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

Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 1 SC005066 Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today

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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 home is operated by a large private company. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who have had adverse childhood experiences.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2022. He is a qualified social worker and holds a level 5 qualification in leadership and management. He has submitted an application to deregister and is due to leave his role in October 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 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: 26 September 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: SC005066 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/09/2023 Full Good 05/02/2020 Full Good 12/02/2019 Full Good 31/01/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

This home provides short-term care for children. Children move in at short notice, due to them experiencing crises in their lives, or while a permanent home can be found for them. Consequently, due to the short timescales spent living in the home, their progress is often linked to small achievable targets, which are set and achieved.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, no children were living in the home. Since the last inspection, one child has moved into and on from the home. The child lived in the home for six days. While the inspection focused on the experiences of the child during this short period, the child did not provide feedback.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

While living at the home, staff ensured that the child was made to feel welcome and safe. The child was supported by staff in the home, who were familiar to them, and these staff provided consistency and stability, which ensured that the child’s experience was positive. This stability ensured that the child settled down and returned positively to a permanent home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s move into the home was managed well, and the child was provided with information about the home. The registered manager completed a full assessment to ensure that the home was equipped to meet the child’s needs. As a result, the child felt supported, knew what was expected, and was well prepared.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff worked hard to meet the child’s health needs well. Medication is stored safely, and staff ensured that all prescribed medication was administered correctly. However, the registered manager did not retain the records of medication that had been administered to the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some areas of the home’s environment are homely and welcoming. However, there are several areas in the home and the garden which require redecoration and refurbishment. Consequently, the home does not always create a nurturing environment for children.

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

Staff put in place clear boundaries and provided a good structure to ensure that the child felt safe in the home. Staff and leaders understood the child’s complex needs well. The child was involved in no significant incidents while living at the home, which represented progress for the child.

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

Tailored risk assessments help to inform staff about the issues pertinent to the child. Staff put in place a missing-from-home protocol, which was reflective of the changes in the child’s living arrangements. As a result, staff are suitably prepared to respond to any incidents. Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 4 Staff ensured that the child lived in a home that is physically safe and secure. Regular health and safety checks on all electrical, gas and fire safety equipment help to make sure that they remain in good working order. Staff completed fire drills so that the child knew what they needed to do in an emergency.

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

The registered manager ensures that children are protected by the organisation’s effective recruitment practices. Staff are vetted and assessed as suitable before working in the home. This helped to prevent unsuitable adults working with the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by a suitably qualified and experienced registered manager, who has been in post since February 2022.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have good access to training and development opportunities. These ensure that they have the knowledge and skills they need for their work with the child. Staff are qualified or are working towards gaining the level 3 diploma in residential childcare.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has effective monitoring systems in place. His oversight helps him to quickly identify any shortfalls and areas for development. This approach helped the child to receive good care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager reviews and submits an up-to-date version of the home’s statement of purpose. However, this does not contain sufficient detail about the specific purpose of the home or in relation to how the home is staffed. This shortfall prevents professionals from having accurate information about the support it offers to children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 5

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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

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children; and

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that the home’s environment is well maintained, and that work is undertaken to make improvements to areas of the home and garden. 21 November 2024

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the home’s statement of purpose provides information which is specific and relevant to the ethos and aims of the home. This is because the information set out in the statement of purpose is an essential part of the process of agreement between the registered person and placing authority in identifying if the home is the right one for that child, and that the home will be able to respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.6)  The registered person should ensure that staff understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. This relates to staff recording of children’s medication Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 6 records and ensuring that all medication administered to children is recorded effectively. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality

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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: SC005066 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Partnership of Care Today

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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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Inspector

Dean Wilton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC005066 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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