Children's Home run by The Partnership of Care Today Children's Services in Stockport

Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 1 SC008486 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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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 children’s home is registered to provide care for up to six children.

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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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Information about this children’s home

There are two managers. One has been registered since July 2022 and the other has been registered since February 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 Outstanding

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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: 21 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: SC008486 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/11/2023 Full Good 14/03/2023 Full Good 04/01/2022 Full Good 12/09/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and children have excellent relationships that are based on mutual respect and trust. One child said, ‘The staff are great; they really support me, and this really feels like my home.’ Another said, ‘Staff understand me and recognise when I am upset or need extra help, and they are always there for me.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the individual needs of the children. Comprehensive care plans are completed in conjunction with the children and their local authority plans. This enables children to feel listened to and included in all aspects of their care and support. One social worker said, ‘Staff welcomed [name of child] so well, from the initial visits to when he moved in. He was able to meet the other children living there and choose his own bedroom. This support has enabled him to settle exceptionally well, along with the nurturing environment, and is allowing him to be a child.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children have education provisions in place. Attendance for some children has at times been difficult. However, staff continue to encourage children to engage with education, and they work in partnership with education providers to implement bespoke packages of education for children as required. One education provider said, ‘The engagement and support [name of child] receives from staff has ensured ongoing attendance. The communication between the staff from the home has been excellent, and we have really seen the child flourish since he commenced living at the home.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs, including their oral, physical, mental and sexual health needs, are identified and addressed as appropriate. They have access to local health services, including dentists, when they need them. In addition, the home has access to the organisation’s therapist to provide further support with emotional health care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are encouraged and supported to develop skills in preparation for independence in accordance with their age and abilities. For example, children contribute their views to menu planning, with older children budgeting, shopping and preparing some meals for themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place the well-being of individual children at the centre of their practice. Children’s achievements are celebrated and appropriately rewarded. Their day-to- day needs are met, such as routine, privacy, personal space, nutritious meals and enjoyable mealtimes. As a result of this, all the children currently living at the home say they feel valued and respected by staff and view the home very much as their home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 4 Children access a range of activities in line with their individual likes and interests. This supports their ongoing development and offers them opportunities to make friends outside of their home, school and family.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff continue to develop their practice by using positive research- based practice to enhance outcomes for the children.

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

Staff and children have good relationships based on mutual respect and trust. Staff understand that, on occasion, children may be experiencing difficulties in a number of areas, and they are able to provide them with reassurance and guidance to contribute to them feeling safe and cared for.

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

All children have individual risk management plans in place that are kept under review and updated with any new or emerging risks, as well as demonstrating when risks are decreasing. Staff have an excellent knowledge of each child and their individual needs.

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

Positive behaviour is promoted well, with each child having their own plans that they have contributed to. This gives them a voice in their care and support and explains the best way they feel they can be helped by staff. The manager and staff help children understand the impact of negative behaviours on others and themselves. Whenever possible, a restorative approach to behaviour management is implemented, which supports children to rectify any negative behaviour in a constructive way. The consequences made are fair. However, the recordings of outcomes of consequences are at times unclear as to whether a consequence has been given or a supportive conversation has been held. The managers recognise this and have completed additional work with children and staff to ensure greater clarity and understanding for all.

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

Since the last inspection, there have been three incidents of a child being reported missing from home. Staff follow agreed protocols and work in partnership with other agencies tasked with safeguarding children. Children said that the staff speak with them on a regular basis about safety and welfare and that they feel the staff really care about their safety. All three children spoken with during the inspection say they have really good relationships with staff and feel staff care about them, which contributes to them feeling safe.

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

The home follows safer recruitment and selection practice. This, along with monitoring of staff, prevents unsuitable people from being recruited and having the opportunity to harm children or to place them at risk. The relevant authorities and professional bodies are informed of any concerns about inappropriate adults .

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

Children know how to make a complaint and say they are confident in the response to their complaints. Since the last inspection, two allegations have been made by children. Appropriate procedures were followed. Investigations into allegations or Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 5 suspicion of harm are shared with the appropriate agencies and are handled fairly, quickly and in accordance with statutory guidance. This means children feel they are listened to, and action is taken to safeguard them.

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

The home is decorated and maintained well, providing children with a homely and comfortable living environment. All children say they like how comfortable and homely the home is, and that they have been fully consulted with about the decor of their bedrooms and the communal areas.

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

Further development of the basement is ongoing to provide additional areas for the children to use. Currently, the laundry facilities are maintained in one room of the basement. Since the last inspection, handrails have been installed to enable access to the basement safely.

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

Fire safety checks are completed, and regular fire drills are held with children so that they know what to do in the event of a fire. All other health and safety monitoring and checks are in place to further contribute to maintaining a safe environment for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The two registered managers fully understand and promote the ethos, aims and objectives of the children’s home. Their individual management styles complement each other, providing seamless management support and oversight. They both demonstrate aspirational and child-centred practice for children. Staff say that the leadership and management of the home are exceptional, providing them with the necessary support to fulfil their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

All staff receive regular formal supervision that enables them to reflect on their practice and enhance their skills to deliver consistently high-quality care and support to children. In addition, weekly staff meetings enable staff to work collaboratively, further contributing to consistency and stability for the children living at the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff access and take part in effective training and development. All mandatory training is up to date, and additional training using research-based practice further underpins their skills and knowledge. Staff meetings are also used to provide additional specific training in relation to meeting the individual needs of the children currently living at the home. This helps staff to have a real understanding of past life experiences of children and how these impact on them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Management oversight and monitoring are comprehensive. The manager makes use of the independent monthly monitoring reports and ensures that any shortfalls identified are addressed in a timely manner. Documentation is current and reflects the needs of the children. Appropriate challenge is made to placing authorities when there has been a delay in documentation being sent, and the managers appropriately escalate any concerns they have. Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 6 External professionals say the managers of the home are effective and work in partnership with them to safeguard and promote the well-being of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has addressed the requirement made at the previous inspection in relation to medication storage for controlled medication. Storage is now in line with medication guidance. The recommendation in relation to consequences has been addressed, with the manager continuing to review the effectiveness of any consequence implemented. The recommendation in relation to making areas accessible to promote independence is ongoing. Work has been undertaken to enable children to access the laundry area safely. Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 7

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature, clearly recorded and that they maximise the opportunity for children to reflect and learn. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.3)

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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: SC008486 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today Children’s Services

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Lansdowne House, 85 Buxton Road, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6LR

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Sean Fitzpatrick and Ellen Fitzpatrick

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Joshua Lewis and Hannah Teat

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Inspector

Sarah Oldham, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC008486 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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