Children's Home run by Dimensions Care Limited in Coventry

Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 1 Registered provider: Dimensions Care Limited

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. It provides care for up to four children who may experience trauma.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2023 and is suitably qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living at the home at the time of this inspection. All three children were present during the inspection and spoke with the inspector.

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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 for children’s home: 2648446 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/07/2023 Full Good 15/12/2022 Full Good 17/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Four children have moved on from the home since the last inspection. Three of these children made remarkable progress while living at the home. They had carefully planned moves from the home. For example, they had opportunities to spend quality time with their new foster families and birth families before moving in with them. This supported them to settle quickly in their new homes. One child moved on from the home as staff and managers were worried that his needs could no longer be safely met there.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff are caring and nurturing and provide children with a lot of love and support. They work in liaison with the clinical team, which helps them to understand children’s lived experiences and trauma. As a result, they know how to best meet the individual needs of each child. Staff have positive relationships with all children living at the home. This has enabled children to engage with support given to them by staff, managers and partner agencies.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children make measurable progress considering their starting points. For example, staff and managers worked well with teachers in offering one child consistent support. This has helped the child to build trusting relationships with teachers, and their engagement with education has been excellent. Another child has built strong positive relationships with staff and shares information with them, helping them to provide guidance which enables her to make positive safe choices.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have opportunities to express their wishes and feelings in various ways, such as having quality time with staff and key-work sessions, and they have options to participate in reviewing their plans and to give their views on care planning. This means that children are involved in making decisions about their day-to-day care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have access to various activities in the home and the community. They enjoy simple pleasures such as playing in the garden, making meals, going on day trips, camping, bike rides, Halloween parties at the home and cinema visits.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home provides children with ample space to relax and unwind after a busy day. Children have personalised their bedrooms, which they are proud of. Some areas in the home need redecorating, for example, the main lounge has had a leak through the ceiling, bathtub sealant was mouldy in areas and parts of the fence outside need repair.

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

The manager and staff follow safeguarding process and procedures. They work in collaboration with other professionals to formulate safety plans to keep the children safe. Consequently, children feel safe living at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 4 Staff and managers understand the children’s lived trauma and experiences. Children’s risk management plans reflect the reasons for some of the behaviours displayed and risk assessments are of good quality. Risk plans give staff clear guidance to support them to keep children safe.

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

Missing-from-home incidents are well managed by staff and managers. They follow children’s missing-from-home protocols and work well with social workers, families and the police. When children return home, staff and managers use professional curiosity to find out why children went missing, who they had contact with, whether they suffered any harm and what support is required to keep them safe. In addition, all children receive independent return home interviews, in line with statutory guidance.

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

Physical intervention is used as a last resort to safeguard children and those around them. Managers ensure good management oversight of each restraint, which considers information from staff and the child and comments on the effectiveness of the use of restraint.

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

Staff use restorative practice with children in key-work discussions. The discussions help to develop the positive relationships staff have with the children. Staff use the PACE model of care (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy) when exploring with children what appropriate and inappropriate behaviours are. Children are clear what their routines and boundaries are. This has supported them to learn from behaviours, self- regulate and gain an understanding of how to keep themselves safe.

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

The home’s location risk assessment has been recently updated, however, does not show that consultation has taken place with partner agencies to ensure that all known local risks have been considered and assessed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager returned to manage the home in October 2024 after being on long-term leave. During her absence, there were periods when the monitoring of the home by the interim manager was poor and affected staff’s morale and relationships with partner agencies.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the manager’s return, the oversight of the home has significantly improved. Partner agencies said they are now kept informed about the children’s progress. Staff feel supported as they feel they have clearer guidance and expectations from the registered manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager and staff have access to mandatory training, specialist training and tailored training from the clinical team which supports the home’s therapeutic model of care. Children’s needs are met, and they are all making good progress considering their starting points. However, one member of staff is now out of timescales in completing their relevant qualification, and managers are supporting with this. Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 5 The registered manager and staff use reflective practice in supervisions and team meetings. Their focus is always on the children. They explore what they are doing well, what they can improve on and what they can do differently. However, managers do not ensure that agency staff who work at the home receive supervision. This is a missed opportunity to discuss staff practice and address any shortfalls promptly. Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 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 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;

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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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose; 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

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home is in good repair. 25 February 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that, under regulation 46, a review of the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home is completed at least once a year. When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1) Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 7  The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. In particular, the registered person should ensure that agency staff who work regularly at the home also receive effective supervision. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality

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Recommendations

standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should ensure that all staff in a care role, including external agency or bank staff, achieve the qualification in regulation 32(4) in the relevant timescale listed in regulation 32(5). (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.12)

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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: 2648446 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Dimensions Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5 Brooklands Place, Brooklands Road, Sale, Cheshire M33 3SD

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Inspector

Rumbi Mangoma, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2648446 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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