Children's home run by Consistent Quality Support Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 1 Registered provider: Consistent Quality Support Ltd

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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 privately owned and provides care for up to two children who may have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children's home

Since the last inspection one child has moved in. At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home.

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Information about this children's home

The manager has submitted her application to Ofsted to be registered.

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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: 29 November 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: 2601137 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/11/2023 Full Good 10/05/2022 Full Good 24/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 06/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children like living at the home and see staff as an extension of their family. Children say that staff keep them safe and that they can talk with staff. One child wrote a letter to the manager thanking her for ‘believing in me even when I didn’t believe in myself’. This shows the aspirations staff have for children and the positive relations they have built.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to experience an array of hobbies including football, horse riding and boxing. Staff and children are proud of the achievements that children have made in their chosen activity. Staff take children on holiday so that they can see other cities and experience the wider world. Staff support children to see their families. On one occasion however, records indicate that a child could not attend a family gathering due to their ‘behaviour’. The current manager believes this was recorded as a consequence in error as there were other factors at play.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy staff teaching them about different cultures. This is done through learning about different countries, languages, religion, and cultural practices. Children are excited when it’s time to choose the next place of interest. When there is a ‘national awareness week’, staff utilise this to further educate children. During ‘deaf awareness week’ staff taught children to sign their name. Children enjoyed this and also learnt other helpful signs they may need in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work well with education professionals to support children to attend school. One professional stated that it is a credit to the staff and child how well they are doing. Noting ‘we were holding on by a thread and now in school 100%’. The child also shared how excited they are to attend school after the summer holidays, a feeling that they have not had before. This shows how staff have supported children to access and enjoy education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to explore their identity and they celebrate diversity. This helps children feel able to speak openly with staff and ask questions. Children have come a long way since moving to the home. This is especially in relation to their understanding of their own, and others’ emotions. For children, the building of their emotional intelligence is helping them to navigate friendships more positively.

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

Staff sensitively support children to talk about the possible reasons behind self-injurious behaviour. This helps children to reflect on what is happening in their life and how they are feeling. Those that know children well have seen an improvement in how children understand their feelings. One child’s school now feels confident that the child can seek out support if they require it. Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 4 Staff support children to understand possible risks in the world. On occasion, staff have missed opportunities to discuss key topics in depth when a child has instigated it or if a possible concern has presented itself. For example, staff failed to have in depth discussions with children regarding the health implications of vaping when the opportunity presented itself.

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

Staff do not consistently include enough information in case recordings to give a clear picture of the events that occur. This results in uncertainty when reading some records back. This specifically relates to an occasion where it reads that a physical intervention did not follow training guidance. The error was not noticed by the responsible individual at the time who had oversight of the record. This shows a lack of effective oversight at the time and a missed opportunity to make improvements to the quality of care provided to children.

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

Staff actively raise practice concerns if they see them. Managers are quick to investigate any allegations made by staff or children and puts robust safety measures in place. The manager liaises with safeguarding professionals and has built effective working relationships with them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

During this inspection period there has been a change in the responsible individual and two changes to the acting manager of the home. The current manager was previously the registered manager at the start of this reporting period. A decision was made by management for her to be reinstated as manager due to concerns in the oversight of the home. This shows that the higher management team have recognised where improvements are needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children seek out the manager to give her a hug and talk about how their day has been. If a child bumps themselves, they ask for the managers ‘magic’ to make it better. Children and staff speak positively about the manager. Staff comment on how supportive the manager and wider management team are, and how much they enjoy their job. One staff member feels that the manager creates a ‘culture of collaboration and continuous learning’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Oversight of the home has not been consistently effective. This resulted in the quality of case recording reducing considerably for a period. The manager recognised this on her reappointment and put in place extra training and development for staff. Improvements are starting to take place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has not ensured that processes are in place to record when children refuse prescribed medication. For example, it was not recorded when a child refused to take a dose of their 'as required' medication. It was therefore unclear whether the child refused to take it or whether staff had not administered it. Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 5 No shortfalls were found in the personnel files and staff have completed their level 3 qualification within timescale. Therefore, the requirement and recommendation from the previous inspection have been met. Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 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

No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child.

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Requirement Due date

The following measures may not be used to discipline any child—

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Requirement Due date

any restriction, other than one imposed by a court or in accordance with regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), on—

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Requirement Due date

a child’s contact with parents, relatives or friends; visits to the child by the child’s parents, relatives or friends; (Regulation 19 (1) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that visits to a child's relatives are not withdrawn as a form of discipline. It also relates to ensuring that there is a clear rationale recorded as to why disciplinary measures have been implemented. 25 July 2024

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child);

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Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child); or

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate.

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that restraint used is appropriate and proportionate. 25 July 2024 Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 7 The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular this relates to ensuring that the manager has effective oversight of the home which strives to make continuous improvement in the quality of care provided. 05 September 2024

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Recommendations

 Staff should be 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 the quality standards, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that staff have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to help children understand, and where necessary work to change negative behaviours in key areas of health and well-being such as, but not limited to the risks of vaping. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards, page 35, paragraph 7.18)  The registered person should ensure that records are kept of the administration of all

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Recommendations

medication, which includes occasions when prescribed medication is refused. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards, page 35, paragraph 7.15)

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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: 2601137 8

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Consistent Quality Support Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Unit C1, Mill 1, The Business Park, Pleasley Vale, Mansfield NG19 8RL

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Inspector

Ellen Monk, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2601137 9 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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