Children's Home run by Action for Children Services Ltd in Newcastle upon Tyne

Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 1 Registered provider: Action for Children

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and run by a children’s charity. It provides care for up to four children who have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

There were four children living in the home at the time of the inspection. They were all spoken to during 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/06/2023 Full Good 25/04/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warm and welcoming, with a high standard of furnishings throughout. The children’s bedrooms are personalised and decorated to a high standard. This sends a clear message that the children are valued and deserve to live in a nice environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to attend school and that they are prepared to learn. When their school is not meeting a child’s needs, the manager advocates strongly on their behalf to find a school that can meet their needs. This helps to ensure that children have the best possible opportunity to learn and make progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to be active and to eat a healthy diet. Staff support children to attend regular appointments and to access more specialist support when needed. Children are in good physical and psychological health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a wide range of activities, both collectively and individually, including hiking, swimming and going for walks. This provides children with the opportunity to try new things and contributes to them being healthy. For some children, visiting the dog and cat café gives them the opportunity to spend time with animals that they would otherwise be unable to. Children say they enjoy these activities and professionals comment on the range and extent of activities on offer.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a voice in their home. Staff take the time to listen to children’s views and gather them either in structured meetings and in general conversation. Children know who to speak to if they want to raise a complaint or if they need support. Staff will then speak up on their behalf and support them so their voice is heard. This shows children that their views, wishes and opinions are valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are able to spend time with family and friends. Staff support the arrangements, offering lifts and supervision to ensure that children keep in touch with people who are important to them. Where there may be risks associated with family members, staff will supervise those visits. This helps to ensure that children remain safe while maintaining those family bonds.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to learn the skills they need as they get older. This is done in a natural and family orientated way, helping with tasks around the house which are appropriate to their age and their stage of development.

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

The staff keep children’s care plans and risk assessments up to date. These are tailored to the individual child’s needs and risks. Risk assessments set out strategies for staff to employ to minimise risks to children effectively. Children say that they feel safe in their home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 4 Staff support children when they become angry or upset. At times, staff restrain children to prevent them from hurting themselves and others or causing damage to the home. The staff have undertaken appropriate training to equip them with safe techniques to best support the children. Staff keep accurate records of all restraints and they are overseen by the manager or another independent person. This helps to ensure that there is an evaluation of the measures used to ensure that practice is safe, effective and proportionate. The staff take part in a debrief following all incidents to reflect on their

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

use and consider what could be improved.

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

When children are vulnerable to self-harm, staff take action to ensure the child is safe. Incidents where children have hurt themselves are managed by staff, who seek appropriate medical attention when required. Staff work with children to ensure they are able to access the right support. They also work closely with a psychologist, who assists them in planning strategies and supporting the staff team. This helps to ensure that children are supported by staff who understand them well and can help to keep them safer.

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

When there are concerns about staff practice, the manager shares them with the appropriate professionals, including Ofsted. The manager also completes an internal investigation. The investigation considers all of the evidence and ensures that the protection of children is the primary focus. This helps to assure the manager that staff practice remains safe and that children are not placed at risk of harm.

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

Staff ensure that the building is secure at night. However, this includes locking a doors that are designated as fire exits. This could prevent children and staff from leaving the building safely in the event of a fire.

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

Children are aware of the rules and boundaries within the home and the consequences for their behaviours. When children’s actions or behaviours are not appropriate, the staff use consequences with the intention of supporting children to learn from their mistakes. However, not all consequences are restorative in nature and often include a financial penalty. This is not in keeping with the home’s therapeutic approach.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitably qualified and experienced manager who is dedicated to ensuring that the children receive good-quality care. An equally dedicated team also supports the manager. Staff speak positively about the manager and the way in which the home is run.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a robust process in place to ensure that the people who work with the children are fully checked and vetted. This safer recruitment process means that those who are employed are assessed as appropriate to work with children. New staff complete a thorough induction and probation period and undertake the training needed to give them the knowledge and skills to be able to care for the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 5 Team meetings take place monthly and they are well attended. This forum gives staff the opportunity to reflect on the impact that they have on the progress and experiences of children. It is also an opportunity to consider what is working well and what may need to improve. This helps staff to work as a cohesive team to meet the children’s needs consistently.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has systems in place to oversee the home. The manager understands the strengths and areas of development for the home and has plans in place to make improvements. However, the manager’s monitoring has not identified that a member of staff has not completed the required qualification within the appropriate timescales.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervision does not take place consistently in line with the organisation’s policy. There are gaps in the frequency of supervision, and some staff are not receiving regular sessions. This hinders the manager’s ability to maintain oversight of the training and development needs of the staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 6

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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(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

provide adequate means of escape from the home in the event of fire. (Regulation 24 (1)(b)) 1 August 2024

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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”);

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Requirement Due date

or 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. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)) 1 August 2024

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, that supervision takes place monthly in line with the organisation’s policy. 1 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 7

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves and others. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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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: 2641044 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Action for Children

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3 The Boulevard, Ascot Road, Watford WD18 8AG

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Inspector

Lisa Gordon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2641044 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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