Children's home run by Lavender Grove Cares Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 1 Registered provider: Lavender Grove Cares

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to three children aged between five and 18 with complex social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/04/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/06/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 27/10/2021 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home. Three children have moved into the home and three have moved out. Two children experienced unplanned endings and three children moved out in a planned way. These moves included independent living, foster care, and a child moving to live with extended family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place a high level of importance on education. One child has been out of education since moving to the home. He is now attending education two days a week with a focus on mathematics, English and life skills. Staff support the child to get to school and compliment his educational achievements. This reflects the huge progress he has made from his starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Culture and diversity are celebrated at the home. Children and staff choose meals that support children’s heritage and family traditions. Staff are inclusive and encourage positive self-image, which has helped children to explore their gender identity. Children know that they are accepted for who they are.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to enjoy a wide range of activities that reflect their interests and hobbies. These include gym membership, and going to London to see the monuments and a major tourist attraction. When children are unsure what they want to do, staff have a list of local activities to choose from. This encourages children to try new experiences with staff, who understand that children may find new challenges daunting. One child said he liked going out with the staff because they are good company.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff make good use of the therapeutic support offered. A therapist attends team meetings to help the staff to explore and understand children’s previous trauma. Staff are encouraged to use curiosity when they talk to children. The staff reflect when they talk about emotions and behaviour with the children. This helps the children to react positively because they know that staff are listening to them and showing empathy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Incidents of bullying have previously occurred and have reduced. The staff are swift to respond to these using key-worker sessions and reflective conversations to address the behaviours. Children are encouraged to consider how their actions impact on others.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff record activities and day-to-day events that children are involved in. However, there are no records for the children to take with them when they leave that capture their experiences at the home. This does not provide children with the opportunity to look back on their time living at the home.

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

The home exudes a warm, calm environment. Staff are very good at supporting the children and model appropriate behaviours and reinforce boundaries. When children are Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 4 upset, staff know how to talk to them and assist them to explore their feelings. Children will look to staff to help them when they are distressed.

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

When missing-from-home incidents occur, staff understand and implement the missing- from-care protocol appropriately. Staff are diligent in following children and providing care that helps to keep them safe. Staff know why children go missing and keep in contact with them. Staff have honest discussions with children about why they need to safeguard them and the risks associated with their behaviour. When children return home, staff welcome them and make them feel safe. Return home interviews are regularly provided by social workers.

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

Staff know how to risk assess dynamically, using their knowledge of the child and the child’s risk assessments. All of the staff understand the child’s risk reduction strategies and are confident in applying these. Risk assessments are updated following safeguarding incidents.

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

Physical interventions are rarely used. When they are, they are appropriate and proportionate. Staff have had additional training to support effective recording and the manager provides oversight and reflection following each incident.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a new management team at the home. The manager is currently working towards his level 5 management qualification. He is highly experienced in working with children but relatively new to the role. In a short time, he has developed very good relationships with the children, who seek him out to spend time with him. He role models positive values to the children and the staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders have developed new monitoring systems that support an improved audit process. Managers are assigned documents to review to ensure that responses to safeguarding incidents are undertaken in a timely manner. Senior managers provide additional oversight. Management meetings identify patterns and trends in behaviours, enabling gaps in staff training to be easily resolved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

New staff enjoy their induction period. They have time to learn the home’s processes and consolidate these. They work alongside more experienced staff and this helps them to learn the skills needed to work confidently with the children. Staff who have worked through induction look forward to starting the level 4 qualification. All of the staff receive performance reviews.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff talk positively about their supervision sessions. They value the time set aside to explore their roles, discuss training and reflect. Staff know that the manager supports them. Staff are confident in how to use the whistle-blowing procedure. They discuss the policy in their induction period and in team meetings. Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 5 Leaders and managers support children and their families to maintain strong relationships. If children need emotional support to do this, staff help them to recognise their emotional responses.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Partner agencies are positive about the communication from leaders. A social worker who recently moved a child to the home said: ‘Robust risk assessment and safety planning, which has been followed by all staff, has led to fewer incidents.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 6

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. Children and their parents should be supported to understand the nature of records kept by the home and how to access them. Staff should understand their important role in encouraging the child to reflect on and understand their history, according to their age and understanding. Staff should keep and encourage children to keep appropriate memorabilia of the time spent living at the home and help them record significant life events. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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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: 2569520 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Lavender Grove Cares

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Gothic Cottage, Moreton Road, Ongar CM5 0EZ

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Inspector

Trudy Potter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2569520 8 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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