Alternative Approach Ltd

Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 1 Alternative Approach Ltd Registered provider: Alternative Approach Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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provider

This supported accommodation service is operated by a private provider. The provider can accommodate up to 29 individuals in a self-contained unit where the accommodation is for the sole use of one person, and up to four individuals in one shared or group-living home that is limited to accommodating looked-after children or care leavers. The provider operates in the north-west part of England.

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provider

At the time of the inspection, 20 individuals, who were looked-after children or care leavers aged 16 or 17, were being accommodated.

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provider

There have been two registered service managers since the provider registered in November 2023. However, at the time of the inspection, there was no registered service manager, with the post being vacant since November 2024. An individual has been appointed to this position but has yet to apply for registration.

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provider

Inspection dates: The inspection was announced on 20 January 2025 and began that day. The inspectors were on site from 22 to 24 January 2025.

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Outcome

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects some children’s experiences, and this may limit their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements. The next inspection will be in approximately 18 months.

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Summary of findings

Children live in good-quality accommodation, which is conveniently located for them to access community resources. Accommodation is safe and well maintained.

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Summary of findings

Children have positive relationships with staff and feel that staff provide good levels of support.

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Summary of findings

Changes to senior managers have affected the quality of service delivery. Documents such as the statement of purpose and children’s guides have not been Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 2 routinely updated to reflect these changes. A quality of support review has not been carried out since April 2024.

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Summary of findings

Staff do not always receive the training they require to best meet the needs of the children they support. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children like the accommodation they live in. They are homely and welcoming environments, where children want to spend time. Children can report any maintenance issues directly to the organisation’s maintenance team. This ensures that any problems are swiftly addressed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children have good relationships with the staff who support them. One child commented, ‘The staff do their best to support me with appointments, food shopping and cleaning. They support me to learn the skills which I will need for when I live independently in the future.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children like the geographical area where they live. They are close to local amenities and resources, which enables them to access a range of activities easily. It also allows them to keep in contact with their family and friends.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Staff prioritise children’s health needs. They support children to register with health services and to access specialist support when needed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s views are not always clear. The child’s voice does not routinely form part of their placement plans. Children’s meetings are irregular, and a key-work system has only just been introduced. Consequently, children have few opportunities to express their views.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children’s guides to their accommodation contain inaccurate information. They do not include the use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) at the premises or information to support children’s cultural and religious needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children do not always move into their accommodation in a planned way, and they do not always visit their accommodation before they move in. On one occasion, the child’s bedroom had not been fully furnished before their arrival. These factors increase children’s anxiety about their move.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Similarly, children do not always move on from the organisation in a planned way. Transition planning is not well considered or documented. Therefore, it is unclear how staff can best support the child to move on in a positive way.

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Overall experiences and progress of children

Children know how to make a complaint, and a small minority have done so. Complaints have been explored by managers, and the child has received the outcome of the investigation. On occasion, this has also included a restorative meeting between those involved. This helps to repair any damage to their relationship.

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How well children are helped and protected

Children say they feel safe in their accommodation. They understand the rules and boundaries in their accommodation, although they can present with some Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 4 challenging behaviour. Staff do not routinely undertake de-escalation or behaviour management training. This has resulted in some incidents escalating, as staff do not know the best way to respond to children’s heightened behaviour.

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How well children are helped and protected

There are some positive and trusting relationships between children and staff. Consistency in support staff helps to ensure that staff have a good understanding of children’s risks and vulnerabilities, although this is not always reflected in children’s records.

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How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers have failed to notify Ofsted of several serious incidents. Incidents that have been notified have not always been reported in a timely way. This limits Ofsted’s ability to ensure that the provider has taken the necessary actions to keep children safe.

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How well children are helped and protected

When children do not return home as planned, staff try to locate them before reporting them as being missing from home. However, records do not consistently include details of the individuals spoken to or the attempts made by staff to contact the child. This information could be crucial if the child remains missing from home.

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How well children are helped and protected

Leaders and managers do not consistently follow safer recruitment processes. While the organisation carries out a range of recruitment checks, insufficient professional curiosity has resulted in potential gaps in staff’s employment history not being identified or explored. In addition, on the rare occasion that agency staff have been required, the organisation has not obtained sufficient details about the individual before allowing them to work in the accommodation. This compromises the effectiveness of the recruitment process.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Since registration, there have been several changes to the senior management team. The nominated individual took up post in November 2024. The new service manager has yet to apply to Ofsted for registration. The nominated individual and service manager have the required experience and qualifications to drive forward improvements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Current leaders and managers are child focused. They have identified areas for improvement, which includes the implementation of a new management structure in each accommodation setting. This has resulted in clearer lines of responsibility. There is also a suitably revised workforce development plan.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not sufficiently monitor or audit the quality of the service. This would help them to focus on areas for development. The manager has not carried out a quality of support review since April 2024. This means that staff have not formally consulted with children, staff or involved agencies to help inform the development of the service since this time.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers do not routinely update documents such as the statement of purpose and children’s guides to reflect changes in the organisation or practice. This Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 5 limits their usefulness to children and social workers, who rely on these documents for crucial information.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Managers do not consistently consider the needs of all children in the accommodation setting when a new child moves in. Additionally, they do not take into consideration the skills of the staff supporting them. This has resulted in some children having a further unnecessary move.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff are positive about the recent change in senior managers and of their support. However, supervision records are not always available, and staff have not had an annual performance appraisal. This would provide an opportunity to celebrate what has gone well and target areas for staff personal development and progression. This helps to motivate staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Multi-disciplinary teamwork is good. Social workers are positive about communication from staff and managers. They receive a weekly report about each child, which they find helpful. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023 and the ‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the supported accommodation undertaking that puts children first and prioritises their wellbeing and development.

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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

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills appropriate for the work that they are to perform;

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Requirement Due date

implement recruitment practices that ensure staff are suitable to work with children and to keep them safe from harm. (Regulation 4 (1) (2)(c)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff receive behaviour management and other specific training to support the needs of the children they support. In addition, ensure that any discrepancies in staff employment dates are fully explored, and full employment information is known about any agency staff used. 10 March 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 18 (4)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all staff receive an annual performance appraisal. 10 March 2025

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify the CIECSS and any relevant person without delay if— 10 March 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 7 a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child and the registered person considers that incident to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the supported accommodation undertaking or a person working for it;

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry);

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Requirement Due date

there is an incident involving the use of a measure of restraint of a child;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 27 (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all serious incidents are notified to Ofsted without undue delay.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain a system for monitoring and improving the quality of support provided by the supported accommodation undertaking by completing a review (“a quality of support review”) at least once every six months, which must take into account—

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Requirement Due date

the views of children, including any feedback and complaints received;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from individual children on the impact the supported accommodation has had on the child’s life, especially regarding how well prepared the child felt for transition into supported accommodation and how well prepared the child feels for transition out of supported accommodation;

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Requirement Due date

feedback from each child’s accommodating authority, staff and any relevant persons; 10 March 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 8 any relevant research and developments in relation to the way in which the needs of children are best met.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of support review, the registered person must produce a written report setting out the actions the registered person intends to take as a result of that quality of support review.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must provide a copy of the review report to the CIECSS within 28 days beginning with the day on which the report is completed, and make a copy of it available on request to each child’s accommodating authority. (Regulation 32 (1) (a)(b)(c)(d) (2) (3))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that reports are completed and forwarded to Ofsted once every six months and include consultation with children, staff and other professionals.

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Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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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

ensure that plans for support are based on initial referral information, are meaningful and are created in full consultation with the child, taking account of relevant plans for the child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure a plan for support is in place to support the child to develop the resilience and skills required to transition out of supported accommodation when the child is ready to live more independently. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(b)(k))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are actively involved in the formulation and review of their placement plans and that transition planning supports the child’s smooth move on from the accommodation. 10 March 2025

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Requirement Due date

The support standard is that children receive individual and tailored support that meets their needs.

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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

before a child arrives or upon a child’s arrival, ensure that the child is given a written guide, in an accessible format, containing information about— 10 March 2025 Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 9 the support and accommodation provided by the supported accommodation undertaking;

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Requirement Due date

what services and facilities are available that take account of children’s needs arising as a result of cultural differences or disability;

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Requirement Due date

and which the registered person must keep under review, seeking children’s comments before revising the written guide. (Regulation 7 (1) (2)(j)(i)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the children’s guide includes accurate information about the local area, details the arrangements for CCTV and includes how children’s cultural needs will be met.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it, and

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Requirement Due date

notify the CIECSS of any revisions and send the CIECSS a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 9 (3)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this document must be regularly updated to ensure that it is current, and it must be forwarded to Ofsted. 10 March 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they fully consider the impact that a potential new child will have on the existing group of children living in a property, taking into account their previous experiences and trauma when determining if the placement is appropriate. (‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’, page 17)  The registered person should ensure that records detailing individual incidents of children missing from the service contain details of the actions taken by staff to try to locate the child. Monitoring of such incidents should also be carried out to help identify and address such shortfalls. (‘Guide to the Supported Accommodation Regulations, including Quality Standards’, page 55) Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 10

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children 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 Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023. Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 11

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider: Alternative Approach Ltd

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Supported accommodation provider details

Registered provider address: Unit 2, Rossmore Business Village, Inward Way, Ellesmere Port CH65 3EY

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Supported accommodation provider details

Email address: referrals@alternativeapproach.org

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Inspectors

Mandy Williams, Social Care Inspector Tracey Sykes, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for supported accommodation provider: Alternative Approach Ltd 12 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 children looked-after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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