Children's home run by Esland North Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private organisation and provides care for one child.

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Information about this children’s home

The home’s statement of purpose highlights that the staff are trained to apply a specific model of care.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in August 2023. At the time of the inspection, one child was living at the home.

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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: inadequate

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/04/2024 Full Inadequate 06/12/2023 Full Good 16/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child said that they have started to form positive relationships with the staff. This is significant progress as the child has endured several moves and experienced disruption in the care they received before living in this home. The staff have therefore created a good foundation to give the child a sense of stability and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There has been a concerted effort to create a family orientated environment. The child’s bedroom is personalised, as are other rooms in the home. Additionally, inspiring quotes that reflect the positive outlook of the staff are framed and hung in the dining area. Cumulatively, these factors have contributed towards a vibrant and child-focused environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The therapist is persistent in their approach to establishing a rapport with the child. Furthermore, the therapist helps the staff to better understand what is driving the child’s behaviour. In doing so, staff are encouraged to reflect and develop their awareness of the child’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Over the years, the child has experienced several changes to their care arrangements. Therefore, the child has not been able to sustain consistent access to education. Although the manager has been persistent in seeking a resolution, the manager’s knowledge of the role of the virtual school is limited. Consequently, this has contributed to a delay in identifying a workable plan for the child to be reintegrated into formal education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have recorded meaningful conversations with the child which show good examples of role modelling. However, important aspects of a conversation have not been included in the child’s written record following a significant event. Additionally, the child’s support plan includes professional jargon. These traits mean that these written records diminish the child’s ability to relate and respond positively to the information that staff encourage the child to have access to.

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

The manager’s oversight of any incidents that involve the child is evaluative. Additionally, the manager supports staff to be reflective and learn from these events. In doing so, staff increase their awareness and ability to better support the child.

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

There is good networking and collaboration with other professionals who are involved in the child’s care. The manager ensures that information shared in safeguarding meetings is acted on and cascaded to the staff. This means that staff can better safeguard the child. Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 4 The staff have developed their confidence in responding to unexpected events that place the child at greater risk of harm. This has stemmed from the manager making best use of team meetings for staff to reflect, plan and adapt care practices. Additionally, staff are confident to refer to the child’s written risk assessments to give them clear instructions on how to better manage risks associated with the child’s care.

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

There has been a positive shift associated with the working culture in the team. The manager has ensured that staff understand the organisation’s whistle-blowing policy. In addition, staff feel comfortable and able to challenge one another and provide professional critical feedback. Cumulatively, this practice has created a safer environment for the child to flourish.

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

Staff wrote a comprehensive incident report when the child was missing from their care for a significant period. This gave crucial information for the social worker and the manager to act on. However, the manager did not make best use of the intelligence that staff had gathered during the incident. Therefore, an opportunity was missed to gain a better understanding of the child’s social network and encourage staff to focus on being curious around this aspect of the child’s life.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Following the last full inspection, leaders and managers have implemented an effective action plan to make improvements in the home. This has helped the staff team to work cohesively. In doing so, staff are confident and consistent in their care of the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has ensured that he has learned about the child’s background and family. This has enabled the manager to better plan and support staff in their practice. As a result, the manager can work effectively alongside the child’s social worker. This has accelerated the potential to arrange visits for the child to see family members who are important to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff respect and feel supported by their manager. Additionally, staff say that they feel positive around meeting their aspirations to develop in their roles. Crucially, these attributes contribute to a healthier and progressive environment for staff to flourish. This is likely to have a positive influence on the child’s experience of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The organisation has created a deputy manager position. This has strengthened the leadership in the home. In addition, it has supported the manager to have a figurehead to model good practice across the staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should be clear about the role of the headteacher of the virtual school. If a looked-after child from a different local authority area is placed in the home, the headteacher of the virtual school of that local authority remains responsible for promoting the child’s educational achievement. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 27, paragraph 5.10)  The registered person should ensure that the evaluation of missing-from-care incidents is used to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff, or to record any positives or learning. This evaluation should ensure that intelligence gathered from the missing-from-care episode is used to inform future care practices. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.31)  The registered person should ensure that staff record meaningful information about

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Recommendations

individual children. Information about the child should always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2647445 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Limited, Suites 1 and 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Inspectors

Steve Guirey, Social Care Inspector Rachel Moore, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2647445 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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