Children's Home run by Esland North Limited in Leicestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2483693 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private company. It offers care for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties and/or have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2023.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were 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 outstanding

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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: 24 January 2024

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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: 2483693 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/01/2024 Full Good 21/02/2023 Full Good 04/10/2021 Full Outstanding 08/10/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2483693 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All three children living in the home contributed to this inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy and relaxed in their home environment. Staff support children to build positive and trusting relationships, and they provide high-quality care and support. Staff have a comprehensive knowledge of children’s individual needs and risk factors, which means that children receive individualised care that meets their needs. One child said that he enjoys living at the home. He said, ‘Staff do a great job of looking after me.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children continue to make positive progress in their educational development. One child did not attend education and is now attending college daily and aspires for their future career. The manager is a strong advocate for children’s educational needs and is working closely with education partners to identify a school that is better suited for one of the children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to take part in activities to promote fun and routine. Children experience positive life events, such as going on holiday and taking part in activities together. Staff deliver good-quality direct work with children that is specific to their individual needs. For one child, staff have focused on providing emotional support due to their anxieties around their future care plan. This has led to a reduction in the child displaying behaviours that challenge relating to these anxieties.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop their independence skills in line with their stage of development. For one child, this has supported them to develop their independence skills in readiness for moving on to more-independent living arrangements. As a result, the child’s level of maturity and confidence has flourished.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children see their families and the people who are important to them. The manager and staff work hard to maintain positive relationships with children’s families and are confident to supervise family time.

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

Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of children’s individual support plans and risks. The manager reviews assessments and plans regularly in line with any changes to need or risk.

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

The manager and staff are committed to providing consistent care and support to children. For one child, the manager and staff continued to care for them for several months during a period of crisis. Staff were able to support the child to move to a home better equipped to meet their complex needs. The manager worked closely with the child’s support network to ensure that they had a positive ending to their time living at the home. Staff support positive, planned transitions for children moving into the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483693 4 One child has greatly benefited from this as this is their first time living in a residential home.

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

Children have individual behaviour support plans. The plans are relevant, detailed, and clear in how to respond to children individually. At times, staff have not been confident to intervene to de-escalate a child’s behaviour, which has led to incidents becoming more serious in nature. Some staff said that although they understand the child’s behaviour support plan, they have not felt confident to intervene due to not having confidence in their colleagues. During incidents where the child has showed behaviours that challenge, there is a theme of some staff retreating to the office space. This heightened the child’s anxieties and behaviours.

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

The manager’s oversight of the home has ensured that such shortfalls have been identified quickly and addressed with the staffing team in all forums, such as supervision sessions, training sessions and team meetings. The manager’s actions have provided reassurance that identified concerns have been addressed. Staff say they feel more confident in themselves and one another’s practice following additional support and training provided by the manager and responsible individual.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and the staff team share high aspirations for children. The manager leads by example and supports staff in their care and safeguarding of children. Staff say that they receive excellent levels of support from leaders and managers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has excellent oversight of the home. His recordings are thorough and reflective of all aspects of children’s care. The manager’s presence in the home and relationships he has developed with the children further strengthen his oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager strives to improve practice and ensures that lessons are learned from significant incidents or events. The manager not only ensures that reflection takes place but acts on identified changes or improvements needed. The manager is proactive in supporting staff’s development needs, which staff speak positively about.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has developed and maintains systems to track children’s progress and staff’s development. These systems ensure that key information is disseminated throughout the home consistently. This has given consistency in the care provided to children, which staff say has increased their confidence in the support they provide.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Team meetings and formal supervision sessions are regular, reflective and include research-informed practice. Support for staff is ongoing and not restricted to formal supervision. Staff feel supported by one another and can speak openly about challenges. The manager is proactive in ensuring that staff have the right training to meet children’s individual needs. Staff also receive regular support from the home’s therapist, which supports the team’s development. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483693 5

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the behaviour management strategy is understood and always applied by staff, and it should be kept under review and revised where appropriate. This specifically relates to ensuring that staff’s responses to children’s behaviour are consistently in line with the child’s individual support plan. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.34)

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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: 2483693 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Esland Limited, Suites 1 and 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper DE56 0RN

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Inspector

Chloe Harvey, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2483693 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 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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