Children's Home run by Fonjock's Social Work Practice Limited in Buckinghamshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 1 Registered provider: Fonjock’s Social Work Practice Limited

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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 home is owned and run by a private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to three children, who may experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 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

Date of last inspection: 16 January 2024

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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: 2585102 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/01/2024 Full Good 24/05/2022 Full Good 02/03/2022 Interim Declined in effectiveness 10/08/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with staff, who know them well. Staff support the children and offer them unconditional care and acceptance. This approach reassures children that staff are there for them, even when challenging situations occur.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are listened to, and their views are valued. Children’s meetings provide a space for children to choose weekly activities and daily meals. Children are taken out to their chosen activities. One child commented about how she enjoyed going on the rides at a theme park.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are building positive relationships with new staff in the home. Staff are consistent in promoting sit-down meals for children to engage in. Nurturing interactions are natural in the home. For example, one child gave a staff member a hug before she left for an activity. This demonstrates how comfortable levels of affection are expressed in the home between children and staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are free to express themselves throughout the home, and their personal belongings are not limited to their bedrooms. Children are relaxed in their home environment and play their musical instruments and apply beauty products throughout communal areas in the home. Children’s bedrooms reflect their individuality and personality. However, the internal appearance of the home does not fully reflect an inviting and homely environment. This is due to the lack of attention given to internal areas of the home. This is not conducive to a nurturing and cosy environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are not currently attending school. However, both children have expressed an interest in attending schools in the area, and applications have been made. Staff do all they can to support and encourage the children back into education. There is a plan in place to fully support one child with their reintroduction back into school. The education lead for the home has been proactive in setting accredited units for children to work on. Children have also made progress with their independent living skills, such as cleaning, shopping, and cooking.

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

Staff build on their relationships with children by spending time with them. This enables their relationships to be built on trust and reassurance. Children are supported to learn from their behaviour and are given time to reflect and restore through the use of consequences that are appropriate and proportionate.

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

Staff are proactive in responding to children who go missing from the home. There has been a reduction of missing episodes for one child since moving to the home. When children go missing, staff work with appropriate professionals to ensure the children’s Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 4 safety. Return-home interviews are completed and direct work is carried out with children around making positive choices.

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

Staff have strong links with the local police community support worker to support children in understanding risks around online safety. However, there are areas in practice that could be improved to keep children safe online, especially around the monitoring of what children view on the internet. This is because staff lack training around recognising and understanding present online dangers. Leaders identified and commissioned training in this area during the inspection.

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

When allegations occur, these are managed well to ensure that children are listened to. However, Ofsted was not notified of an allegation that was made. This meant that Ofsted did not have full oversight of the situation or the actions that were taken at the time.

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

Good recruitment practices are in place. This ensures that only appropriately vetted individuals work at the home and provide care for children. Managers and staff are aware of their responsibilities to ensure that effective health and safety checks are completed, and processes are in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has positive relationships with children and understands their needs well. The registered manager feels well supported by the responsible individual and other leaders in the organisation. She is enthusiastic about her role and is committed to learning and developing the home. The registered manager knows the strengths and weaknesses of the home and takes on board any actions that have been identified to enhance and improve areas in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers model good practice and help to ensure that there is a shared ethos and children are cared for consistently in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Staff feel positive about the support provided by the registered manager and the wider management team. The responsible individual and operational managers are visible in the home, and this enables them to provide meaningful support to the manager. The individual skills and abilities of staff are valued. One staff member, who is a qualified social worker, said, ‘Support has been provided to me and the other social workers in the wider organisation so our skills can be used.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive effective supervision from the management team. Supervision sessions are reflective and relevant to what is happening for children. The management team has completed supervision training to further assist them in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager and staff work well with external professionals and feedback from them is positive. For instance, one social worker described the staff as being ‘incredible and couldn’t do any more for [name of child]’. Communication was also praised by a child’s family member and a social worker. Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 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, 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 notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 29 June 2024

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that there are effective arrangements in place in relation to online safety. 29 June 2024

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the inside of the premises is kept to a good standard and is well maintained. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 6

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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: 2585102 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Fonjock’s Social Work Practice Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Orchard House, 1 Old Convent Orchard, Bury St. Edmunds IP33 3PQ

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Inspector

Karen Flanagan de Martinez, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2585102 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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