Children's Home run by Cre8tiveCare Ltd in Brent

Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 1 Registered provider: Cre8tiveCare 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 privately run home provides care for up to three children with social and/or emotional difficulties. There were two children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and the manager registered with Ofsted in October 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: 2727492 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This is a new home which is well presented and has a family-like atmosphere. The children who have recently moved in have been warmly welcomed. This has helped them to feel a sense of belonging, and they are settling in the home and building relationships with the staff. While the staff team is relatively new to the home, a number of the staff have experience of supporting children with complex needs and are confident in their skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and managers are passionate about caring for children and ensuring good outcomes for them. Their enthusiasm filters down to the staff team, who are skilled at building relationships with children. The children like the manager and staff. They interact well with them and express their likes and dislikes. One child said that staff treated her well when she had tested the boundaries, and she could tell they really cared about her.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to engage in a wide range of activities, although they generally prefer home-based activities. Staff are attuned to the children’s interests. While staff encourage children to expand their social horizons, they are sensitive to the children’s wishes and feelings and introduce new activities at a pace which is suitable for them. They support children to express their personalities and do things which are of interest to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager works closely with teachers and the virtual school to ensure that children’s educational needs are met. As a result, children who have not had positive experiences of education are now engaging in educational pursuits in and out of school, helping them to slowly build their confidence in their learning abilities. Staff know and understand how previously poor experiences at school may affect children’s behaviour and engagement. They advocate well for children who are experiencing these challenges.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff prioritise children’s health needs and encourage them to attend all health appointments. When some children choose not to attend health appointments, staff help them understand why looking after their health is important. Children with specific health needs are helped to follow healthy diets which support their well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to learn how to cook and to do their own laundry. This helps children develop important life skills and to plan for the future. Children enjoy cooking and are supported well in this activity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have made good steady progress since being at the home, and they are happy living at the home. Social workers report that their children are well cared for and that staff listen to and respond to any concerns children may have. However, care planning could be improved by ensuring children are more involved in the process. Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 3

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

Staff safeguard children well and are good at building relationships with them. This has led to a reduction in episodes of children going missing. When children go missing, staff keep in touch with them and encourage them to return home. Children have the confidence to tell staff where they are and to ask for help to return home when required. Most incidents of going missing are absences beyond children’s curfew times, and this is addressed appropriately with children. Staff alert partner agencies and families, although they do not consistently request return home interviews.

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

Key-work sessions are well planned and tailored to children’s needs. Children engage well in the sessions, which have been instrumental in helping them understand how to protect themselves online and in the community, and how to build positive relationships which do not place them at risk of harm. Children are involved in setting achievable targets and they are rewarded for the progress they make.

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

Risk assessments are generally robust and detailed and address concerns for children. Staff know about children’s vulnerabilities and they are effective in safeguarding them. Safety plans are appropriate and include clear strategies to mitigate risks to children. This includes monitoring online activity and ensuring children have regular welfare checks when they are out in the community. However, while staff understand safety plans for the children, they are not consistently recording all known risks to ensure this information is clear for new members of staff, for example.

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

Behaviour support plans are in place, but they are not sufficiently individualised. Not enough attention is being given to the development of these plans and to ensure children are involved in the process. This means plans are not sufficiently focused on individual children's needs.

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

Impact assessments completed by managers fully evaluate any risks for children moving into the home, including how the behaviours of other children will affect them. This supports a settled, calm environment where children are able to interact well with each other. However, the local area risk assessment is not sufficiently developed with strategies to mitigate any risks for children in the vicinity of the home. While the leadership team knows the area well, new staff in particular would benefit from having more information available to them about the area and how they can mitigate risks for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers know the children well. They advocate for them effectively and liaise with partner agencies to ensure their needs are met. This is a key strength of this home. The registered manager is experienced, and children benefit from his approachability and warmth, and staff follow this example. This creates a family atmosphere in the home and promotes children’s stability and sense of belonging. Staff like working in the home and feel well supported by the manager. Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 4 Leaders and managers provide regular supervision for staff, with more frequent sessions for new staff to help them feel confident in supporting and building relationships with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has good support from leaders, ensuring the smooth running of the home. Recording systems are being changed to ensure that information about the children is accessible to staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Induction arrangements for new staff are detailed and the training they receive is specific to the needs of the children living in the home. Staff benefit from a comprehensive training programme and regular training updates, so are aware of new developments in practice. Leaders and managers ensure that both permanent and agency workers are well trained and equipped to develop good relationships with the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly. Children’s progress and safeguarding issues are discussed thoroughly and staff support each other in developing more effective interventions with the children. Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 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 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— that staff—

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that all staff fully understand their roles and responsibilities in protecting children from harm. Leaders and managers must ensure that all incidents and risks to children are thoroughly evaluated when drafting and updating risk assessments, and that staff have a clear understanding of the risk levels and strategies to manage identified risks. 30 June 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 6 The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard).

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Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1) (2))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must respond to feedback received from the police regarding the local area risks and ensure appropriate safety planning is in place to mitigate risks relating to the location of the children’s home. Leaders and managers must ensure safeguarding agencies are consulted when the local area risk assessment is updated. 30 June 2024

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2727492 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 10 Watermark Way, Foxholes Business Park, Hertford SG13 7TZ

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Inspector

Angela Reid, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2727492 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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