Children's home run by Alexanders House Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2544851 1 Registered provider: Alexanders House 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 owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to three children who may have emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

There were three children living in the home at the time of the inspection. The inspector spoke to two of the children.

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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: 23 January 2024

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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: 2544851 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/01/2024 Full Good 13/02/2023 Full Good 18/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2544851 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, two children have moved on from the home in accordance with their plans. Staff remain in touch with the children to offer a good level of consistency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have responded positively to the change in the dynamics in the home following the admission of younger children. As a result, children are being provided with the care and support needed to meet their individual needs, considering their age, developmental stage and psychological needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children build positive relationships with the staff. Relationships between staff and children are warm and affectionate. Children express positive feelings about their home life and the care they receive. One child said, ‘I love the staff and they love me; moving here has been the best thing that’s happened to my life.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend full-time education, and they receive support from staff with their education. Although some arrangements for education were delayed, they are now in place. As a result, children who previously had gaps in their education are now making progress. Staff are proud of the children, and the children’s achievements are widely recognised and celebrated in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to spend time with those people who are important to them. Staff know the children’s families and friends, and they are welcome in the home. For children who have difficult family relationships, staff help them to explore and make sense of their emotions and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a well-maintained and comfortable home. Staff work hard to create a homely atmosphere for the children. Children’s bedrooms feature personal touches with their favourite cartoon characters or chosen themes. This helps the children to feel comfortable and have a sense of belonging in their home.

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

Staff know the children well and meet their needs appropriately. Children’s care plans and risk assessments are detailed, clear and regularly reviewed and updated. This provides staff with the information they need to understand how to meet each child’s needs.

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

Staff have a good understanding of their responsibilities to keep children safe. When concerns arise, they take appropriate action and work closely with the wider professional network, such as social workers and child and adolescent mental health services, to make sure that children get the support they need. Staff understand what children’s behaviours mean, how to respond effectively and how to help children feel more settled. Inspection report for children’s home: 2544851 4 Follow-up discussions with children evidence how children are being supported to understand their feelings and emotions.

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

When children are missing from home, staff thoroughly search the local areas and make regular attempts to contact the child, their families and friends. When children are missing for a prolonged period, the managers request a strategy meeting to discuss the safeguarding concerns with the wider professional group involved with the child. This helps to coordinate the response to ensure the child’s safe return to the home. The managers proactively engage with other professionals to seek their advice, with the aim of reducing the frequency of missing-from-home incidents.

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

Children are helped to develop and improve their social skills. Staff use their positive relationships with children, along with consequences and rewards, to encourage them to make better choices. Consequently, the need for more restrictive measures, such as physical guides or holds, has not been required.

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

Safeguarding concerns are responded to quickly and appropriately. However, the managers have not notified Ofsted of one serious incident. This oversight has prevented Ofsted from scrutinising how significant incidents and potential safeguarding matters are investigated. This prevents Ofsted from being assured that the managers and staff have taken effective action to safeguard the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child focused and speaks about the children with warmth and enthusiasm. She is supported by an experienced deputy manager. Together, they work effectively to ensure that the day-to-day running of the home is smooth.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a good oversight of the home and the quality of care provided to the children. The manager uses a range of monitoring processes to scrutinise and raise the standard of care that the children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings and supervision take place regularly. These give staff a safe space in which to discuss their learning needs and any welfare issues and develop their practice. This helps the manager to maintain oversight of her staff and the care they provide to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have up-to-date training, and the manager has a good oversight of staff training and development needs. This has helped the staff to develop their knowledge and skills to meet the needs of the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from families and professionals is consistently good. They say that the staff know the children well and provide good care for them. One professional said, ‘The staff went above and beyond for [name of child], and they have told me that they are happy and living in the home is the best thing that happened to their life.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2544851 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should notify Ofsted and other relevant persons if there is an incident relating to the protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child living in the home which the registered person considers to be serious. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 63, paragraph 14.10)

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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: 2544851 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Alexanders House Limited

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Inspector

Cherie Chen, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2544851 7 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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