Children's home run by Ambitious Children’s Homes Ltd

Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 1 Registered provider: Ambitious Children’s Homes Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned children’s home is registered to care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home was registered with Ofsted on 9 May 2023. The home is led by a registered manager.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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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: 28 November 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: 2716392 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/11/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff build positive relationships with children in their care, showing patience and warmth towards them. This helps children to settle into their home and make good progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and managers promote children’s education. Staff liaise with external professionals and advocate on behalf of the children in meetings and when they are waiting for school placements. Furthermore, when children are not attending school, they are encouraged and supported to engage in educational activities online and with a tutor. This helps children to remain engaged with learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff meet children’s health needs well. They support children to attend medical appointments and encourage them to engage with specialist services when needed, including child and adolescent mental health services. This helps children to understand that there is help available to help them to improve their well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s views and wishes are sought through key-work sessions and house meetings. This gives children opportunities to express their views about their day-to-day care and the home. Children know how to make a complaint and understand what actions are taken following a complaint. All complaints are investigated and addressed by the manager. This means that children feel listened to and are reassured that their views are respected.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand that it is important for children to maintain relationships with the people who are special to them. Staff support and arrange for children to spend quality time with their family when it is safe for them to do so.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to participate in activities in the home and the community. These include activities that help to develop their life skills and activities supporting their identity needs, such as attending places of worship. This helps children to learn more about their culture and identity and develop a positive self-image.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

In contrast to the warm care children receive, the home environment could be improved. Children’s bedrooms are not personalised and a sofa in one of the seating areas is damaged. This detracts from the homely environment.

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

Staff understand children’s needs. They work well with professionals to share information and consider known potential risks. Consequently, children are protected from harm.

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

Children are supported to make positive changes to their behaviour. Staff use rewards and incentives to encourage children to make decisions that promote their well-being Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 4 and social development. Consequences are infrequent and rarely used. When needed, staff make sure these are appropriate and that children understand why they have been put in place. As a result, children accept that they are used fairly.

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

Children have comprehensive plans and risk assessments. This helps staff to understand and respond well to risks. Children’s views are considered by staff, particularly when they are planning for children’s care and safety. Staff use de-escalation techniques effectively when working with children. This reduces the likelihood of situations needing more urgent interventions.

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

Incident reports are detailed and subsequent conversations with children are managed well. There has only been one use of restraint since the last inspection. However, the manager and staff did not recognise this as a restraint, so it was not recorded appropriately. This oversight makes for a shortfall in the accuracy of records and in reviewing effective behaviour management plans for the child.

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

Staff follow children’s plans when they go missing from the home. They try to stay in contact with children and encourage them to return home safely. Staff have formal and informal discussions with children around the risks of going missing.

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

Staff support children to understand how to keep themselves safe. They supported a child to develop healthy relationships, improve their boundaries and to stay safe online.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has a clear vision for the home and is aware of the strengths and areas for improvement. They identify learning and themes from previous incidents to help staff learning and achieve better outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager carefully considers the needs of children moving into the home. This is to ensure that staff can keep each child safe and promote their well-being. As a result, children settle well in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good knowledge of each child’s needs and works well with external professionals to promote positive outcomes for children. For example, one child has complex support needs that may pose a risk to themselves and others. The manager worked with the child’s social worker and education professionals to ensure a multi- agency support plan was in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular and effective supervision. They feel confident to approach leaders and managers for support and advice. The manager is keen to promote the development of each staff member and to offer staff opportunities for career progression. This has aided staff learning and helped with retention. As a result, children have positive relationships with a consistent team of experienced staff. Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 5 Staff undertake training to improve their skills and to deliver better care to children. However, there was a gap in staff’s understanding of the support needs of an asylum- seeking child. Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff understand that restraint also includes restricting a child’s liberty of movement. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 47, paragraph 9.42)  The registered person should ensure that staff gain skills to enable them to understand and meet the needs of the children in their care and support each child to achieve their potential. In particular, this relates to ensuring that staff have access to training to help them to support unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.05)  The registered person should ensure that children are provided with a nurturing and homely environment. In particular, this relates to ensuring that children’s bedrooms are personalised and any damage in the home is addressed without delay. (‘Guide to

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Recommendations

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: 2716392 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Ambitious Children’s Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 111, First Floor, Radial House, 3-5 Ripple Road, Barking IG11 7NP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Muhammad Ishtiaq

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Inspectors

Aneta Wasilewska, Social Care Inspector Nurnahar Bhuniya, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2716392 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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

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