Children's home run by The Partnership of Care Today Children‟s Services in Stockport

Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 1 SC021679 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties and learning disabilities. Two children were living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2010.

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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: 6 December 2022

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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: SC021679 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/12/2022 Full Good 29/06/2021 Full Good 20/06/2019 Full Good 01/11/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from well-planned, highly individualised care that promotes their needs effectively. They enjoy positive relationships with the adults who care for them and provide them with stability and consistency in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a caring, supportive and nurturing environment that enables them to feel safe and secure. A social worker said, ‘Staff have shown commitment and care to the children. I know from my regular visits that staff are very supportive.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to the services that they need to ensure their good health and well-being. Staff provide advice and support on important health issues that helps children to lead and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Medical consent is obtained to ensure that staff are familiar with the health responsibilities that are delegated to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have established strong partnerships with schools, social workers and other professionals to ensure that children benefit from the best possible help and all- round support. They educate children about risks. As a result, staff help children to keep themselves safe.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have consistently high aspirations for children. They support them to attend school regularly and work tirelessly with the providers of their education to promote their educational achievement. A teacher said, ‘[The child’s name] is making good progress in all subjects with excellent feedback from teachers. They have excellent punctuality, and always attends school well-presented.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively support children to spend time with their friends and family. As a result, they help children to maintain meaningful relationships with the people that matter most to them. Staff also provide children with positive activities and encourage their interests and hobbies.

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

The safety of children is consistently at the centre of staff’s practice. Staff implement clear risk management plans effectively to promote the safety of children. They have a clear understanding of the specific needs and vulnerabilities of children. They review children’s plans on a regular basis to ensure that any changes in behaviour are considered so that strategies to manage behaviour remain effective.

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

Children feel able to raise concerns with staff and the rights of children are promoted effectively. Staff are trained in child protection and are familiar with their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. Allegations of abuse are handled Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 4 professionally, and significant incidents are reported to the appropriate authorities to ensure that children are protected and kept safe from harm.

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

Unsafe behaviours, such as, children going missing are managed effectively by staff. Staff actively look for children, if they are missing from the home, and work closely with the police to secure their safe return.

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

Staff are trained in de-escalation techniques and are skilled in anticipating incidents, so they can act quickly to prevent unsafe behaviours from escalating. The use of restraint is exceptionally rare. Restraint is only ever used as a last resort to protect children from harm. The use of consequences to manage unwanted behaviours are fair and proportionate.

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

Staff provide children with a homely and comfortable living environment. However, locks on the internal and external doors are not homely and can restrict children’s movement when in use. Staff manage health and safety matters effectively. This ensures that a safe and hazard free environment is maintained for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed efficiently and effectively by a long-serving registered manager who is a visible and strong presence in the children’s lives. Children benefit from a manager who demonstrates strong leadership of the day-to-day operations of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff meet the aims and objectives, as outlined, in the home’s statement of purpose. They have met the requirement and all recommendations from the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Sufficient numbers of experienced, qualified and well-trained staff are employed to meet the specific needs of the children. Staff benefit from weekly team meetings that are focused on meeting the needs of children. A social worker said, ‘Staff clearly know the children well.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular performance related supervision. However, supervision is not consistently focused on staff’s relationships with children or the progress and experiences they are having. Additionally, rotas for the home do not routinely include the hours that staff work on the rota.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is an inspirational leader who provides staff with a clear sense of purpose and direction. They have high expectations of staff and lead the staff team by example. They make effective use of the monitoring activities to understand the strengths and weaknesses. They tackle shortfalls to secure continuing improvement in the care provided for children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 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 privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to children having unrestricted access to all communal areas and replacing the locks to the front and rear doors to the home. 30 April 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. (Regulation 37 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to including the full names of staff, including the manager, and their actual hours worked on the rota. 30 April 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 6

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Recommendation

 Staff supervision should enable staff to reflect of their practice and it should also be child focused. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.15)

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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: SC021679 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Inspectors

Anthony Kyem, Social Care Inspector Stella Henderson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC021679 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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