Children's Home run by Nelbro Group Ltd in Brighton and Hove

Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 1 Registered provider: Nelbro Group Ltd

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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 and can provide care for up to three children with social, behavioural, and emotional difficulties. There were three children living at the home at the time of the inspection. A new manager was appointed in January 2024 and has submitted their application to register with Ofsted.

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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: 19 September 2023

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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: 2661371 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/09/2023 Full Good 04/05/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The atmosphere in this home is peaceful and the physical environment is safe and well maintained. The use of space has been carefully considered to ensure that there are inviting communal spaces for children to socialise and relax in. The dining room is a central point for staff and children to spend time together, chat, cook, and celebrate. The garden is currently awaiting renovation. One of the children has a creative vision and plans to lead this work.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand children well and support them to achieve and flourish. Staff actively promote and model a culture of inclusivity that helps children to freely express themselves and feel safe to explore their identities, sexuality, cultural heritage, and interests.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are consulted regularly, and their views are meaningfully considered when agreeing activities, determining menu choices, and addressing any social dynamics that children experience within the home. However, the feedback received from children and stakeholders is not clearly considered within the formal quality of care review that is undertaken by the manager.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have some varied and interesting experiences that are suited to their individual nature. They spend quality time with adults and have the opportunity to develop relationships with other children outside of the home. A holiday is being planned for the household and regular events are organised by staff, who put a high level of thought and consideration into making them fun experiences for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is promoted by staff to ensure that children can maintain effective links with those who are special to them. Family members are positive about the staff’s communication and the efforts that they make to ensure that children regularly see their loved ones.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

A committed staff team nurtures children’s independence skills and helps to prepare them for moving on from the home. Staff have advocated for better outcomes and planning for one child, who is leaving the home soon. They have supported this child to visit their new residence and enabled them to have a better understanding of the domestic skills required to navigate life as an adult. Children demonstrate skill and pride in their independence skills, including their ability to contribute to their own self-care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to understand the importance of maintaining their health and hygiene. Targeted key-work sessions explore issues relating to healthy eating, self-care, oral hygiene, and managing more-complex health conditions. When necessary, staff liaise with external specialists and enable children to better understand and manage their conditions with increasing levels of independence. Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 4

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

Over the course of the reporting period, the home has had some challenges. However, there has been a period of reflection, and improvements have been made that are beginning to embed. For example, there has been an overhaul of medication recording and auditing processes following learning from a number of recording and storage inaccuracies. The home has also welcomed new staff to join the team and there have been lessons learned from challenging incidents that have informed the support and guidance given to staff within their roles.

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

There is adequate staffing to keep children safe and provide them with good-quality care. The provider does not use staff who are employed through an agency, so children benefit from a consistent and familiar staff group.

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

There have been no incidents of physical intervention since the last inspection. Staff have good relationships with children and use techniques to de-escalate situations that are based on their knowledge of the individual child.

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

One child does go missing at times. Due to effective intervention and partnership working, it has been possible to reduce the frequency of these incidents. There are robust processes in place for staff to follow when children go missing. Children are taught about the potential risks to them, during regular key-work sessions, and risk assessments are of a very high quality, with clear instructions for staff about how to respond. Risks are further reduced by effective liaison with other professionals. Responses to children upon their return are nurturing and explorative.

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

When safeguarding incidents arise, staff and managers respond effectively. They document and track incidents clearly and work effectively with other professionals, including the designated officer in the local authority and the police to address concerns promptly.

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

Staff demonstrate a good knowledge of the concerns and risks around child sexual exploitation. They address relevant topics sensitively and candidly in key-working sessions with children. However, there are times when the language used to describe exploitation in children’s written records is not appropriate and could lead children to feel responsible for their experiences should they read their records in the future.

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

There has been one allegation and one complaint since the last inspection. On both occasions, the provider ensured that policies and procedures were followed robustly and that the children received a personalised and satisfactory response.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The provider has met the recommendations from the previous inspection. The new manager is readily supported by senior leaders and has received positive feedback from staff and external professionals, one of whom described the manager as ‘warm and understanding’. Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 5 Annual appraisals for staff and the manager have been undertaken recently and objectives set for each member of the team. The quality of assessment and review in appraisals is good, but the targets do not always reflect a clear plan to build on staff's skills and areas for development. Feedback from children and other parties is also not evident in appraisals, and informal learning is not always captured. This has not had a direct impact on children. However, it could affect staff members’ understanding of their development needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children's needs are explored during regular and structured supervision sessions. Staff also benefit from reflective supervision with an independent consultant, where they feel able to share their concerns. This allows them to analyse and reflect on children's behaviours and needs, and on their own practice to ensure that they can provide attuned care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Oversight and monitoring systems have been reviewed in recent months and the changes to recording are now well embedded. These checks and balances have led to greater definition of roles in the home and a clearer structure for staff. Consequently, children receive more-targeted responses from staff and there is less duplication of work. The responsible individual has good oversight of the home and a new independent visitor offers effective support and challenge. Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 6

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Recommendations

 The manager should ensure that, where there are concerns that a child is experiencing extra-familial harm, all the needs and vulnerabilities of the child are considered. They should also ensure that the language used within records clearly reflects the nature of the harm and/or exploitation. ('Working Together', page 67, paragraph 195)

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Recommendations

 The manager should ensure that children’s and stakeholders' feedback is used to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted on. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 22, paragraph 4.11)

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Recommendations

 The manager should ensure that all staff have an annual appraisal, which should take into account the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home's care. Objectives and goals should be underpinned with a clear plan and enable staff to reflect on and record their continued professional development. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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: 2661371 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Nebro, Unit D, 31-33 High Street, Carshalton SM5 3AX

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Inspector

Tash Williams, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2661371 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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