Children's home run by Platform Childcare Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 1 Registered provider: Platform Childcare Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who may experience social or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in February 2024 and is suitably qualified.

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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: 2627409 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/09/2023 Full Good 21/02/2023 Full Good 08/11/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, three children lived at the home. The children are settled and making good progress in all areas of their lives. Staff build trusting relationships with children, and children say that they feel able to share their wishes and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into the home are well planned and tailored to their individual needs. Since the previous inspection, two children have moved successfully into semi- independent accommodation. Children have their own independence booklets that detail the progress they are making towards independent living. When children leave, they receive a personalised memory book that reflects their time at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand children’s health needs well. Children’s health needs are known and recorded clearly in their plans. Children lead active lifestyles. For example, all three children attend a weekly boxing class in the local community. Staff identify specialised health services when needed and assist the children to access this support. Since the last inspection, the home has had access to a psychologist who offers specialised therapeutic support sessions to all children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has an education provider and attends regularly. The two children who are not currently attending an education setting are supported by staff to access a range of educational resources in the home and through social excursions. The registered manager acts as an advocate to ensure the education plans for children are being met and that they are kept under regular review.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy a range of activities and opportunities. Children go on regular trips that are tailored to their individual needs. All children have their own incentive charts that are regularly reviewed and provide a clear visual aid of the progress they are making.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support and enable children to keep in touch with their families. Staff are aware of the importance of helping children to maintain relationships with people who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean and well maintained. Children’s views are regularly sought in respect of how they feel about their home environment. Children are encouraged to take an active role in personalising the home to their individual needs. However, each child has an electronic surveillance device on their bedroom door. The manager does not regularly review the use of door alarms. This has the potential to unnecessarily limit children’s privacy and access in the home.

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

Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 4 Children express that they feel safe and can share their wishes and feelings with staff. One child said that if they couldn’t live with their biological family, then this is the next place they would choose to live.

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

Positive behaviour is consistently promoted. All children have individualised incentive charts that reflect their personal interests and the goals they are working towards. Staff use effective de-escalation techniques, which reduces the need for physical intervention.

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

Children’s risk assessments provide staff with guidance on the steps they need to take to reduce risk. Care plans are individualised to each child and regularly updated. Effective relationships between children and staff reduce the need for staff support. One child’s support need has reduced from two staff to one, and missing-from-home episodes have dramatically reduced. This evidences the progress that has been made in managing this child’s safety needs effectively.

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

Staff help children to understand and identify risk. Staff have regular discussions with children to help them explore their experiences of risk. These discussions identify early warning signs of risk and what support is in place to safeguard children.

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

The recording of information requires improvement. For example, there are gaps in the recording of case discussions with professionals for children’s care plans. Documents with key information have been destroyed before messages can be shared. This means that information is not consistently passed on to all the relevant people. This has been acknowledged by management as an area of progress for the team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has an ambitious vision for the home She is child-centred and role models this as an example for staff. Staff report they feel listened to and that they are supported by their manager to develop their skills to support children in reaching their full potential.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager understands each child’s journey and the importance of tailoring their support plans to their specific needs. The manager carefully considers the impact of new children coming into the home and encourages children living in the home to share their views about this. This has helped to create a very positive experience for children when moves have taken place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are used to reflect on staff experiences and on how staff use their skills to support children.’ New staff receive a detailed induction programme and have higher levels of supervision and reviews of their practice throughout their probationary period. Staff have personal development plans and appraisals to review the progress they are making and to identify where further support is needed. Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 5 The manager’s reflective summaries of safeguarding incidents are clear and consistently capture the learning that has taken place. The manager writes her response to the children in a child-friendly manner and explains clearly what action she will be taking. This creates a very open and transparent dialogue between her and the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers create an environment where children who leave the home request to remain in contact. This promotes positive relationships to continue into children’s adulthood. However, guidance and assessments for plans for this are not always clear, which has resulted in concerns being raised. The manager responded to these concerns to improve the quality of care. The manager acknowledged that individual assessments are required with regularly reviews to ensure that this contact is managed safely. Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 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, 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 registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that records are maintained effectively and stored appropriately. 16 December

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises —

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (c)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring the use of door alarms on children’s bedrooms is reviewed regularly. 16 December

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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: 2627409 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Platform Childcare Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Suite 2 Millennium Court, First Avenue, Burton-on-Trent DE14 2WH

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Inspector

Charlotte Tippett, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2627409 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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Inspector

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