Children's Home run by Pelican Care Group Limited in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 1 Registered provider: Pelican Care Group Limited

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and operated by a private provider.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

It is registered to provide care for up to two children with social and emotional needs. Two children were living in this home at the time of the inspection.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2023.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/06/2023 Full Good 07/03/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide a nurturing environment for children. Both have made significant progress from their starting points.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the impact children’s experiences can have on them. When their relationships with children are not positive, staff work hard to understand why and take steps to repair them. Staff are sensitive in their approach to children. One child said, ‘Staff are amazing, and I love them all.’

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well decorated and well maintained and has been redecorated. Staff support children to decorate their bedrooms according to their tastes and interests. Photos of children enjoying activities and of people who are important to them are displayed throughout the home. Children are relaxed and comfortable in the home.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have discussions with children about the things that are important in their lives. Staff plan the discussions they will have with children, so that all important areas are covered. Staff assess whether children should revisit topics and they do so if needed. Children learn about what is important in their lives in a well-planned and coordinated way.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff prepare children for their futures. When plans for children change, staff ensure that they accelerate learning, so children are fully prepared for moving out of the home to live independently. Staff provide the emotional and practical support that children need to succeed in their adult life.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff promote children’s cultures, finding community-based services to educate them and nurture their identity. The staff team is diverse. Staff explore local resources, undertake research and listen to children to try and ensure that their needs are met.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s relevant documents are not always up to date. This means that not all staff have access to the most recent information about the children.

p.3

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

Risks assessments contain relevant risks and are updated regularly. They contain clear strategies for staff to follow. Staff understand the risks to children and how to manage them. Risk assessments reflect emerging issues and include contributions from children and professionals. This helps to keep children safe.

p.3

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

Children feel comfortable to raise issues with and about staff. They are encouraged to share their wishes and feelings. Children feel listened to and understand that their views are important. This helps children to feel valued. Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 4 There have been no recent missing-from-home incidents. However, staff understand children’s individual plans, which are updated following any missing episodes with information to reduce future risks. Staff maintain regular communication with children when they are away from the home and proactively search for them. Children are quickly found and returned to the home.

p.3

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

Staff ensure that there are consistent boundaries in place for each child. Staff develop contracts with children to ensure that the expectations are clear, such as how to safely manage their mobile phone use. Staff use incentives to encourage children’s positive behaviour. Children know the expectations of their behaviour and experience a consistent level of care.

p.4

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

When staff give consequences to children, these are fair, proportionate and linked to the behaviours. Consequences are restorative and give the child the opportunity to fix the issue. Children are helped to understand the impact of their behaviour on themselves and others.

p.4

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

Medication records are not always clear and not all medication has been recorded. This could impact on children’s well-being if they do not receive the correct medication.

p.4

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

Some staff were not familiar with the whistle-blowing policy. This does not ensure that all staff will take the most appropriate action if there is a safeguarding issue or a concern about staff practice.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has a clear understanding of the progress of children in the home. He uses several monitoring systems to ensure that staff understand the improvements that children make and if children and staff require any additional support.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

An independent person visits the home regularly and speaks with staff and children. The manager responds promptly to any recommendations made.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular opportunities to reflect on their work with children. Supervision is used as an opportunity to reflect on staff practice and identify any areas for development or training. Supervision records are of a high standard.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff complete training available to them. The manager identifies training that supports staff to meet the specific needs of children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Since the last inspection, there have been some changes in staffing. The managers and leaders have ensured that this has caused minimal disruption to the children. The manager has not used any agency staff and there are now sufficient staff to care for children in the home. The manager has worked hard to ensure that staffing is stable. Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 5 Safer recruitment is in place to ensure that staff are fully vetted and safe to work with children. However, some staff do not have the right documents on file in relation to their right to work in the UK.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are visible in the home and staff feel able to approach them. Staff said leaders and managers are supportive in relation to their personal lives, which means they are settled and able to work to the best of their ability when they are at the home.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has addressed the requirements and recommendations from the last inspection. Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 6

p.5

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that—

p.6

Requirement Due date

medicines kept in the home are stored in a secure place so as to prevent any child from having unsupervised access to them;

p.6

Requirement Due date

medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that systems in place to manage medication are consistently followed by staff and are in line with the home’s medication policy. 24 January 2025

p.6

Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

p.6

Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home;

p.6

Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements

p.6

Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

p.6

Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform; 27 January 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 7 the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d))

p.7

Requirement Due date

The provider must ensure that staff’s right to work documents are available on staff files before they start work.

p.7

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.7

Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1) (2)(c))

p.7

Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that there is an up-to-date care plan in place for each child from the placing authority and that managers escalate the issue to ensure these documents are received. 31 January 2025

p.7

Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s internal whistle-blowing procedures through the induction process. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.9)

p.7

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: 2686658 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pelican Care Group Limited

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: C/o Holden Associates, V12 Suite, Merlin Park, Ringtail Road, Burscough, Lancashire L40 8JY

p.8

Inspectors

Cathy Wilkins, Social Care Inspector Paul McKay-Smith, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2686658 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.8

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspectors

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

p.9