Children's Home run by Frances House Ltd in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 1 SC403462 Registered provider: Frances House Limited

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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 operated by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

It is registered to provide care for up to five children with social and emotional difficulties. Three children are currently living in this home.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is suitably experienced and has been in post since 22 September 2016.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account good

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Overall experiences and progress of

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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Overall experiences and progress of

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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Overall experiences and progress of

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

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Overall experiences and progress of

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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Overall experiences and progress of

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/05/2023 Full Good 19/04/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/04/2021 Full Good 10/12/2019 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with the adults that care for them. Staff remain in the home for a long time and provide children with continuity of care. Children feel supported by staff and able to share their worries and concerns with them. Staff know the children well and understand their progress. Staff build relationships of trust with children who struggle to form them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Not all children have a school or college place. Children that attend college do so regularly and are achieving in line with their peers. Staff support children who do not attend college to engage with employment support services and apply for colleges, training schemes and jobs. Staff liaise with local authorities and other professionals to identify appropriate school places for children who do not have one.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are being prepared for their future. Staff teach children skills for their adult life and support them to manage their own budgets. Staff offer opportunities for children to gain formal qualifications through the training that is also offered to staff, such as first aid. Leaders and managers review children’s progress regularly and adapt plans to ensure that they are meeting the needs of the individual children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have lots of opportunities to share their views. Staff meet with children regularly to gain their thoughts. The manager actions children’s suggestions, such as booking preferred activities or making changes to house rules and boundaries. Children feel listened to and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to see the people who are important to them. Staff develop and maintain positive relationships with children’s families and friends. Staff help children to rebuild relationships with people they have lost contact with.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children rarely have unplanned endings in the home. On the one occasion that this occurred, the decision was made in the best interests of the child. Staff worked with the placing authority and child to ensure that the child understood the reasons and the plan. Staff provided additional support to move the child to their new home to minimise any distress caused by the move.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The atmosphere in the home is relaxed and friendly. However, damaged items are not replaced promptly. Staff do not support children to keep their bedrooms tidy and clean. As a result, children do not have an environment that is consistently suitable for their needs. A requirement has been made in relation to this.

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

Risk assessments are detailed and updated regularly. They contain clear strategies for staff to follow. Staff have the required knowledge of safeguarding and children’s Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 4 individual plans to keep children safe. Staff deal with challenging circumstances appropriately with a focus on the children’s needs.

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

Staff support children to understand risks and how to keep themselves safe. Staff support children to engage with specialist professionals, such as drug and alcohol workers. Risks for children are reducing.

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

Some children regularly go missing from home. Staff understand the individual missing from home plans for each child and manage missing from home episodes effectively. Staff are creative and persistent when trying to locate missing children, or when gathering information about missing from home episodes. Staff use learning from previous occasions to inform and develop missing from home plans for children. Some children who previously went missing from home no longer do so.

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

Children receive formal consequences for their behaviour. However, these are measures aimed at reducing risk in response to safeguarding concerns. The manager evaluates consequences promptly and recognises when they are not positively impacting behaviour. The manager consulted with the children and made changes to the consequences they receive as a result. When not in response to safeguarding matters, staff offer restorative consequences to children. Children are learning about the impact of their behaviour on themselves and others.

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

Staff rarely hold children. When staff hold children, this is least restrictive and proportionate to the risk faced to the child. The manager and responsible individual review the holds to ensure that they are appropriate. The manager speaks with staff and children after each incident. However, children are not asked specifically about the physical measure used and their feelings about this. A requirement has been made in relation to this.

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

Staff search children’s rooms when they have a reason to do so. Children are aware of the circumstances that lead to room searches. When it is not possible to discuss with children beforehand, staff tell children they have been in their bedroom at the earliest opportunity. Staff protect children’s privacy and dignity.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and senior leaders have positive relationships with children. They know the children well and understand the progress they are making. The manager and deputy manager have worked at the home for a considerable period of time, which provides stability for staff and children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported by the manager and leaders. Staff find them approachable and value their ‘open-door’ policy. The manager does not use agency staff. Staffing is stable and provides consistency for children. The manager recognises when staff are dealing with challenging circumstances and considers staffing levels during these periods, to ensure that staff are supported to provide the best possible care to children. Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 5 The manager and leaders provide regular supervision to the staff. All staff that provide supervision to others have had training to do so. Staff practice is discussed in supervision. However, opportunities to reflect on their work and consider improvements are not always taken. A recommendation has been made in relation to this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff complete all planned training. The manager identifies and provides additional training that would support staff to meet the specific needs of the children they care for. Staff retain their learning and use this in their practice. Not all staff have completed their qualification in the required timescale. The manager has arranged for an alternative provider to deliver this learning. A requirement has been made in relation to this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager completes a robust assessment of children moving into the home to ensure that staff have the skills to meet their needs. When information provided by placing authorities is brief, the manager and deputy manager ensure that they meet with social workers, team managers and the child to ensure that they have the information to make accurate assessments. The manager has challenged a local authority when the information provided has not represented a child’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager uses a monthly monitoring tool to ensure that they have clear oversight of the operation of the home. The manager’s review of the quality of care evaluates the progress made by children and identifies areas of support they need.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An independent person visits the home monthly and makes recommendations to improve the service. Some visits have been delayed due to issues outside of the home’s control. The manager has made arrangements to ensure that visits are consistent. However, the recent reports lack external feedback and evaluation of practice. A recommendation has been made in relation to this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and leaders have strong relationships with external agencies. External professionals find the manager and staff team communicative, flexible and adaptive to the needs of the children. Managers and staff work effectively within multi-agency teams to ensure that children are supported and safe. Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, that damaged furniture or flooring is replaced promptly, and that staff support children to ensure that their bedrooms are kept clean and tidy. 5 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(c)) 5 June 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the 31 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 7 individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b))

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 8 of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  Any individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person must make a rigorous and impartial assessment of the home’s arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5)

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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 SC403462 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Frances House Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 73 Albert Road, Colne BB8 0BP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Pamela Forrester

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Inspector

Sarah Huntbatch, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home SC403462 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 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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