Children's Home run by Horizon Care and Education Group Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 1 Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. The home provides care for up to three children aged between 10 and 17 years who have complex social and/or emotional needs. It may also continue to provide care for children when they reach 18 to support a planned move to an adult placement. The manager registered with Ofsted 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 requires improvement to be 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: 5 December 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: 1276216 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/12/2023 Full Good 17/01/2023 Full Good 08/11/2021 Full Good 03/03/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There was one child living at the home at the time of this inspection. Since the last inspection, one child has moved in and two children have moved out. Children receive high levels of care and support. Staff have a good understanding of trauma-informed care and generally demonstrate this through the care they provide. Staff and leaders are nurturing towards children and children have a range of positive experiences during their time at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of relationships between staff and the child living at the home is exceptional. Staff are loving towards the child and understand their needs. There is warmth and care, which is reciprocal. This helps the child to feel valued and develop a sense of security. The child described the home as ‘amazing’ and said that ‘any child coming to live here would be lucky’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are cared for by a motivated and dedicated staff team. Staff are resilient when dealing with behaviour they find difficult to manage and when children test the boundaries around relationships. This has further supported children’s sense of security as they recover from the trauma that they have experienced.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to engage in their education. A creative and adaptive approach while the child is not in formal education has meant that they have good daily routines. This will support the transition to school when a place is found for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a comfortable and beautifully decorated home. The decor is to a high standard and there are further plans for renovation work. The child was proud of changes that were being made and has been included in making decisions about how their home will be decorated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff and children enjoy celebrating different festivals together, as well as children’s successes. This helps children understand their wider community and promotes inclusivity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Not all children have had a positive experience of being at the home, due to external influences. Managers have taken difficult decisions to end children’s placements when it has not been in their best interests to remain at the home. Despite challenging circumstances, managers have ensured that children’s endings have been as positive as possible. Lessons-learned exercises consider what could be done differently.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities and staff actively support them to consider the skills that they need for their future careers. Children join various different groups and clubs, and this helps them discover new passions and interests. One child who aspires to have a career in the police force attends police cadets. Attending these groups helps children develop important skills which will help them in the future. Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 4

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improvement to be good

Physical intervention is only used as a last resort. The home uses a preventative approach to behaviour management. However, action by staff to manage incidents and keep children safe has not been swift enough. Staff have not consistently followed children’s plans when they are in distress and causing significant damage to property. Plans are not always clear to help guide staff in what action to take when a child is at risk. In some instances, staff’s assessment of a child’s risks resulted in action being taken too late. This puts the child at risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Staff take prompt action to respond when children are missing. Staff follow missing- from-home procedures to ensure that children are quickly located. However, the need for children to be provided with an independent return home interview is not reflected in plans. This leaves the potential for these not to be completed in line with guidance.

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improvement to be good

The process for allegation management has not been followed consistently. One allegation made by a child was not shared promptly with their social worker or reported to the local authority designated officer or Ofsted. This had the potential to leave the child at risk of harm.

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improvement to be good

Managers work closely with external professionals to help them understand children’s needs and risks. Children are supported to engage with specialist services. Staff create a supportive and understanding environment. One social worker said this has provided the foundation for the child to be able to address the trauma they have experienced.

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improvement to be good

Children know how to make a complaint but have not felt the need to do so. Because of their relationships with staff, they feel that they can raise grumbles as and when they arise, and staff listen to them.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders ensure that the home is properly staffed and equipped to meet children’s needs. Staff receive regular practice-related supervision and appraisal of their work. Team meetings are held frequently and are reflective. The manager is a good role model for the staff team. Staff say that they feel supported, listened to and valued, and that the manager is always available to them when needed. When he is not in work, the team is supported by a robust on-call system. This ensures that staff have the support they need.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders actively monitor the quality of care provided and act when necessary to make improvements. The manager knows the home well and is supported by the responsible individual, who visits the home regularly and also has weekly catch-up meetings with the manager. This ensures that there is good oversight of the home. Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 5 Effective communication ensures that all professionals working with the child are kept up to date and informed. When serious incidents occur, staff ensure that key professionals working with the child are notified. The manager challenges others when he feels that decisions are not in the best interests of children. He has also brought in advocates to support children’s views.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Recruitment practices are safe. Staff who work in the home are subject to all necessary checks. This ensures that only suitable people work in the home. When practice falls short of the manager’s expectations, this is challenged.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff complete a range of training, including training specific to children’s needs. This supports staff to feel valued while further enhancing their skills. One member of staff is working towards a leadership and management qualification, despite this not being a requirement of their current role. This positive working environment helps improve the quality of care being provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most staff have completed the required qualification. One member of staff has not completed the qualification within timescale. Difficulties with a new training provider have caused further delays. This has been highlighted at the last two inspections but has been resolved with a new training provider now in place. Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 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

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

that staff assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, that staff take timely and appropriate action to manage risks to children and follow procedures in relation to allegation management. 6 January 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff in a care role must have the qualification in regulation 32(4) within the relevant timescale listed in regulation 32(5). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.12)  The registered person should ensure that children’s plans reflect that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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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: 1276216 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Horizon Care and Education Group Limited, Venture House, Unit 12, Prospect Business Park, Longford Road, Cannock, Staffordshire WS11 0LG

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Inspectors

Chrisoula Contoyianni, Social Care Inspector Vicky Smith, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1276216 9 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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