Children's Home run by Hopscotch Care Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 1 Registered provider: Hopscotch Care 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

This children’s home is operated by a private organisation and is registered to provide care for one child. The home provides care to children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered with Ofsted in April 2019, and the manager registered in December 2021.

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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 for children’s home: 2510847 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/05/2023 Full Good 12/04/2022 Full Good 02/02/2022 Full Inadequate 04/03/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is supported well and is held in high regard by managers and staff. Staff know the child well. The child has good relationships with staff. One social worker said, ‘[Name of child] speaks highly about the staff and the relationships they have built.’ The child said, ‘They are not staff, they are my family.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is a relaxed atmosphere in the home. The home is furnished and decorated to a good standard. There are photos of the child around the home, and the child has personalised their bedroom. This supports the child to have a sense of belonging. The child said, ‘I have recently had my bedroom revived. I’ve literally got a princess bedroom.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child enjoys a range of activities and different experiences. These include baking, going on dog walks, listening to music, swimming and being creative. Staff support the child to become more independent and develop new skills by completing tasks including managing a budget, planning a menu, shopping, and cooking.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child’s cultural needs by looking at traditions, listening to music and going to specialist shops to source traditional foods. The staff and the child celebrated ‘Tlusty czwartek’ together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff remain persistent in their attempts to fully engage the child in education. The manager liaises with the head of education and social worker. The child said, ‘I am going to go back to tutoring and take my exams.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is in good health, and staff actively encourage and support the child to attend medical appointments. However, not all medical concerns have been followed up. Therefore, there are missed opportunities to support the child’s health and well- being.

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

Staff take time to listen to the child and help them to understand their emotions. Staff know the child’s likes and dislikes and what may be a trigger for them. Staff use this knowledge to support the child’s individual needs. Consistent approaches from staff help to reinforce boundaries and help the child to feel safe and secure in the home. The child said, ‘Staff really support me and know me off by heart.’

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

Staff have a good understanding of the missing-from-home procedures. They actively look for the child when they are missing and liaise with professionals to help minimise risk. Incidents of the child going missing from home are well managed and recorded. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 4 Incidents are managed well, and all serious incidents are notified to Ofsted. A social worker said, ‘Staff respond appropriately to concerns when [name of child] is in crisis.’

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

Staff understand the child’s risks and vulnerabilities. The child’s individual risk assessment is regularly reviewed and updated. However, regular checks of the child’s mobile devices are not completed. This is a missed opportunity to manage and reduce potential risk.

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

Staff are provided with regular training and development opportunities. Training includes mental health awareness, self-harm, safeguarding, substance misuse and safe handling of medication. This ensures that staff have the skills to support the child’s needs.

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

Staff are aware of how to escalate concerns about the child’s welfare, should the need arise. The manager takes all complaints seriously and ensures that they are appropriately investigated and addressed.

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

Staff record all incidents by completing detailed documentation. However, one incident form does not include all relevant information. This is a missed opportunity for the manager and staff to reflect on the incident and identify ways to reduce the risk of a similar incident occurring in the future.

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

Positive recognition and praise outweigh negative consequences. The use of natural consequences supports the child to restore and rebuild relationships with staff and to have a sense of ownership. However, the manager’s review of the effectiveness of consequences is not always recorded. This means there are missed opportunities to identify any lessons learned and changes required.

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

Staff have required the support of the police to help them manage the child’s behaviour. However, this has significantly reduced recently.

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good

The home is managed by a dedicated, caring, and ambitious manager who advocates well for the child. The manager has completed a leadership and management qualification. The manager speaks about the child with warmth and enthusiasm.

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good

The manager and staff maintain good levels of communication with other professionals. One social worker said, ‘Communication is improving. I have communication with the senior leadership team.’

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good

Staff attend regular team meetings, which provide ways for the staff to reflect on and develop their practice when supporting the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 5 Staff say they feel well supported by the manager. One member of staff said, ‘The manager will take time to support staff with their development and will take time on a personal level to help staff with any personal issues.’

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good

Staff receive regular supervisions in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Feedback from professionals is not considered during staff appraisals, which would provide a more comprehensive view of staff performance.

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good

The manager has a good understanding of the strengths and areas for development in the home. However, this could be strengthened by more rigorous and impartial reports from the independent person, including external feedback.

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good

The manager and staff regularly seek the views of the child; however, this is not always included in the quality-of-care report.

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good

The manager is not always present in the home, although she is accessible to the child and staff team. The manager also manages another home in the organisation and does not always manage this home in its own right. For example, staff supervision and rotas are for both homes. Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 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

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities, and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (2)(a)(b)(c) (5))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that the feedback and opinions of children are included in the quality-of- care review. 29 November

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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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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; 29 November Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 7 ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications, and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home is managed in line with the registration.

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services, and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that medical advice is sought in relation to the child and that medical conditions are explored. 29 November Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 8 The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the use of the police to manage a child’s behaviour is in line with the behaviour management policy. 29 November

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, they should ensure the safe use of mobile devices. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should ensure that any individual appointed to carry out visits to the home as an independent person must make a rigorous and impartial assessment. The registered person must ensure that the independent person consults regularly with a range of stakeholders as part of their assessment of the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 65, paragraph 15.5)  The registered person should ensure that staff 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

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Recommendations

way that will be helpful to the child, ensuring that all relevant information is included. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that all staff have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. Specifically, the appraisal should take into account the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 61, paragraph 13.5)  The registered person should ensure that all incidents of control, discipline and restraint are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair. In particular, they should ensure that the effectiveness of consequences is Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 9

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Recommendations

recorded. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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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: 2510847 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hopscotch Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 19 Lancaster Road, Carnforth, Lancashire LA5 9LD

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Inspector

Stacey Ilaboya, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2510847 11 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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