Children's Home run by A-Triangle Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 1 Registered provider: A-Triangle Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home. The home provides care for up to two children who may have experienced social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2023. This is the home’s first full inspection since registration in 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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is currently one child living in the home. They are supported by high staffing levels, in line with a court-directed order. Before moving to this home, the child had experienced lots of moves. The manager planned well for the child moving in and this has helped them settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide a stable and secure environment. Staff nurture and support the child to develop a sense of belonging. The child has made good progress while living in this home. The child said, ‘This is the best home I have lived in. I really like the staff, they look after me well. I score it 8.5 out of 10.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are good arrangements in place to meet the health needs of the child. The manager ensures that the child has access to specialist support services. Staff are supported by a clinical team which offers advice and guidance. This enables the staff to support the child’s emotional needs and well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Consultation with the child takes place daily to ensure they have a say in the things that are important to them. The child benefits from good-quality direct-work sessions. As a result, the child said that they feel listened to.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has made good progress in education from their starting point. The manager is working closely with external professionals to advocate on behalf of the child to ensure that they are able to access education opportunities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is encouraged to carry out appropriate tasks around the home to help develop their independence skills, such as doing the washing and cooking. This helps the child build their confidence and self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote the child’s interests and hobbies. The child recently joined a dance school. They enjoy a wide range of activities, such as having a session in a flight simulator, tackling indoor obstacle courses and going on trips to the seaside.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff are not aware of the local offer, which sets out the support available for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This is a missed opportunity to access additional resources for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are photos of the child and staff displayed throughout the home and the child’s bedroom is personalised. However, the office door and front door are damaged and some internal walls require repainting. This detracts from the welcoming environment that the manager and staff strive to provide. Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 3

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

The child said they feel safe in the home. The manager and staff assess the child’s vulnerabilities effectively. Risks to the child are well understood. The child’s risk management plan and safety plans are regularly reviewed and considered in line with the help that they need. The staff are confident in their use of whistle-blowing procedures and the function of safeguarding agencies.

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

There are good-quality behaviour support plans in place that use strategies based on a therapeutic approach. As a result, restraint practice is only used as a last resort. However, there have been two occasions when the police have been called to help manage the child’s behaviour. This is not only distressing for the child but could also lead to them being criminalised. The manager had already considered how to strengthen the skills of the staff team to manage behaviours.

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

When staff have used consequences, these are not always restorative in nature. This does not always help the child to reflect and learn from their behaviours.

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

There has been one occasion when the child went missing from home for a short period, despite being subject to a court-directed order. Staff took prompt action to inform all relevant agencies and search for the child. Records are detailed and the child had the opportunity to speak to an external professional. When room searches are carried out, the child is made aware, and these are appropriately recorded.

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

Recruitment procedures and practices are robust. All staff are checked and vetted before starting work. These checks ensure that only suitable adults are employed to work with the child.

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

The staff team provides the child with clear and consistent boundaries. This is a key strength of the team. Consequently, the child is learning about acceptable behaviours.

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

All staff are trained in online safety. This ensures that appropriate action is taken to keep the child safe online.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably qualified and experienced. Staff say she is incredibly supportive and has a professional and caring manner. They enjoy working in the home. Managers have clear expectations of staff and have developed a nurturing ethos in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Comprehensive training is offered to the staff to help them understand the needs of the child. This includes training in deprivation of liberty orders, missing-from-home incidents, autism and exploitation. The manager has accessed support from clinical professionals to develop the staff team, using therapeutic approaches. This ensures that staff have the knowledge to meet the child’s needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 4 The manager makes good use of internal and external monitoring systems to monitor and oversee the quality of care delivered in the home. She has recently completed a review of care report and reviewed the home’s workforce development plan. This helps the manager identify further areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager takes effective action when there are concerns about staff practice. Supervision is regular. Recently, leaders and managers have delivered reflective practice workshops to help staff develop their skills. Furthermore, team meetings provide a good forum for information-sharing and the manager uses quizzes and research to improve staff’s knowledge and skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from external professionals is positive. They all report that communication is excellent and the staff are very professional. They said a strength of the staff team is their child-centred approach. One professional said, ‘Staff go above and beyond to ensure that they can meet [name of child]’s needs. They also provide a good quality of care.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 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, 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children’.

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care the meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1) (2)(b)(vii)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the staff office door and front door are replaced. Additionally, the walls in the home would benefit from repainting to brighten up the home. 3 May 2024

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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. 3 May 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 6 (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the use of police to manage a child’s behaviour, and when consequences are used, these should be restorative in nature.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that managers and staff are aware of the local offer setting out the support available for children with SEND. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.4)

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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: 2741405 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: A-Triangle Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5 Crescent East, Hardhorn Road, Thornton- Cleveleys, Lancashire FY5 3LJ

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Inspector

Judith Birchall, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2741405 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 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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