Children's Home run by Family Care Associates Limited in Sefton

Inspection report children's home: 2496251 1 Registered provider: Family Care Associates 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 run by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who may have learning disabilities or physical disabilities. Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2024.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 2496251 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/04/2023 Full Good 16/08/2022 Full Outstanding 23/11/2021 Full Good 23/01/2020 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children's home: 2496251 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a spacious and warm environment. The home is furnished to a high standard with bright, tasteful decor. Children choose how they want to decorate and personalise their bedrooms and their artwork is displayed throughout the home. Staff are supportive in embedding children’s sensory needs into their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are dedicated to promoting children’s independence by focusing on self-care and healthy snack preparation. By integrating these goals into individual plans, the children make significant progress. Regular reviews of their objectives, along with celebrations of accomplishments involving parents and social workers, boost the children’s self-esteem and independence, fostering a positive and nurturing environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to spend time with people who are important to them. The manager advocates for children and supports increased time spent with loved ones. In addition, staff support children to spend time with friends when it is appropriate to do so. This ensures that children maintain important relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive experiences in the home. They participate in a range of enjoyable activities, such as having days out at the beach, going on trips to the cinema, shopping and going to parks. There are photos of children engaged in different experiences around the home. Children also have memory books that capture their time from when they moved into the home up until when they leave. This helps to provide children with good memories of their time spent in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand each child’s unique methods of communication, supported by individual communication passports. They are attuned to the children’s communication styles. Children who are non-verbal will use different vocal noises, directing staff to items of choice. Staff are sensitive to the child’s facial cues and gestures and use these to help the child to make choices in their daily life.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Restrictions are in place at the children’s home, including the locking of front and back doors to prevent children from leaving and encountering potential harm. These measures are based on comprehensive assessments of each child’s unique needs and are carefully documented. However, the manager has not regularly reviewed the assessments to consider their continued relevance and effectiveness in ensuring the safety of the children.

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

Feedback from parents and professionals is positive. They say that children are settled and well cared for. One social worker said, ‘A strength of the service is the long-standing staff, and this means that they know the children well.’ Inspection report children's home: 2496251 4 Staff work collaboratively with other professionals, parents, and family members to understand children’s complex needs. Managers and staff are strong advocates for children. Staff communicate well with relevant professionals to provide an all-round approach to children’s care.

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

Staff support children and respond extremely well to any behaviours that challenge. They are committed to finding different and innovative ways to manage situations that children may find difficult to cope with. This approach reduces children’s anxieties and helps to minimise incidents. However, the records of these incidents have not been accurate or reflective, and some do not contain robust management oversight. This lack of oversight impacts the development of new strategies.

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

There is a robust medication process in place. When medication errors have occurred, action has been taken to rectify the errors as soon as possible. Staff receive extra training and support when necessary. This prevents further errors being made.

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

Staff only hold children as a last resort to keep everyone safe. Staff have received appropriate training and offer children debriefs afterward, trying to understand the reasons for the behaviour to prevent reoccurrence. However, staff have not routinely recorded these discussions, preventing the team from implementing new supportive strategies.

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

Safeguarding practice is effective. Staff receive safeguarding training that is specific to children’s disabilities. Additionally, staff have a clear understanding of children’s needs, vulnerabilities, and the potential risks they may be exposed to. Staff understand how to report and respond to any safeguarding concerns. However, not all staff could explain the action they would take if one of the children was missing from home. This has not had an impact as none of the children have been missing from home.

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

A suitably experienced manager has started since the last full inspection. However, the home was not adequately overseen by a suitable manager between the previous manager leaving and the new manager starting, impacting the drive for improvement. Senior leaders placed this responsibility on a new deputy manager who did not receive an induction into this new role.

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

The new manager swiftly applied to register with Ofsted and has worked incredibly hard to build positive relationships with the children, staff team, parents and relevant professionals.

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

The staff welcome the managers leadership and the change and challenge that this brings. The manager shares information with other people who are important in the children’s lives. One social worker said, ‘The new manager is great. She is a great advocate for the children, she stays in touch and always contacts us to share good news and when she needs to share concerns. I couldn’t ask for anything more.’ Inspection report children's home: 2496251 5 The previous manager did not have a system in place for regular oversight and scrutiny of the relevant plans for children, leading to some plans not being updated as required. The newly appointed manager understands the strengths and areas for improvement. They have implemented systems for regular auditing and evaluation, improving practice in several areas. However, this needs further embedding. The manager has met the requirements made at the last inspection.

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

Staff receive regular supervision. Team meetings are used as a forum for learning. Managers are not afraid to challenge and address staff practice. This helps staff to reflect on their performance and identify areas for improvement.

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

Children are cared for by a committed and enthusiastic staff team. Staff are either suitably qualified or enrolled on the relevant qualification. Staff are trained and receive ongoing training to help them meet the children’s needs.

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

Staff play a central role in advocating for children, and they attend regular meetings and reviews. This means that parents and professionals receive detailed first-hand information. However, children’s care plans are not always clear or easy to read. The manager has started to the develop these.

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

The manager is a good advocate for children. She is confident to challenge placing authorities and professionals to ensure that children have access to the support and services that they require. However, the manager has not followed the provider’s escalation policy when children’s health needs have not been met in a timely way. Inspection report children's home: 2496251 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that— helps children aspire to fulfil their potential;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the provider ensuring that there is adequate management oversight in the home and must ensure that there is a robust induction processes for new managers.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that there is a prompt escalation of the health needs of children to ensure their continued well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they implement effective internal monitoring systems to ensure that home documents are reviewed regularly to uphold quality standards, and that information in children’s care plans and risk management documents remains current meeting children’s needs.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that they thoroughly evaluate incidents taking into consideration any possible 1 September 2024 Inspection report children's home: 2496251 7 learning outcomes that can be implemented within children’s risk management plans, or to support the development of staff. The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that any discussions following a significant incident are appropriately recorded to support the risk assessment and planning.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to leaders and managers ensuring that significant incidents are reflective and an accurate account of the support to the child is recorded. This will help to identify learning that can be integrated into children’s risk management plans and to support staff development. 1 September 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff receive the training they need to understand their responsibilities in safeguarding children, especially action they would take if a child was missing from home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraphs 10.11).

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that decisions around having locks on the home’s front and back door are informed by a rigorous assessment of that individual child’s needs, are properly recorded and are kept under regular review. (‘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 children's home: 2496251 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Family Care Associates Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 22-28 Willow Street, Accrington, Lancashire BB5 1LP

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Inspector

Jennifer Quest, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2496251 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 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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