Children's home run by Children of the Mangrove Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 2552579 1 Registered provider: Children of The Mangrove 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 privately run children’s home provides care for up to four children. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in August 2023.

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Information about this children’s home

One child was living in 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: 7 February 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2552579 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/02/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 13/09/2022 Full Good 07/06/2022 Full Inadequate 07/07/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2552579 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is making real progress. The child’s parent said that ‘the home’s values and approach feel right,’ adding that their child has been ‘more settled here than anywhere else.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child enjoys positive and trusting relationships with staff. This is a strength of this home and is in line with the home’s therapeutic ethos and approach.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with the child’s professional network to ensure that the child receives individualised care and support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child enjoys a range of activities from playing football, going horse-riding, trips to the theatre to attending music concerts. Staff also use arts and crafts or music to support the child in being able to express themselves. Staff ensure that photos of the child’s achievements are proudly displayed throughout the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s wishes and feelings are respected. There are regular house meetings that offer the child a forum to share their views. The child knows how to raise a grumble or a complaint and is confident that the staff will take the necessary action if they raise a concern.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work closely with the child’s family to ensure that their time spent together is enjoyable. This helps the child to maintain important family relationships.

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

Staff are aware of the child’s vulnerabilities and their responsibilities for protecting them.

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

Staff are skilled at managing the child’s behaviour. Their approach is consistent with the home’s ethos of providing therapeutic care.

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

Managers and staff work proactively with the child’s social worker, advocate, health professionals and police when safeguarding concerns emerge. This ensures that information is shared and that an integrated approach is secured that promotes the child’s welfare and well-being.

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

Appropriate action is taken in response to incidents. This includes staff arranging a key work session after an incident to enable them to discuss their concerns with the child.

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

When the child goes missing from the home, staff take prompt action. Staff follow the child’s missing-from-care protocols and work closely with the police. Inspection report for children’s home: 2552579 4 Staff understand the child’s risk assessments. They make sure these assessments are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect any new emerging risks.

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

Allegations against members of staff or suspicion of harm are dealt with immediately by the senior managers and shared with the relevant agencies.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have an ambitious vision for the home and show enthusiasm and commitment in ensuring that the child receives a high standard of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professional feedback is positive. One professional said, ‘the staff are trying incredibly hard to support [name of child] to be successful, there have been challenges through the child’s placement however [name of children’s home] have displayed a motivation to support [name of child] through the difficult times.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that managers are approachable. They describe the team culture as being ‘open and inclusive.’ Staff receive regular supervision which provides them with opportunities to discuss the child’s progress, reflect on their practice and help to identify training needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Regular staff team meetings take place. These are child focused, informative and evaluative and give the staff the space to discuss ideas and make suggestions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have the support of the inhouse psychologist who facilitates reflective discussions fortnightly. This gives all members of staff an opportunity to reflect on their own responses and practice. This builds staff resilience and aids staff retention.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager receives regular supervision and has peer support with other managers throughout the organisation. The manager has effective monitoring tools that help to track the child’s progress and achievements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite attempts to recruit new members of staff, the home has become reliant on agency members of staff to cover shifts.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are some inconsistencies regarding the quality of some recording of key work sessions. There are some lovely examples of staff writing in a child friendly and sensitive manner. However, other records are more generalised and miss out the child’s voice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2552579 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the quality of the recordings of keywork sessions are consistently purposeful, and evaluative, so that they are helpful to a child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’ page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The use of external agency staff can be a positive choice to complement the skills and experiences of the permanent workforce. The use of agency staff should be carefully monitored and reviewed to ensure children receive continuity of care. The registered person should ensure that no more than half the staff on duty at any one time, by day or night at the home should be from an external agency. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’ page 54, paragraphs 10.16,10.17)

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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: 2552579 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Children of The Mangrove Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Chester House, Fulham Green, 81-83 Fulham High Street, London SW6 3JA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Knowlton Crichlow

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Inspector

Amanda Burrows, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2552579 7 regulates and inspects to 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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