Children's home run by Panacea Children Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 1 Registered provider: Panacea Children Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private organisation. It provides care for up to two children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The home and the manager registered with Ofsted in June 2024.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in 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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children have lived in the home since it registered in June 2024. One child’s placement ended when the manager quickly assessed that the child’s presenting needs could not be safely met in this home. The child currently living in the home continues to make progress across all areas.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into the home, staff understand that this can be difficult and ensure that it is done at the child’s pace and, where possible, with the support of family members. As a result, transition planning is good. Children are provided with opportunities to meet the staff and get to know them through attending activities and visiting the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s care is carefully planned in partnership with their family and placing authority. Families work with staff to ensure that daily routines, such as wake-up time, bathtime and bedtime, are replicated. This provides the child with a sense of security as their established routines are consistently implemented in this home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s education is prioritised, and care is taken to ensure that children continue to attend their identified school. Staff routinely liaise with education providers to establish targets for development and identify emerging patterns and trends. This information is threaded through the child’s plan and supported by consistent key-work sessions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are consulted. They are provided with bespoke systems to enable them to make choices and make their needs known. For example, the use of storyboards and pictorial aids enables children to decide individual activities, menus, and toys to play with. Furthermore, children are provided with a weekly rota that shows photos and names of the staff who will be supporting them and when planned family time is due to take place. This enables the child to understand what is happening next and prepare for each day.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff build trusting relationships with children and their families. The consistent liaison between the home and family means that there is a committed approach to family time. Where necessary, staff provide additional support to ensure that visits are positive and meaningful for children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health is suitably addressed. Staff are proactive in making referrals to health professionals to ensure that children’s physical and emotional health needs are assessed and addressed. Children are registered with local health services and are supported to attend routine appointments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with information at a level they can understand. The use of storyboards and pictorial aids enables children to understand some of the processes in the home. For example, the children’s guide sets out information about house rules, Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 3 boundaries, fire systems and how to make a complaint in a way that is easy for children to understand. This enables children to understand what to expect in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although sufficient action is taken to address complaints from children, records of complaints are confusing. This is because the investigation, outcome and feedback to children are not stored together. Furthermore, complaints are recorded as incidents, which means that they are not easily identified or accessible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to maintain their hobbies, such as football club and youth club, and they participate in a range of new and exciting activities. Staff enjoy playing with the children and say, ‘It is lovely to spend positive time with them and see how our relationship is really blooming.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home provides ample space for children to be with staff or spend time alone in their bedroom or in the sensory room. There are lots of toys, books and jigsaws around the home and photos of staff and the child. The home is decorated in a modern style and is well maintained. The external grounds are well kept and provide a safe space for children to play.

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

Children live in a home where their safety is prioritised. Risk management plans help to identify potential risks and the strategies in place to help reduce and manage risks. However, on one occasion, the placing authority did not provide pertinent information before a child moved into the home. As a result, some risks were not identified or assessed during the placement planning process.

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

The staff understand children’s needs and can recognise when there is a change of mood or pattern in behaviour. Therefore, children are provided with a high level of staff support. This means that should children become upset or angry, there are different staff in the home to offer additional support and comfort to them or to provide a simple change of face.

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

There have not been any incidents of children going missing from this home.

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

Staff are trained to hold children to keep them safe. On the two occasions when this has been necessary, interventions have been brief and managed safely. Records indicate that children are provided with a debrief, and full reports are provided to the placing authority and family member.

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

Children are provided with consistent routines and boundaries to support their safety inside the home and in the community. Staff use storyboards to help children understand the impact of their behaviour on themselves and others and support them to understand how to make things right. Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 4

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and staff team are developing a caring, safe and fun environment for children to thrive and grow.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home’s statement of purpose sets out the specific needs of the children the home is equipped to care for, which includes children with sight and hearing problems. However, staff have not received specific training in these areas. Although there are currently no children placed with these specific needs, the statement of purpose should be amended for the purpose of factual accuracy.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Most staff have successfully attained a relevant childcare qualification. They receive suitable training to assist them in how they support the children. A staff member said, ‘We have formed a great team who all want to get the best results for the children.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager sets the standards for the team and leads from the front. He provides regular formal and informal supervision and guides the staff in the development of a safe and nurturing environment for children. Where shortfalls in practice are identified, he provides individual staff support sessions to address these concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and responsible individual have challenged one placing authority’s failure to provide all necessary information about a child. This led to risks not being disclosed and therefore not assessed. The management team escalated these concerns to leaders in the placing authority and to the regulatory body. A learning review was carried out in the home to identify and address any shortfalls in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All staff employed at the home have experience in working with children with disabilities. Staff say that they are happy in their role and that there is consistent support and guidance.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is consistent in his approach to monitoring the quality of care provided and the positive effect that this is having on the children. The manager’s review identifies shortfalls in practice. Immediate action is taken to address concerns, which includes providing additional support to staff to aid their continued learning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The independent visitor carries out a monthly assessment of the home. The assessments provide a good overview of the progress and challenges for the children and staff and identify areas for additional learning and development. However, reports do not include the visitors’ methods in attempting to engage children to seek their views about the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The team works closely to create an environment where the children are safe, valued, respected and accepted. This is evident in the progress the child living in the home is making and the feedback received from families and professionals. Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the independent visitor provides alternative ways to consult with children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 65, paragraph 15.8)  The registered person should ensure that records of investigations and outcomes in relation to complaints are held together and easily accessible. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)  The registered person should ensure that the statement of purpose is amended to reflect the skills of the staff team and the needs of the children the home intends to care for. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.6)  The registered person should ensure that placing authorities provide all necessary documents without delay at the point of admitting a child to the home. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.1)

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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: 2775060 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Panacea Children Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: James House c/o Jackson Stephen LLP, Stonecross Business Park, Yew Tree Way, Warrington WA3 3JD

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Inspector

Maria McGranaghan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2775060 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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