Children's home run by Vcare - 24 Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 1 Registered provider: Vcare - 24 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. The home provides care for one child with social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home. They were spoken to as part of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in June 2024 and is suitably skilled and qualified.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/10/2023 Full Good 21/09/2022 Full Good 08/12/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Trusting and caring relationships have been built between the child and staff. The child feels comfortable with staff and can talk to them when they need to. The child stated that ‘the staff are amazing’ and that they make them ‘feel like I am at home’. This promotes the child’s sense of stability and security in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child had been out of formal education for many years until coming to the home. Staff have supported the child to access full-time education that meets their needs and aligns with their wishes and feelings. The child wishes to work in the construction industry in the future, and staff have gained an alternative provision for them that has a focus around this area. The child has also been entered into academic assessments to further improve their future potential. Feedback from educational staff has been positive, and they feel the child is progressing in their learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has been able to access a range of activities, some of which they had not been able to access before coming to live at the home, such as attending nature reserves and the seaside. The staff have supported the child in their newly found passion for nature by taking them to a range of rural locations and educating them on topics surrounding this. This supports the child’s overall well-being, health and education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has made good progress since coming to live at the home. Their risks have significantly reduced, and there have been minimal concerns regarding their behaviour. Regular key-work sessions around their risks take place, and these support the child to have a better understanding of their own safety and how to manage this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The management team has been planning for the child’s move from the home through undertaking key-work sessions and liaising with other agencies. However, there is not a documented plan in place and limited documentation from the local authority to support the plan for the child leaving the home, which may impact on the staff’s ability to pursue a positive and planned transition.

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

The child currently living in the home has been a victim to risks in the community. The staff worked closely with the child to safeguard them by putting in place proportionate restrictions that have been agreed by the child and other agencies. Staff have provided the child with opportunities to reduce these restrictions as trust is built. For example, the child did not have unsupervised access to the community when they came to live at the home. This has now been built up to the child having short periods of unsupervised community time, which is going well. Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 4 The child has had no missing-from-home episodes or restraints since coming to live in the home. This can be attributed in part to the work of the staff team in understanding and managing the risks for the child effectively. This supports the child to be safe.

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

Staff work well with other agencies, such as the youth justice team, to share information that contributes to the understanding of the current risk and overall safeguarding of the child. Other agencies speak highly of how the staff have protected the child from harm and feel there has been positive progress made with regard to their overall safety.

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

The child has updated risk assessments that consider their historical and current risks. Information from other agencies is used to inform risk assessments, which promotes effective safeguarding. There are clear processes in place informing staff on how they should safeguard and support the child in relation to these risks, which further promotes their overall safety.

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

While the child is not taking any regular medication, there have been instances where ‘pro re nata’ (as required) medication has been administered. Staff keep medication administration charts to monitor this. Staff informed the regulator of a medication error earlier in the year, where a child had been given an additional dose of medication. Errors were noted in the recordings since this incident, which could result in a further medication error, and this may impact on the child’s overall health and safety.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has a diverse staff team in terms of age, gender and life experiences. The parent of the child commented on this and feels this has benefited their child. The manager also identifies this as one of the strengths of the home as the child is being positively exposed to diversity and different opinions, which supports them in building their own views of the world.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The child said they feel supported by the staff and manager. When talking about the manager specifically, they said, ‘She is amazing. She does so much for me, and I appreciate her support.’ Feedback from the child’s family was also positive, and they feel that the staff are ‘excellent’ and that their child has reverted to how they were before the events leading to their entry into care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff speak highly about their manager and feel supported. One member of staff said that the leadership team has helped them ‘to be the best versions of themselves’. Staff receive frequent and good-quality supervision that supports them to develop and reflect on their work.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a strong presence at meetings relating to the child, and professionals have commented on her active participation in these. Professionals say Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 5 the manager is a strong advocate for the child. One professional said the manager is incredibly proactive and the manager and staff have supported the child to go from strength to strength.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are suitably trained in the mandatory training courses as determined by the provider and in areas that specifically impact on the child. The manager keeps records of the training that staff have undertaken and ensures they are swiftly refreshing their training when required. Staff are supported to access qualifications relating to their role. This ensures that staff have the knowledge and skills to support the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that clear recordings are kept of the administration of all 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)  The registered person should work with the placing authority to ensure that each child’s transition is planned and help each child to prepare for leaving. Transition plans should be clearly documented and made available. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 57, paragraph 11.9)

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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: 2544219 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 10, Halifax Way, Pocklington Industrial Estate, Pocklington, York YO42 1NP

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Inspector

Ladean Wilson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2544219 8 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 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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