Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 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 owned by a private company. It provides care for two children who have experienced childhood trauma.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2024 and is suitably qualified. She has worked in the home for over three years.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

p.1

outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

p.1

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.

p.1

outstanding

Date of last inspection: 11 January 2023

p.1

outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

p.1

outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/01/2023 Full Outstanding 25/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 3

p.2

outstanding

At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home. One child has lived here for over two years, the other child for over a year. Children receive high- quality care that makes them feel valued and secure. Both children have made significant progress since coming to live at the home.

p.3

outstanding

The quality of the relationships between the staff and children is exceptional. Relationships are warm, affectionate and loving. Children have built strong relationships with the staff who care for them. This helps children to build trust and to feel safer and relaxed in their surroundings. Staff speak about the children with love, warmth and enthusiasm. They demonstrate an unwavering commitment to them.

p.3

outstanding

Children are also incredibly positive about the care that they receive. One child said, ‘I love it here. The best thing is the staff who look after me. They have taught me how to keep myself safe and express how I am feeling in a safe way. I have grown up so much. They have given me the love and care when I really needed it, and they give me a kick up the bum when I need this too.’

p.3

outstanding

Children develop independence skills at a pace that suits their needs and abilities. Children learn to budget, travel independently, manage their own medication, take part in work experience and undertake volunteering. Staff prepare and support children well, so that their moves out of the home are smooth and successful, and children are enabled to take on appropriate levels of responsibility to develop life skills for the future.

p.3

outstanding

Managers and staff make every effort and dedicate time to seek the opinions of the children. Children have multiple opportunities to have their say, for example, through ‘voice and choice’ consultation forums, questionnaires, key-work sessions and in their care planning meetings. These allow children to share and talk about their achievements, reflect on events and learn how to manage conflict. These opportunities provide valuable life experiences for children to learn how to communicate and to listen effectively. Children’s views are promoted, and they say they are listened to.

p.3

outstanding

The support for, and encouragement of, children to engage in education is exceptional. The manager and staff advocate for children to have the best opportunities. They are ambitious for children and have offered them extensive support to ensure that their individual needs are met. Staff work successfully in partnership with schools and the placing authority to find children a suitable provision that reflects their learning needs. For example, one child is studying animal care at college and another child attends a motorbike course once a week. This helps children to maintain a daily routine that supports their academic needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 4 Children enjoy living in a welcoming, warm and nurturing home environment. Children’s bedrooms and the living areas of the home reflect children’s achievements and special interests. Photos, certificates and artwork fill the walls and clearly reflect

p.3

outstanding

the individual hobbies, interests and achievements of each child. The decor, maintenance and organisation of the home clearly suggest that those who live there are important, valued and respected.

p.4

outstanding

Staff foster a culture of respect, nurture and safety. They are committed to children. Staff are continually curious about, and reflect on, how they can help children grow in all areas of their development. This helps children to build trust and to feel safer and relaxed in their surroundings.

p.4

outstanding

Keeping children safe is seen as paramount. The manager has highly effective systems in place for recording, reporting and monitoring safeguarding concerns. Communication with external professionals, such as the local authority designated officer and social workers, is effective. The manager shares information with them swiftly to avoid delay and ensure that children are protected from harm. The manager takes guidance from these professionals and they work together well to ensure that children are safe. Safeguarding records are comprehensive, providing a clear audit trail for those who need to read them.

p.4

outstanding

The strength and consistency of the safe relationships that children have with the staff enable children to feel secure. Staff are clear about their responsibilities and know how to respond to safeguarding concerns. Comprehensive training, regular supervision and team meetings provide staff with the knowledge and skills they need to inform their practice and safely care for children.

p.4

outstanding

Robust protocols provide staff with clear direction about what to do if a child goes missing from home. Staff search extensively for children and liaise with the local police until they are found.

p.4

outstanding

When children return home, staff talk to them to find out why they have gone missing and what support they need so that it does not happen again. An independent person always comes to talk to the children when they return home.

p.4

outstanding

Written plans for each child are comprehensive. They are updated regularly by staff and changes are discussed in team meetings, ensuring that staff have up-to-date guidance on how to care for children, mitigate risk and keep children safe. Staff’s knowledge of the children is embedded in their day-to-day work, which reduces and minimises the risks for children effectively.

p.4

outstanding

Staff educate the children around risk exceptionally well. Children take part in key- work sessions and engage in discussions to address identified risks and raise their awareness of topics of concern. This direct work includes discussions on the impact Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 5 of cannabis on mental health, knife crime and gangs. This work enhances children’s knowledge of risk and allows them to take the lead in their learning about keeping safe.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is a confident, ambitious and inspirational leader. She leads by example, providing highly effective leadership. She has high expectations of herself and staff to deliver excellent care to children. The manager also has high aspirations for the children. This leadership inspires staff to provide exceptional care.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has excellent relationships with the children. She goes above and beyond to spend time with children, and she is an avid advocate for them when needed. She has exceptional knowledge of the children’s starting points and what they have accomplished since living in the home.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leadership, management and staff cohesion are clear strengths of the home, which ensure the safety and welfare of children. Strategic reviews of incidents in the home provide constant evaluation of staff practice and highlight children’s changing needs. Supervision sessions and focused team meetings are highly effective management tools used in the home, which address areas for development. These processes ensure that staff provide care for children that consistently exceeds good.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are provided with a wide range of training that informs their practice and meets children’s individual and diverse needs. The manager has also completed upskilling sessions with staff around therapeutic authoritative parenting, missing from home, disordered eating and court and youth justice issues.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager takes responsibility for her own learning and development, including keeping up to date with new initiatives and research specific to the children’s needs and the home’s model of care. She is creative in her thinking and is constantly looking for new ways to support staff, to sustain the highest quality of care for children. This helps to strengthen staff’s understanding of the children’s needs and how to support children.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and therapy team disseminate learning from theoretical models of care to staff. This gives staff a greater understanding of children’s emotional needs and supports them to deliver consistent and individualised care. Training in therapeutic approaches and an understanding of attachment theory underpin staff practice. Regular therapy consultations, care planning meetings and reflective discussions are used well and are effective in improving staff practice. This enables staff to better understand the reasons behind some of the children’s behaviours and provide a nurturing environment in which children thrive.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Managers and staff have effective working relationships with external agencies and schools, to ensure the best possible care, experiences and futures for children. Professionals speak highly of the quality of care provided and the standards of communication maintained by staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 6 Staff are happy to work in this home. They feel that the manager has brought a new focus, with high aspirations for the home and what it can achieve. The manager is well regarded and she is nurturing towards the team. This means that staff work in an environment where they feel well supported.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The remarkably strong leadership of the home and the quality of care create an environment in which staff are proud to work and where children are proud to live. No requirements or recommendations have been made.

p.6

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: 2636991 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

p.7

Children’s home details

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

p.7

Inspector

Marianne Grandfield, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2636991 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

p.7

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.8

Inspector

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

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8