Children's home run by Meadows Care Limited in Rochdale

Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 1 SC066560 Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately operated and provides care for up to three children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider operates a school on the same site. The inspector only inspected the social care setting on this site.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there were three children living in the home.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/04/2023 Full Good 26/04/2022 Full Good 01/02/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 12/09/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved into the home and one child has returned to live with their family. Children have been supported in these moves to ensure they settle well into their new living arrangements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles. They are helped to improve their health by getting the vaccinations they need, taking their prescribed medication as required and attending healthcare appointments. Children take part in sports and outdoor games. This keeps them active and contributes to their mental well-being. A wide variety of nourishing and fresh food is provided. Children are encouraged to cook for themselves, which gives them an interest in maintaining a healthy diet.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from having open access to the in-house therapist, who also supports staff in delivering therapeutic parenting and support. Children are offered the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations and focused therapeutic intervention. This not only improves their emotional well-being, but also helps them to develop trusting relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All the children are engaged in some form of learning. Children are in school or college or have alternative arrangements. In all cases, the manager and staff work closely with education providers to support children to make the best of their educational opportunities and to fulfil their aspirations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are involved in decisions made about their care. For example, one child asked for a change to be made to their behaviour management strategy. This was agreed and successfully implemented. This shows that children’s views are understood and acted on by staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s cultural and religious beliefs are respected. Staff ensure that children can access their chosen places of worship if they choose to, and ensure that particular food, such as halal meat, is available in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with their family, should they so wish. The manager and staff are proactive in ensuring that parents are also supported. This ensures that family time is a positive experience for everyone.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children have pathway plans to help them prepare for a life of independence. All children are encouraged to take responsibility for and learn about some of the skills they will need in future, such as cooking and keeping their rooms tidy. Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 4

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

Children are safeguarded because staff are alert to ongoing and emerging risks that may compromise children’s safety and well-being. For example, when one child’s emotional well-being was of concern, a ‘low-mood plan’ was put in place and staff vigilance was increased until that concern diminished.

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

Risk-taking behaviours are reviewed frequently in the light of new behaviours or situations. Staff successfully balance this with children’s needs as they grow older for greater independence and autonomy. Missing-from-home incidents are rare, and the need for staff to hold children to manage their behaviour has greatly reduced.

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

Children are supported by staff to manage their emotions and behaviour, and incidents of challenging behaviour are reducing. Staff draw on their training, experience and expertise to understand the cause of children’s frustrations, anger and anxieties. Based on principles of therapeutic parenting, staff implement a positive behaviour management style. On the rare occasions when these interventions are ineffective, holds are proportionate and time limited.

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

Safer recruitment processes are effective. Children are protected because only those people who are thoroughly vetted and deemed suitable to work with vulnerable individuals are employed at the home. This vigilance continues throughout their employment at the home and, when necessary, the provider has taken swift action to dismiss staff who may pose a risk to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children benefit from well-planned care that meets their needs effectively and contributes to change and improvement in their lives. This is because the manager ensures that the home meets their needs, keeps them safe and provides them with the support they need to ‘build a future’, as outlined in the home’s statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A strength of the home is the way in which the manager keeps children at the centre of professional focus. The manager has a thorough understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the professionals who are involved with the children living here. She promotes positive partnership working, enabling effective and respectful challenge when necessary. This means that children’s lives are improved, for example, by access to advocacy, increased resources and additional professional support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children make progress at the home because staff receive the support they need to fulfil their role to a high standard. Regular training, supervision and team meetings offer staff the opportunity to reflect on their practice and the running of the home, to develop team resilience and continue their professional development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent visitor gives children, their parents and professionals an honest and constructive overview of the quality of care offered by the home. The manager ensures that they use the independent visitor's input/recommendations effectively and that Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 5 action is taken to address any shortfalls in practice. Along with the manager’s own six- monthly review of practice, this contributes to the effective monitoring of the home’s operation and provides a firm basis for future improvement.

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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: SC066560 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Meadows Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Egerton House, Wardle Road, Rochdale, Lancashire OL12 9EN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Alison O’Donnell

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Inspector

Stella Henderson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC066560 7 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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