruth, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2523037 8 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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