Children's Home run by Therapeutic Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 1 Registered provider: Therapeutic Care 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 operated by a private provider and provides care for up to two children who may experience social or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, there was two children living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the home’s first inspection. The home and manager have been registered with Ofsted since October 2023.

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children said they like living in the home. They are settled and they are making good progress. Staff provide warm, nurturing care and support, which helps children to develop a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health and well-being needs are being met. They have access to health professionals when needed. The company therapist is offering support to children around their emotional health. Staff regularly educate children on issues around health promotion, which includes healthy eating and the importance of exercise. Through this support, children are learning about the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager advocates for the children’s education and escalates concerns when other professionals are not meeting their responsibilities. to identify their learning needs. As an interim measure, the manager is ensuring that children attend both formal and informal learning throughout the school day. Children Both children are in the process of being assessed for education, health and care plans have access to a tutor and are re- engaging in their learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to have regular quality time with families. For one child, staff support family time in the local community and this is helping to rebuild their relationships and helping the child and their family to have positive time together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to take part in activities in both the community and the home. Children are supported to live an active life and they enjoy going for walks, running and going to the gym. Children also choose to relax in the home or go out to meet friends. This helps to develop their social and emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s achievements are celebrated. There are photos and memory books that capture the children’s journey. Staff give children meaningful rewards, based on their likes and interests. This positive approach helps children to develop their self-esteem and confidence. Children’s wishes and feelings are actively encouraged through regular discussions. Children said they feel listened to and they can take an active part in making choices about their day-to-day lives.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are encouraged to develop age-appropriate life skills. Children help with the shopping, cook, bake with staff, complete their laundry and keep their bedroom clean. This enables them to develop skills for the future.

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

Staff know and understand children’s risks. Each child’s individual risk is detailed in their risk assessments. These are robust documents and are frequently updated and give Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 3 clear guidance to staff to ensure that there is a consistent response to children’s vulnerabilities. As a result, children’s risk-taking behaviours are reducing.

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

Children have developed trusting relationships with staff and, through these relationships, children are confident to speak about their feelings and any worries they may have. This means that staff can provide support and prevent incidents from escalating. Physical intervention has been used on one occasion to prevent a child from hurting themselves.

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

When children receive a consequence, staff explain to the child why this has been imposed. There is clear management oversight to ensure that these consequences are fair and appropriate. The manager reviews the effectiveness of the consequences to ensure that children have an understanding on how their behaviour can affect them and others.

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

Children said that they feel safe in the home, they like staff and feel confident that staff would listen and help them if they had a concern or worry. There have been no complaints or incidents of going missing from home.

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

Children’s safety is consistently at the centre of staff’s practice. Significant incidents are well managed. Staff act appropriately to ensure that children’s safety is paramount. The manager ensures that all appropriate professionals are informed.

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

Room searches are carried out when necessary to keep children safe. These are done sensitively and are appropriately recorded, including the reasons for the search and efforts to seek the child’s consent.

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

The manager ensures that all the health and safety checks are completed. The physical environment is maintained to a high standard and it meets the needs of children. It feels warm and welcoming. However, there is a lock on the laundry room door that distracts from the homely environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is qualified, experienced and shows an ambitious vision, with high expectations for what children can achieve. The staff are positive about the manager and describe there being a supportive environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is an experienced and stable staff team to meet the needs of children. Staff are caring professionals who genuinely aspire to make a positive difference to the lives of children. Staff have a shared ownership and take on extra responsibilities to support the manager in the smooth running of the home. As a result, staff morale and team working are strong.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good oversight of the day-to-day running of the home. The manager has completed a review of the quality of care, but has not evaluated the feedback Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 4 received from children or actively sourced feedback from parents. This limits the effectiveness of the review.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is an in-depth induction and training programme for staff. All staff are up to date with their appropriate training. The manager has good oversight of staff training needs and ensures that additional courses are completed by staff to meet the individual child’s needs. This ensures that staff have the appropriate skills and knowledge they need to provide good-quality care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Supervisions take place in the appropriate timescales. New staff benefit from additional supervision sessions during their probationary period. This helps them to understand their roles and responsibilities. Staff have an opportunity to reflect on their practice and this helps to develop their knowledge and confidence.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings take place regularly. Staff value the meetings as they give them an opportunity to raise issues, share knowledge and experience. This ensures that there is consistency in how staff meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that an independent person visits the home each month who scrutinises the care provided to children. This includes the arrangements for safeguarding children and promoting their well-being. However, the manager does not ensure that the independent person gains feedback from parents so that they are consulted on the care provided for their child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 5

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Statutory requirement

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 registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality-of-care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (5))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that when completing a quality-of-care review, children’s and parents’ feedback must be taken into consideration and evidenced in the report. 10 September 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the independent person offers the parents the opportunity to speak to them about the quality of care provided for their child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.5) Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 6  The registered person should ensure that children have access to all shared areas in the home. The lock on the laundry room should be removed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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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: 2762098 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Therapeutic Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Therapeutic Care, Errigal House, Avroe Crescent, Blackpool FY4 2DP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jacqueline Titterington

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Inspector

Simon Jones, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2762098 8 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 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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