Children's Home run by Crossway Services Limited in St Helens

Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 1 SC068206 Registered provider: Crossway Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is one of several homes owned by a private provider. It provides care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

One child was living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The post for a registered manager has been vacant since 30 April 2024.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/07/2023 Full Good 08/03/2023 Full Good 04/05/2022 Full Inadequate 01/02/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 3

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improvement to be good

The child living in the home has been supported to form meaningful relationships with staff. Since the last inspection, one child has left the home and successfully returned to the care of their parents, and one child has moved into the home. However, due to shortfalls in the leadership and management of the home, children’s experiences are not always positive, and their vulnerabilities and risks are not well understood.

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improvement to be good

The home is not maintained to a good standard. Areas of the home, including the playroom, stairs and banister, have damaged paintwork and the bathroom floor, walls and door are in need of repair. This is something that the responsible individual is aware of but has not addressed in a timely manner. This does not provide a homely environment for the child or support them to develop a sense of belonging in the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff support the child to attend health appointments, including optician and dental appointments and medication reviews. However, staff are not promoting or supporting the child to access a healthy, balanced diet and the child’s diet often contains high levels of sugar. This is something that managers are now taking action to address.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff have supported the child to maintain relationships with members of their family. In line with their plans, the child’s requests to see their family members have been listened to and staff take the child to see their family members who live a significant distance away from the home. This ensures that the child maintains positive relationships with the people who are important to them.

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improvement to be good

The child is engaging in full-time education. There are clear routines in place, which the child responds well to. When the child needed to move schools due to relocating to the home, staff ensured that they worked closely with education professionals to support the child and ensure that their educational needs are being met.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide opportunities for the child to pursue their interests, such as bike riding and chess, as well as providing opportunities for new experiences. Staff support the child to see their friends in the local community with appropriate supervision. This enables the child to develop essential social skills and build their self-esteem.

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk plans do not contain information about all children’s known risks or include clear guidance or strategies for staff to follow to keep children safe. Despite the child’s placing authority social worker requesting room searches to be carried out to identify potential risks to the child, these were not identified in the child’s risk plan and were not being carried out by staff. This does not ensure that the child is safeguarded effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 4 Staff know the child well and can recognise when they are becoming distressed. They work with the psychologist employed by the provider to develop strategies to support the child when they feel unsafe. However, managers and staff have not responded appropriately to the child’s behaviours and have called the police to manage the child’s behaviours on several occasions. This is not only distressing for the child but has the

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improvement to be good

potential for them to be criminalised due to staff not having the necessary skills to manage their behaviours.

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improvement to be good

Staff have completed mandatory training, including safeguarding. However, not all staff have completed training relating to ligature risk, despite this being identified as a risk for the child. This does not ensure that staff are equipped with the skills to meet the child’s identified needs.

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improvement to be good

Staff know how to respond if the child goes missing from the home. They are proactive in looking for the child and provide nurture and warmth when the child returns. Staff ensure that they hold conversations with the child to help them to understand the risks when they are missing from home. As a result, incidents of the child going missing from home are rare.

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improvement to be good

Oversight of incidents by leaders and managers is limited. They have not consistently carried out staff debriefs in line with regulation when the child has been held to keep them and others safe. This reduces opportunities for leaders and managers to ensure that children are cared for safely or to identify any learning to develop practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The post for a registered manager is currently vacant. Management responsibilities are now being carried out by the responsible individual and the manager of another home in the organisation. However, these arrangements for management oversight have not been communicated effectively to staff members and there is a lack of clarity about who is managing the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff supervision sessions and appraisals are not consistent in their quality. They lack appropriate reflection and challenge for staff. Minutes of several team meetings that have taken place since the last inspection could not be located. Consequently, staff feel unsupported and lack confidence in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Documents with management oversight do not clearly state the author of entry. This limits the accountability of staff and reduces management oversight of practice in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Systems to review the quality of the care provided to children are not robust. Managers do not identify shortfalls or address opportunities for learning in a timely manner. This reduces opportunities to continually improve the quality of care provided to the child. Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 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 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—

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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

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

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)(v)(vi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that all risks to the child are fully assessed and that staff have the guidance needed to reduce the risks. The registered person must ensure that actions are being taken by staff immediately and consistently to reduce any risks to the child. 27 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 27 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 6 promotes their welfare.

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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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that any interventions used by staff are effective and in line with the home’s ethos as outlined in the statement of purpose.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all staff have completed training that will reduce the risk to the child, in particular ligature training.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that there are robust systems of monitoring and reviewing in place to improve the quality of care for the child.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that there is consistent and effective management and leadership of the home in the absence of a registered manager.

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. 27 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v) and (iv)).

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that the child is provided with nutritious meals and supported to understand the benefits of eating a healthy, balanced diet.

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (b)(i) and (ii)). 27 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b) and (c)). 27 June 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 8 In particular, the registered person must ensure that staff’s recording of incidents is thorough and that the author of each entry is clearly stated.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home is decorated and furnished to a high standard throughout and that repairs to paintwork in the playroom, stairs and banister and damage to the bathroom floor, walls and door are repaired in a timely manner. (‘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: SC068206 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Crossway Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 The Calls, Leeds LS2 7JU

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Inspector

Sarah Gilbert, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC068206 10 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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