Children's Home run by New Horizons (Stockport) Limited in Tameside

Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 1 Registered provider: New Horizons (Stockport) 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 company. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who may have needs that relate to their disabilities and/or a sensory impairment. There were three children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2022.

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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: 2591888 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/04/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/05/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/11/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 24/08/2021 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has moved into the home since the last visit. This was an emergency move which left little time for planning. However, the manager ensured that staff observed the child in their school and carefully considered how the child’s needs could be met alongside the other children already living at the home. As a result, the move was successful, and the child appears relaxed and happy in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is a large, detached property with a large garden. The manager understands the needs of the children and has promoted changes to the environment, including the conversion of a large outhouse into a playroom to ensure that there is more space for children. An addition of a sandpit and a dedicated ‘forest school’ area caters well for children’s sensory needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home environment is welcoming and benefits from a sensory room. All children’s bedrooms have ensuite facilities, are personalised and are kept clean and tidy. There are lots of photos of children enjoying activities, and there is an achievement board where children’s certificates are displayed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Generally, the children live well together. They all have their individual plans and preferences which are encouraged and respected by the staff. However, when there have been incidents between children, staff do not always support children to repair their relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The kitchen area is readily available to children. Staff have been working with children so that they can use the kitchen safely. Home-cooked, balanced and nutritious meals are planned for the week, and the plans are visible to the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported by staff that quickly identify their preferred communication styles and ensure that the appropriate resources are available for children. To enhance this understanding, the children and the staff are supported by a speech and language therapist employed by the organisation, who supports their development and reviews the targets set.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend and enjoy school. The staff work closely with schools and ensure that the children are well prepared and on time. For one child, the manager has advocated for a high school in the local area. Not only does this significantly reduce travel time, but it also allows the child to be more involved in their local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well met, and they have the appropriate services involved. Staff seek support from medical professionals and work with them to look at ways to promote children’s physical and emotional well-being. One child is now fully continent. This is a significant achievement that will have a lasting impact on their life. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 4 Children enjoy lots of different activities and experiences. One child went on his first holiday. This was well planned with the child at the centre. Additionally, children enjoy climbing, soft-play areas, swimming and bike riding.

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

Children are supported by staff that understand their individual needs well and follow robust plans that support them to keep children safe. There have not been any allegations or complaints made by children.

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

Restrictive physical interventions are rarely used, and the manager is clear with his expectations around this and what interventions can be used with children. Many interventions are used for protection or redirection only. However, these are recorded and evaluated with the same level of scrutiny as a restraint. Children are always offered medical advice following an intervention and are spoken to by staff to ensure that they are ok.

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

The manager follows safer recruitment processes and takes steps to request references from all previous care roles of staff. This practice reduces the risk of unsuitable people being employed.

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

All children are prescribed medication. Robust stock and record checks mean that any discrepancies are found early. Staff obtain medical advice following any discrepancies and follow their advice to ensure that children remain healthy. The manager responds quickly and appropriately to medication discrepancies and identifies any learning required for staff.

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

Fire drills are completed regularly. However, children are not always involved as they can become anxious due to their additional needs. This is a missed opportunity to support children to be able to leave the building with staff safely in the event of a fire.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced and qualified. He and the staff have worked hard to improve the care and support that they provide for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff are strong advocates for the children, and they have high aspirations for them. The staff regularly have planned and ad hoc communication with children that is well meaning. However, the records of these discussions do not capture the impact on the children and an evaluation of what they have learned or how they have participated. Overall, the manager has a good oversight of the home and has strong systems in place. However, there are missed opportunities to monitor what children are learning. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 5 The staff say that they work well together and feel empowered by leaders to be responsible for their own areas of responsibility. They say they are confident to address issues with each other should the need arise.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good oversight of any recorded injuries that children have sustained and comments on these and shares information with others. However, the process is not robust enough when considering the children’s additional needs that affect their communication, to ensure that, as far as possible, the staff are able to identify how children have received injuries.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff are complimentary of the manager. They feel supported and receive regular supervision. Team meetings are also regular and child-focused. These have clear actions which are reviewed each meeting to ensure that continual progress is made.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the strengths and areas of development for the home, staff and the children. He has made many positive changes and introduced these slowly, ensuring that practice is embedded before moving on. He is keen to ensure that the staff receive the necessary training and ensures that these opportunities are available for staff to improve their skills, knowledge and understanding. Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 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 care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

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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

that staff help each child to access and contribute to the records kept by the registered person in relation to the child. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to records of direct work completed with children being clear on the impact of this work with children and how they participated.

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Requirement Due date

This further relates to effective systems being in place to monitor any injuries that are sustained by a child, so staff and others have a better understanding of their cause. This includes relevant information being included in children’s plans. 29 August 2024

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(b)) 29 August 2024 Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 7 This relates specifically to children being supported to repair their relationships if there has been an incident involving them.

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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

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to completing regular drills with children so that they can begin to tolerate fire drills and be able to leave the building safely with staff in the event of a fire. 29 August 2024

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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: 2591888 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Horizons (Stockport) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 154-156 Buxton Road High Lane, Stockport, Cheshire SK6 8EA

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Inspectors

Kerri Lynch, Social Care Inspector Sarah Probert, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2591888 9 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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