Children's Home run by Horizon Care and Education Group Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 1 Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group 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 home is part of a large private organisation. Staff provide 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 has been registered with Ofsted for this home since August 2022. He is working towards his level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were 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 requires improvement to be 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: 4 September 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: 2490729 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/09/2023 Full Good 15/06/2021 Full Good 10/03/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Three children were present during the inspection, two of whom were spoken to by the inspector.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good relationships with the adults who look after them. Staff understand the needs of the children and provide them with individualised care. Staff support one child to attend a boxing club regularly. Another child was able to meet with friends that they made on holiday with the help of staff. As a result of staff care, children feel that they belong.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work well with other professionals. One professional told the inspector that staff are welcoming and accommodating and this has helped one child to be ‘provided with stability’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are prepared for the next stage of their lives. Staff support children to develop their skills through regular discussions on topics such as budgeting, looking after their home environment and travelling independently to locations safely. As a result of the support of staff, two children are ready to move to foster care. The manager is a good champion for children, who also have external advocates. This allows their voices to be heard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to make progress with education. Staff have regular discussions with children regarding the importance of education. One child who has been out of education for a long time has been supported by staff to prepare for college interviews. Due to the support from staff, this child now has two college offers.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well understood by staff. Children’s health plans are kept up to date and staff keep up to date with changes. Staff support children to attend routine health appointments. As a result, children enjoy good health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is warm and welcoming. Children are encouraged by the manager and staff to choose the decor of the home. Children’s bedrooms are individualised to their taste.

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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. The manager and staff plan appropriate discussions with children to raise their awareness of the risks of being missing from care, substance misuse and bullying. Children are spoken to by staff following incidents. This helps the manager and staff understand the reasons for incidents and what needs to help children regulate their emotions. Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 4 The manager reviews complaints and allegations promptly. Children understand how to share concerns with staff and they can identify a safe person to speak to. The manager responds well when there are concerns about staff practice and ensures that appropriate actions are taken to address this.

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

Health and safety matters are monitored. Staff complete regular health and safety checks to keep the environment safe.

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

Staff respond well when children go missing from home. There are effective missing- from-home protocols in place that are regularly reviewed. Staff have a good knowledge of each child’s plan. On one occasion, a staff member’s prompt response and liaison with other professionals prevented a child from going missing. Children are spoken to following missing incidents to establish the reason for them being missing. However, the recording of missing incidents lacks clarity and detail in some areas.

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

Staff generally respond well to incidents. However, on one occasion staff were not confident to manage the child’s response and waited for the manager to return to the home to complete a room search when it was suspected drugs might be on the premises. This could have put children at risk of harm. The manager addressed this shortfall in practice promptly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

An aspirational registered manager leads the staff team. He is committed to children receiving a high-quality standard of care. The manager has a good understanding of development areas for the service and the team. A staff member said: ‘I find the manager very professional and supportive towards the staff team and the young people we work with.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The recruitment of new staff has improved since the previous inspection. Full recruitment checks are completed before staff start working in the home. The manager is now more assured that staff are safe to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Staff receive good-quality training designed with children’s needs in mind. The responsible individual and registered manager have recently produced workshops to support staff in areas where development is needed. This includes managing challenging behaviours, bullying, and roles and responsibilities. The manager supports staff to complete essential training promptly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Supervision frequency and quality have improved since the previous inspection. The manager ensures that staff are provided with regular one-to-one meetings. Managers invest in staff development and regularly check on the well-being of staff. As a result, staff enjoy their roles and are committed to providing good-quality care for children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 5 The registered manager is experienced. However, he is outside of the regulatory timescales for achieving the relevant qualification and the requirement from the last inspection to achieve his level 5 qualification has not been met.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

On the three occasions when the registered manager has put in place a consequence, the effectiveness of the measure of control has not been independently reviewed. Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 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

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)) 25 July 2024

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Requirement Due date

A person may only manage a children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

the person is of integrity and good character; 25 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 7 having regard to the size of the home, its statement of purpose, and the number and needs (including any needs arising from any disability) of the children—

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Requirement Due date

the person has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills to manage the home effectively and lead the care of children; and

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Requirement Due date

the person is physically and mentally fit to manage the home; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the person in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b)(i), a person has the appropriate experience and qualification if the person has—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 5 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered provider considers to be equivalent to the Level 5 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of a person who starts managing a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 3 years after the date on which that person started managing a home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 28 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(c) (2)(c)(i)(ii) (3)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the manager completing the level 5 diploma in leadership and management.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure. 25 July 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 8 (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vii))

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2490729 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 12, Venture House, Prospect Business Park, Longford Road, Cannock, Staffordshire WS11 0LG

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Inspector

Chanel Bryant, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2490729 10 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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