Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 1 Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

A private company owns the home. The home provides care for up to four children aged 11 to 17 years who have experienced adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and presenting complex behaviours.

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Information about this children's home

The manager holds the level 5 diploma in leadership and management and registered with Ofsted on 9 August 2023.

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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: 11 January 2023

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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: 2530832 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/01/2023 Full Good 08/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Four children live in the home. One child has lived in the home for almost three years. Since the last inspection two children have moved out and two children have moved in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff form positive relationships with children. They provide children with a haven to help them recover from trauma. Staff help children to make sense of, and articulate, their feelings. They provide them with unconditional love and support alongside clear and consistent boundaries. As a result, children restore their trust in adults, thus enabling them to begin their journey of recovery.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy positive experiences including holidays abroad. One child has experienced travelling on a plane for the first time. Staff ensure that children can pursue their interests and hobbies. Children enjoy playing sport such as football and rugby, and one child joined the air cadets. These experiences create positive childhood memories which contribute to children's identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children learn about diversity. Staff do activities with them about different religions, cultures, and disabilities. For example, staff provide opportunities for children to taste food from diverse cultures. Children have learned how to use braille to experience different forms of communication. As a result, children develop acceptance, tolerance, and respect for others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to form a positive sense of identity. This continues after children leave the home. Children identify staff as life-long links. These are staff members who they will remain in touch with when they leave the home. This ensures that children have a positive support network after they move out of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff fiercely advocate for children regarding education. As a result, one child is attending an alternative provision. This means that they are now learning in an environment which supports their needs. Consequently, incidents in school have significantly reduced.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff go over and above to support children to stay connected with their family members. Communication with family members is particularly good. Parent's feel reassured and involved in their child's care planning arrangements. This helps children to understand that all adults are working together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is safe, clean and tidy. However, some areas of the home require improvement. This does not detract from an otherwise homely environment. Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 4

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

The registered manager and staff are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities. They take swift action to ensure that children are safe. The manager writes detailed risk assessments which include behaviour support plans. This enables staff to understand children's risks and vulnerabilities. They also provide guidance for staff to follow to keep children safe.

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

Children receive support to understand how to keep themselves safe. Staff help children to develop safe strategies to respond to, and manage, their feelings. As a result, incidents of self-injury have significantly reduced.

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

Staff have important conversations with children about keeping themselves safe. They are particularly creative when teaching children about online safety. As a result, children have good knowledge and understanding about issues such as online grooming. When children have any worries or concerns, they confide in staff straight away. Staff respond quickly to ensure that children remain safe.

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

When children go missing, staff follow detailed guidance to locate them quickly. They go over and above to search for children. They collaborate well with external professionals. This ensures a co-ordinated approach to keeping children safe.

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

After any significant incidents, staff speak to the children about the incident. This helps staff to consider the impact on all children who live in the home. As a result, children receive the necessary support and reassurance to feel safe.

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

Staff encourage positive behaviour. Children understand the boundaries and expectations in the home. However, during one incident staff used a physical intervention. This was necessary to keep another child safe. However, this was not recorded well and the record of events leading up to the incident were poor. This compromised the manager’s oversight of the incident.

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

Managers do not always notify Ofsted of serious events in a timely manner. This could compromise the external oversight of safeguarding practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably qualified and experienced. They are enthusiastic and dedicated. Staff describe them as firm but fair. Children are very complimentary about the manager. They describe them as 'honest' and that they 'tell it like it is'. Children trust the manager and one child said, 'I know if she says she is going to do something she will do it'. The home has strong management arrangements in place, with the former manager now being the home’s responsible individual.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have monitoring systems in place. They identify shortfalls in the quality of care children receive. As a result, managers understand how children are being cared for. They are also aware of the home's areas for development and have action plans in place to address these. Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 5 There is a stable staff team. Staff work well together; they support each other and there is a strong sense of team working. Staff are enthusiastic and committed to providing children with good standards of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive meaningful supervision. This helps them to reflect and fulfil their role and responsibilities. Supervision supports staff resilience and team working. This is because of the highly effective oversight of staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive training pertinent to children’s needs and risks. As a result, staff know children well. They understand their needs and how they should respond to them. Overall, children receive care which is sensitive and empathic.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff regularly reflect on their practice. They complete 'staff de-briefs' at the end of each day and after any significant incident. Staff identify what has worked well and what could be better. This encourages staff to be reflective which promotes continuous improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children's records contain some comments which could be stigmatising. Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 6

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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 registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children's home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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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—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child's behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 20 May 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 7 a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

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")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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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 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that they review the homes policy and procedures around responding to and managing children's behaviour. In addition to ensure that staff know and understand how to implement the policy in children's best interests.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that improvements are made to provide children with a more homely and nurturing environment. In addition to taking swift action when repairs are necessary. (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)  The registered person should have a system in place so that all serious events are notified, within 24 hours, to the appropriate people, including Ofsted. (Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)  The registered provider must ensure that staff are familiar with the home's policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Managers and staff should ensure that information about children is always recorded in a way that will be helpful to them and is non stigmatising. ('Guide to Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality

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Recommendations

standards', page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 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: 2530832 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Limited

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Children's home details

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

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Inspector

Sarah Berry, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2530832 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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