Children's Home run by Right-Trak Limited in Newcastle upon Tyne

Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 1 SC394909 Registered provider: Right-Trak 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

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2024.

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Information about this children’s home

There were three children 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

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: SC394909 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/08/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 29/11/2022 Full Good 27/09/2021 Full Good 17/12/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are building good relationships with the staff. Children are relaxed in staff’s company and seek them out during the day. Professionals say that the strong relationships between staff and the children are contributing greatly to the progress children are making in their lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two of the children attend school full time and are making good academic progress. One child has been supported to secure employment through an apprenticeship which includes on-the-job training. Children can also participate in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme. Staff encourage and celebrate such achievements and support each child to be proud of their success.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to eat a varied and nutritious diet and live a healthy lifestyle. This includes ensuring that children eat their vegetables and take part in activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are supported to develop the skills they need to live as adults. This is undertaken on a gradual and natural basis depending on their age and ability. As each child progresses, they take more responsibility for their own care. This allows children to develop confidence in their ability to care for themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide children with a range of opportunities to share their views. Children share their wishes and feelings through one-to-one ‘Chatterbox’ sessions and general conversations around the dinner table. Staff let children know when their views have brought about change in the home. This helps children to feel that their opinions are valued and that they have a say in what happened in their home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff capture important memories and information about the children in ‘Journey in Progress’ files. These provide regular monthly updates for each child, recording the progress they are making in all areas of their lives. This also provides a permanent record of the children’s experiences and the memories they make while living in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have their own bedrooms that they have decorated to their own taste and personalise with their belongings and photos. The home is undergoing an extensive redecoration programme. This includes fresh paint, new sofas and soft furnishings to make the home look and feel warm and homely.

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

Staff understand the children’s individual risks and work in line with their risk assessments and plans, which are updated regularly. Staff undertake discussions Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 4 with the children to help them to see and understand the things around them that can harm them. Staff revisit conversations and previous learning with children to ensure they are processing and understanding how to make safe decisions .

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

Children know the boundaries staff have put in place and accept them. This has helped children to understand that staff make decisions to keep them safer. Consequently, children’s behaviour has improved, and they are learning how to better manage their emotions.

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

Staff understand their responsibilities when a child goes missing from home. Staff search for the child and attempt to keep in contact with them. The manager and staff evaluate the effectiveness of their response to children who are missing from home and use the lessons they learn to develop future plans. Consequently, there has been a reduction in the number of times children have been missing from home.

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

Staff are vigilant for the signs that a child may be at risk of exploitation in the community. Children participate in educational sessions with staff to learn about the risks related to exploitation. This helps them to make better decisions and to keep themselves safer.

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

The manager ensures that new staff are subject to a robust recruitment process and that appropriate checks are completed. This reduces the risk of unsuitable people working in the home.

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

Staff do not always record the consequences imposed on children in response to negative behaviour. This means that the manager does not have the opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of these measures in helping children to improve their behaviour. This lack of management oversight prevents scrutiny of the actions taken by staff to manage the behaviour of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is run by a dedicated registered manager who is supported by her deputy. Members of the leadership team have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development and have plans in place to address shortfalls. Staff talk positively about the support provided by the manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular individual supervision and attend team meetings. The manager uses these opportunities to address any training or development needs in the staff team. Additional group supervision with an in-house psychologist provides more in- depth discussions about each child’s needs to ensure staff are working consistently in line with children’s plans.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff understand and use the whistle-blowing procedures when they have concerns about the practice or behaviour of staff. The manager takes these concerns seriously and completes a thorough investigation. The relevant people are informed, ensuring Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 5 that the safety and well-being of children are central to any agreed actions or decisions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Not all documents are present on children’s files. The manager pursues missing documentation with the social worker. However, this is not escalated further if they are not received. This means that the most up-to-date local authority care plans are not available to staff and do not inform the home’s own care plans. Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should evidence what they have done to achieve engagement, including any actions taken to escalate concerns. In particular, that the registered person should continue to escalate concerns when the required paperwork is not received from the local authority. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.3)  The registered person should ensure that all incidents of control, discipline and restraint are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair and the principles as set out in 9.35 are respected. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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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: SC394909 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Winovation, Houghton’s Yard, Shields Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE6 2YP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Melanie Spriddell

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Inspector

Lisa Gordon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC394909 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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Inspector

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