Children's Home run by CF Support Services Limited in Essex

Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 1 Registered provider: CF Support Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to two children with emotional and social difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in January 2024 and is suitably qualified and experienced.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/04/2023 Full Good 15/06/2022 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has moved out since the last inspection. At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home and has been there for nearly a year. The staff are committed to supporting the child to achieve stability. The staff are preparing for another child to move in. This has been carefully considered with the needs of the child already living at the home in mind.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has made good progress at this home. Staff have helped the child to develop their self-esteem. Staff have set predictable routines for the child, which has helped the child to feel settled. Staff know the child very well and advocate for them strongly while enabling them to be at the forefront of decision-making. Staff regularly consult the child on all aspects of their care. They know the child’s likes and dislikes and continuously seek their feedback.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child to receive education that meets their needs. The management team has communicated persistently with other professionals and has challenged the placing authority regarding plans for the child’s education, especially when delays have occurred. Staff organise a creative and realistic home learning schedule aimed at meeting the child’s individual needs. This meant spending time outdoors and staying active in addition to the child receiving tutoring at a local library.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home benefits from the input of a psychotherapist, who undertakes group clinical supervision to help staff understand how to respond to children in a trauma-informed way. Staff are currently being trained in a therapeutic model designed to further enhance key-work sessions with children and supervisions with staff.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child with a weekly schedule of activities. Staff are creative and encourage the child to pursue individual interests. The child takes part in a weekly timed run, with staff encouraging them, in addition to going to the gym and generally staying active. The child enjoys cookery and regularly cooks with the staff. This has enabled the child to try a wide variety of dishes, enhancing their knowledge of food relating to different cultures. An external professional said. ‘The home has a warm environment and the child is encouraged to cook and bake, which they love.’

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, the home has undergone some internal decoration to brighten communal areas. However, some work is still needed to further enhance the living environment for children.

p.3

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

There have been no physical interventions for the child currently living at the home. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of de-escalation and use a trauma-informed approach. Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 4 There have been no episodes of the child going missing from care. Staff are confident with the steps needed to take if such an incident does occur.

p.3

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

Highly-detailed risk assessments are individualised to ensure that risks to the child and their specific vulnerabilities are well understood by the staff team. The use of a traffic light system enables the manager and deputy manager to regularly review the levels of risk in relation to specific behaviours. Good-quality support plans reflect the information obtained from placing authorities.

p.4

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

Staff demonstrate a good understanding of child sexual and criminal exploitation and the associated online and social media risks. The child is supported by staff to speak to friends online via their games console.

p.4

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

The manager has made a comprehensive assessment of risks in the local area of the home. Relationships with the community are positive. The team has developed a good working relationship with the children and young person’s police officer to ensure that information is shared about new or emerging risks in the area.

p.4

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

One incident that led to the child being at risk from falling was due to a delay in the maintenance staff refitting a window restrictor. In addition, staff failed to follow the manager’s instructions to ensure the child remained safe in their bedroom. The manager addressed this by continuing to escalate her concerns to the maintenance team and arranging a meeting with staff to address the concerns of leaving the window open.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is registered, qualified to the relevant level 5 qualification and experienced. She is supported by a competent deputy manager.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has met the three recommendations from the last inspection.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they benefit from a consistent leadership team and are positive about the manager. The manager leads the home and staff in a confident and supportive way. Staff feel supported, valued and respected. An advocate for the child said, ‘My interactions with the staff have all been effective and professional.’

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals and other agencies regard the manager as effective and efficient. This is because the manager has developed positive working relationships with other agencies that are involved in supporting children. The manager works openly and transparently with other professionals to ensure that the child receives the right support at the right time. The manager very confidently challenges other professionals or escalates concerns to ensure that the child’s needs are met.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Access to high-quality and purposeful training enables staff to develop a range of skills to confidently support the child’s complex needs. Training modules such as complex trauma, person-centred care and recording and reporting are offered. Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 5 The manager and deputy provide staff with regular, reflective and well-documented supervision sessions. The manager’s supervision is provided by an operational manager and covers several topics including development and training of staff.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Some language written in records is not child-friendly. In addition, some signs around the home and language used when speaking to children need to be improved. Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 6

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

take effective action when there is concern about a child’s welfare;

p.6

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;

p.6

Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)(b)(d))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff take effective action when directed and that window restrictors are replaced immediately when a risk is identified. 1 July 2024

p.6

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that records relating to children are written in child-friendly language and that language used when speaking to children and to describe children is appropriate. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 7

p.6

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: 2616993 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: CF Support Services Ltd

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 11 Three Rivers Business Centre, Felixstowe Road, Foxhall, Ipswich IP10 0BF

p.8

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Joanne Henderson

p.8

Inspectors

Emily Stevens, Social Care Inspector Nurnahar Bhuniya, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2616993 9 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.

p.8

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9