Children's home run by ROC Family Time Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 1 Registered provider: ROC Family Time 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 home is owned and run by a private company. It provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties and who may have learning disabilities, physical disabilities, and/or sensory impairment.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home. The inspector spoke with both children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2023.

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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: 18 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: 2688209 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/09/2023 Full Good 28/11/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make progress while they live at this home. They experience care from staff who are committed to them. Consequently, children achieve a sense of stability and security. Relationships between children and their carers flourish.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff adopt a therapeutic parenting approach and children have developed trusting relationships with staff quickly. One child has gained the confidence to share their views about their future care plan. The manager and staff advocated on the child’s behalf to ensure that the child’s views were taken seriously in formal legal procedures.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are treated with dignity and respect. Staff know the children well and understand the influence of past trauma. This helps staff to respond to the children’s needs and behaviours. They use careful and sensitive language to discuss any difficulties or challenges that children may experience.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a say about what happens in their home. The team has achieved an ‘Investing in Children’ award in recognition of how they include the children’s views. Children have chosen the décor in the home and garden, which helps to create a sense of belonging. Additionally, one child has advocated for an increase in finances in recognition of the increase in the cost of living. As a result, the senior leaders increased the financial support for children. This helps children to see that their views and opinions are important.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff promote education and achievements for the children. They and the manager are diligent in securing education for children. Consequently, children are helped to return to education despite previous barriers or non-attendance. This helps children to learn and build friendships with peers. This raises the children’s aspirations and increases opportunities for their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to understand children’s unique communication needs. They help children to develop their social and communication skills and gain confidence in new situations. For example, one child gained part-time employment over the summer holidays and started driving lessons. Additionally, staff help children to develop independence skills in preparation for moving out of the home. This includes budgeting, cooking, self-care, and practical household tasks. This helps to prepare children with skills that they can use in adulthood.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are effectively supported when they move into the home. Children usually move in a planned way. Where possible, the children visit the home and meet the staff before they move in, to help alleviate some of the anxiety that a move of home can bring.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is generally well maintained. Children’s photos that capture special moments with staff adorn the walls. This provides children with a sense of pride in celebration of Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 4 their achievements. However, one child’s bathroom was unclean. Children’s bedrooms were untidy, with empty food containers and an item of broken furniture. One child’s bedroom has been damaged by a leak, which has prevented any other remedial work of damage.

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

Staff are skilled at building and maintaining positive relationships with children. Staff know the children well and understand what action to take to keep them safe. Children’s plans are thorough and updated regularly. Any changes in risk assessments are easy to identify, which means that staff can respond to risks promptly. Children’s key-work sessions are planned and meaningful to the challenges that the children experience.

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

When risks in the community increase for children, the manager and staff are diligent and persistent in their response to keep children safe. When children are missing from home, they receive a well-coordinated response to help ensure their safe return.

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

The manager and senior leaders take allegations seriously. Engagement with multi- agency safeguarding professionals is a strength at this home. Appropriate action is taken to safeguard children. Additionally, staff are well supported when investigations take place. Staff understand the whistle-blowing process and how to respond to concerns about staff conduct. This helps to ensure that children are cared for by safe adults.

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

Positive behaviour is promoted in the home. Children enjoy incentives that are linked to developing their skills and abilities. Staff use de-escalation strategies effectively, so children are rarely held. When children are held, they are given the opportunity share their views. Occasionally, financial consequences are used in response to unwanted behaviour and damage to items in the home. However, they are not restorative, and the manager does not record the effectiveness of the consequence used. This limits the purpose of the consequence to help the child learn.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager leads the home with enthusiasm and dedication. She embraces opportunities to develop her own learning and shares this with the company’s other managers. The manager leads by example and is committed to developing staff’s skills and knowledge. She recognises the potential in staff and encourages their progression to senior positions. This improves staff morale and creates a harmonious atmosphere in the home. Consequently, staff work well together to provide consistent care that benefits the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are extremely positive about working at this home. They benefit from the support and array of available training that enhances their skills and their care of children. Staff consistently say that the home feels like a family environment and that the team work well together. Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 5 Staff receive consistent support from the manager. Regular practice-related supervisions enable staff to reflect on their practice and the children’s progress. The manager uses team meetings and workshops to develop staff practice. Topics include therapeutic parenting, risk assessments, recording and report writing. The manager uses learning from practice and feedback to improve staff’s knowledge and the quality of care that children receive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a strong advocate for children living at this home. She is steadfast in ensuring that children receive the service they are entitled to.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has effective oversight of incidents in the home. The staff and manager complete audits of children’s files. However, they do not always identify when statutory documents are missing. This limits the manager’s ability to be certain that staff are following children’s most up-to-date care plan. Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 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

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 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)) 28 February 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that sanctions used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature to help children recognise the impact of behaviour on themselves and others. In particular, the registered person should include a review of the effectiveness of the measure used. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 46, paragraph 9.38)  The registered person should ensure that monitoring and review systems are effective to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. In particular, the registered person should ensure that audit tools are effective in identifying missing documents. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 52, paragraph 10.2) Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 7

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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: 2688209 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: ROC Family Time Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hope House, Burnhope, Newton Aycliffe, Durham DL5 7ER

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Inspector

Cat Makel, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2688209 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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