Children's home run by Meadows Care Limited in Rochdale

Inspection report for children’s home: SC064836 1 SC064836 Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. The home provides trauma-informed therapeutic care for up to three children.

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in 2005, and the manager registered in January 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

There were three children living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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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: 15 November 2022

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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: SC064836 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/11/2022 Full Good 15/03/2022 Full Good 01/05/2019 Full Good 24/07/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC064836 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported well by the manager and staff, who hold them in high regard. Children have positive relationships built on trust and affection with the staff who care for them. One child said, ‘Moving to [name of home] has changed my life; the staff are so supportive and lovely.’ Staff demonstrate a good knowledge and understanding of the children’s individual needs. This helps staff to meet the children’s needs well.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a relaxed atmosphere in the home. The children’s bedrooms are personalised and have plenty of storage. However, the home environment requires some repair work to be completed, including repainting the kitchen ceiling and making improvements to the shower room.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children access a range of activities, both inside and outside the home. Activities include playing football, laser quest and visiting beaches and museums. Children are encouraged to cook, bake and do their laundry. This helps children to develop their independence skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are in good health, and staff actively encourage and support them to attend health appointments. However, one child vapes in the grounds of the home, which does not help to promote children’s health and well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is good information-sharing between the staff and children’s education providers. Children’s education is promoted, and they have improved attainment and attendance. One education provider said, ‘Due to us working so well together we have now got to the stage where [name of child] feels ready to have a slow reintegration back to a mainstream school setting.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with people that are important to them. Staff maintain good communication with children’s families. One family member said, ‘[Name of staff] really pushes for and supports time with family.’ This demonstrates that children have a support network where they feel safe to maintain relationships with people that are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of supporting children to maintain and develop their cultural and religious beliefs. One family member said, ‘[Name of child] was worried about Ramadan, but staff have been supportive and made it comfortable for [name of child].’

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

Staff understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities and take time to talk to children and educate them about risk. This has contributed to a reduction in the number of Inspection report for children’s home: SC064836 4 missing-from-home incidents. Staff have a good understanding of the missing-from- home procedures.

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

Staff take the time to listen to children and help them understand their emotions. Positive recognition and praise outweigh negative consequences. The manager evaluates consequences, ensuring that they are proportionate and restorative. There have been no complaints since the last inspection.

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

There is good multi-agency working. A social worker said, ‘Staff are great at communicating.’ One education provider said, ‘[Name of staff] has meetings with myself and my team to share [name of child]’s developing needs.’

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

The manager and staff work closely with the in-house therapists. One of the therapists said, ‘[Name of manager is really attuned to the staff team and can notice trends and patterns and will look at ways to support staff if they have been more involved in complex situations.’

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

Staff are provided with regular mandatory training. The manager and staff complete training to ensure that they have the skills to support children’s individual needs. Training topics include safeguarding, first aid and ligature, therapeutic work and fire awareness. The induction for new staff is robust and thorough.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced and has recently completed a leadership and management qualification. The manager ensures that he is present in the home and accessible to staff and children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff speak about the children with warmth and enthusiasm. The manager advocates well for children in all aspects of their lives, including education and care planning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff members have regular supervision. Staff say that they feel supported by the manager. One staff member said, ‘The manager is a fantastic manager. He is consistent, hardworking and professional, and he supports us as a team and the children to a very high standard.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff members have regular team meetings as well as meetings with the in-house therapists. These provide opportunities for the staff to reflect on and develop their practice and ways to support the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Internal monitoring systems are in place; however, these are not fully used. This limits the scope to identify good practice and areas that need addressing or developing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The information in the location risk assessment is up to date. However, it does not include consultation from relevant people. Inspection report for children’s home: SC064836 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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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff encourage children to take a proactive role in looking after their day-to-day health and well-being, in particular around the use of vapes. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 33, paragraph 7.10)  The registered person should ensure that they make best use of information from internal monitoring to ensure continuous improvement. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should ensure that they review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home. When conducting the review, the registered person must ensure that information is up to date and consult, and consider the views of, each relevant person. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the fabric of the home is well maintained and welcoming, in particular that the shower room meets the same standards as the rest of the home and the kitchen ceiling is repainted. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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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: SC064836 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Meadows Care Ltd, Egerton House, Wardle Road, Rochdale, Lancashire OL12 9EN

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Inspector

Stacey Ilaboya, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC064836 7 regulates and inspects 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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Inspector

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