Children's Home run by Family First Care Services Ltd in Haringey

Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 1 Registered provider: Family First Care Services 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 managed by a private provider. It offers care for up to three children who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Two children currently live in the home. The inspector spoke to both children during this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and the manager registered with Ofsted in July 2021.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/03/2023 Full Good 09/03/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy in this home. They are comfortable relating with staff and feel they are heard and understood. Children were observed playing games with staff and having conversations about their day and their plans. Children make steady progress from their starting points; this includes in their educational experiences and their day-to-day life. For example, all children are now attending school, where school attendance may have been an issue in the past. Staff maintain effective relationships with educational professionals to ensure that children’s needs are well understood. Staff are on hand to attend school to support children when required.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are helped to expand their social horizons by being involved in activities which they have not previously tried. One child attends cadets, gymnastics and is involved in a dance troupe. Children are encouraged to express their likes and dislikes, which is reflected in the choice of decor in the home and their individualised bedrooms. Children’s bedrooms are decorated and kept to a good standard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s thoughts and feelings are clearly documented following planned and unplanned discussions. This can be seen in care plans and risk planning documents, where children’s views are clearly evidenced. This enables children’s wishes and feelings to be known, respected and to inform care planning. This leads to effective interventions, which are sensitive to children’s needs, and progress at a pace which is comfortable for children. However, consideration could be given to more support being provided around family time arrangements, particularly where issues have arisen which undermine the quality of contact. This includes ensuring that professionals are aware of these issues and further support is put in place to promote children having quality family time. Where it is apparent children may be isolated, consideration should be given to the use of advocates or independent visitors. While it is acknowledged that some children have used advocates in the

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

past, this is not consistently the case.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff know the children well and can describe their personalities. They are aware of things which may negatively impact on children. There are detailed behaviour support plans which equip staff with appropriate strategies to address behaviours which are concerning. These plans provide pragmatic support to staff to support their care of children. New staff benefit from the detailed plans which enable staff to understand children’s histories, sensitivities and how to approach them with empathy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children at this home have made substantial progress and continue to thrive. Feedback from professionals indicates they see the progress children are making and attribute this to the care and attention children receive from staff. Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 4 Children’s health needs are prioritised. They receive specialist therapeutic support due to good advocacy from the registered manager and their good relationship with health providers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While staff are attuned to the children’s needs, more care and attention need to be given to ensuring that health and safety issues are prioritised and addressed in accordance with compliance reports.

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

Children are safe in this home. Leaders and staff are proactive in addressing risks when they arise and in ensuring that children understand how to keep themselves safe. Managers work with professionals to ensure that children are supported to have autonomy even when risks are high. Staff have been successful in ensuring that there is a clear balance between managing risks to children and ensuring that children’s rights are respected. For example, children subject to deprivation of liberty orders have successfully been supported and no longer need this requirement due to the effective interventions the manager has put in place. Children can safely spend time in the community with friends and family. Children have expressed they feel proud of the progress they have made, and they talk positively about the support and trust staff have placed in them.

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

Children rarely go missing from this home. The effective risk assessments support staff in addressing missing-from-care incidents appropriately. There is a learning culture in the home, and incidents of missing from care are properly documented. Staff carry out debriefs which support them in understanding the circumstances around why children go missing, the impact of actions taken by staff and where improvements are being made. The registered manager requests return home interviews and these are combined with the feedback from children to ensure effective interventions. This has resulted in a reduction in missing-from-care episodes.

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

The use of restraints in this home is minimal. Staff build effective relationships with children, which helps them to feel safe. Staff respond compassionately to behaviour which is challenging while providing appropriate boundaries and supervision. Children are able to express their thoughts and feelings knowing they will be heard and understood. Children say that they like the people who care for them and feel at home. One child said, ‘I have to remind myself I am in a care home because it feels like family. I have been in other care homes before, and they are nothing like this.’

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

Staff have a good understanding of children’s emotional needs and take appropriate action when incidents occur. Staff are patient with children. They use effective de- escalation techniques and engage children in positive activities to help them feel better. Incidents are well documented and reviewed, and reflection helps staff to implement learning from how incidents are managed to improve practice in the future. Risk assessments are updated, and management oversight of incidents is evident. Children are supported to understand how to express themselves in positive ways which do not place themselves and others at risk of harm. Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the children well and has a good understanding of their needs and behaviours. The manager cares deeply for the children and models building good relationships with them. This in turn is implemented by staff and creates a warm and inclusive environment in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that there is a sufficient number of staff to support children, based on their needs and risks. Therefore, children receive good-quality care and support, which ensures that they have good experiences and achieve positive outcomes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision that focuses on child-related practice as well as staff training and development. Staff’s performance and practice are appraised annually. This ensures that the manager has a good oversight of staff practice and development. However, appraisals could benefit from feedback from children and professionals to triangulate the learning for staff and improvement in practice. This is a restated recommendation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff work closely with children’s parents and professional networks. This helps the people supporting children to continuously identify and support children’s developing needs. Consequently, children receive holistic care and support from the staff team. Social workers have praised the manager and staff for the level of care and support they provide to children and their families.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Safer recruitment processes have now improved in the home, and all staff receive an appropriate induction. This ensures that children are supported by staff with appropriate skills and experience and that children are not at risk of harm from the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff morale is good. The team of staff are passionate about providing high-quality care and are motivated. Staff find the manager personable and approachable. They say that they benefit from her ongoing support, which improves outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s location risk assessment is detailed and contains up-to-date information regarding crime in the local area. Leaders and managers consider the needs of new children moving into the home. Staff consider how children will be safeguarded in the locality to reduce potential risks.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers need to ensure that the recommendations from the fire risk assessment are implemented in a timely way. This will ensure that children are in a safe environment where any fire risks are kept to a minimum. Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that fire risk assessment requirements are met. Additionally, shower heads must be regularly cleaned to prevent the risk of legionella. Leaders and managers must request copies of safety compliance documents from contractors to ensure that work carried out meets safety standards. 30 May 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff performance appraisals consider the views of children and professionals who have worked with the staff member. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 60, paragraph 13.5)  The registered person should ensure that children receive support from an independent advocate where this may be required. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 4.14) Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 7

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2636743 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Family First Care Services Limited

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Inspector

Angela Reid, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2636743 9 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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