Children's home run by Aspris Care North West Limited

Inspection report children's home: 1240573 1 Registered provider: Sandcastle 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

The homes is operated by a private organisation. It provides care for up to four children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2024.

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Information about this children's home

Three children were living at the home at the time of this inspection. The inspector spoke with all of the children.

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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: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 1240573 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/03/2024 Full Good 12/12/2023 Full Inadequate 21/03/2023 Full Good 15/06/2021 Full Good Inspection report children's home: 1240573 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection two children have remained living in the home and continue to make good progress. One child has moved out and one child has moved in. Both children received a carefully thought-out planned move to and from the home. Consequently, both children settled quickly into their new homes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children build positive trusting relationships with the staff and managers. The staff respond quickly to the needs of the children and are they are regularly consulted about their care. Children said that they are ‘Happy and safe’ and ‘listened to’.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At times children struggle to attend their education provision. However, the manager and staff are proactive in working with the children and professionals to identify alternatives and implement new strategies to encourage the children to attend. This supports the children to learn and gain an education to achieve their aspirations in the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are in good general health. They are all registered with local health services and are encouraged to attend routine health appointments and annual health reviews. Prior to a child moving into the home, the staff received training to support the child to manage their health condition.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of family relationships for the children and regularly advocate on the children’s behalf to encourage relationships to form and develop. Staff support children to see their family and work flexibly when children live a long way from home. This supports the children to maintain contact with people who are important to them and to develop their sense of identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Photos of the children are on display around the home. The home is welcoming, clean, and tidy. It is decorated and furnished to a good standard. Positive and caring relationships between staff and the children were observed.

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

The managers and staff carefully consider and record risks and vulnerabilities for each child, prior to the child moving in. Risks are regularly reviewed throughout their stay. Risk management plans are updated and reviewed, and risks for children have reduced.

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

There has been no reported missing from home episodes. This is due to the positive relationships the staff and managers have built with the children and the effective safety plans in place. This is good progress from one child’s starting point.

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

Staff understand the children’s risks and vulnerabilities. Staff follow safeguarding procedures to safeguard and reduce the risks to the children. On the one occasion, staff Inspection report children's home: 1240573 4 had to physically hold a child to keep them safe. This was deemed as necessary and proportionate by the manager to keep everyone involved safe.

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

Staff receive training in safeguarding practices. They also attend training to meet the individual needs of the children, such as, internet safety, harmful sexualised behaviours, and county lines. This supports the staff to be better equipped to meet children’s needs.

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

The manager and staff regularly consult with the organisation’s therapist. This is effective in improving staff practice and allows staff to understand the reasons behind some behaviours displayed by the children.

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

Staff and managers have given the children consequences on occasions. However, they are not recorded correctly in line with regulation. The manager has not reviewed the effectiveness of the consequence or spoken to the user of the measure. This is a missed opportunity to reflect on staff practice and look for patterns and trends.

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

Health and safety management in the home is strong. Children live in a home that is free from hazards and maintenance issues are resolved quickly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is experienced and is working towards a relevant management qualification. He is child-focused and has high aspirations for the children in his care. Children say that they like the manager. A social worker said, ‘[name of child] see’s the manager as an advocate for them and knows the manager will share their views.’ As such, the children know the manager acts in their best interests. This provides a positive role model for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The management team know the children well and are fully involved in their lives and plans. They understand each child’s starting points and their progress since living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A stable staff team provides consistency and stability to the children. They receive regular supervisions and attend team meetings to reflect on their practice. The manager has had a yearly appraisal. However, the appraisal does not include feedback from professionals or the children living in the home. This is a missed opportunity for leaders to further reflect on their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have good monitoring and review systems in place. This helps the manager to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the service. The manager welcomes independent scrutiny of the home and as such welcomes the independent person monthly. The manager actions any recommendations made. This supports the development of the service.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Of the two recommendations raised at the last inspection, one has been met and one has been re-stated. Inspection report children's home: 1240573 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, 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

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and 29 December 2024 Inspection report children's home: 1240573 6 within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that any consequences given to children are recorded in line with the regulation and the effectiveness of the consequence is considered.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff appraisals include the views of other professionals who have worked with staff over the year, and the views of children who have been cared for at the home. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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 children's home: 1240573 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Sandcastle Care Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 2 Barton Close, Grove Park, Enderby, Leicester LE19 1SJ

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Inspector

Julie Elder, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 1240573 8 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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