Children's Home run by Impact Childcare and Education in Northumberland

Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 1 Registered provider: Impact Childcare and Education

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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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: 17 September 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

A full inspection was completed on 17 and 18 September 2024. Ofsted judged the home to be inadequate. A monitoring visit was carried out on 5 November 2024 to evaluate the provider’s response to the two compliance notices issued under Regulations 12 and 13. The registered person did not meet all the steps in the compliance notices, and therefore they were reissued. A further monitoring visit was carried out on 10 December 2024. At a case review on the 16 December 2024, both compliance notices were deemed met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/09/2024 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children living in the home have a sense of belonging. The property is homely, and there are photos of the children in the entrance hallway, which they are proud to show to visitors. Children can have their bedrooms decorated how they like. One child refers to the other children living in the home as ‘his brother and sister.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are supported by staff to develop their independence skills. They do this using an independence plan that is personalised to the needs of each child. Staff consider the views of other professionals and set achievable targets for the children. Professionals say they can see the progress that children are making.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand that it is important for children to develop social skills. Therefore, children are supported to attend local clubs and engage in activities to help them make friends. Professionals said, ‘The progress he has made socially is massive. I think he has developed and flourished.’ This helps children develop their social skills and promotes enjoyment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to understand and express their own identity and accept the identity of others. Staff have important conversations with children about difference and tolerance. This helps children to feel valued and raises their self-esteem. As a result, the children are respectful and accepting of each other.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Not all children are able to engage in a full-time curriculum. Staff work in partnership with education professionals to understand the children’s needs and the barriers to their attendance. This allows them to implement plans that aim to increase the number of hours children spend in school. As a result, all children are now attending school and making progress from their starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to spend time with their families. When appropriate, staff encourage family members to visit the home. Family members are able to see where their children live and feel more involved in the care of their child. One family member said, ‘They are always accommodating.’

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

There have been no instances of children going missing from home. The manager and staff have taken the time to understand children’s needs and triggers for behaviour. Staff have completed training and developed their skills in responding to children who are at risk of going missing from home. The manager ensures that all staff know protocols to follow and actions to take in the event a child goes missing from home.

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

Physical intervention is rarely used, and it is only used to ensure the safety of the child and others. Children are encouraged to express their views in reflective discussions Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 4 following the use of physical intervention. This enables them to understand why staff have used a hold and helps them to rebuild relationships.

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

Children are helped to understand their behaviour without staff imposing consequences. Staff have conversations with children about being kind to others and allow them time to reflect on those discussions. This gives children the opportunity to learn how to better manage their own behaviour. The staff evaluate incidents of behaviour to identify what may have triggered events. The evaluation is then used to develop and inform more effective care plans.

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

The manager’s oversight of children’s medication is effective in identifying when there is a discrepancy. On one occasion, the wrong dose of medication was provided to the home and subsequently administered to the child. Staff sought immediate medical advice to ensure the safety of the child. The manager contacted the GP and pharmacy to inform them of the discrepancy, to allow them to complete an investigation into how this occurred. New protocols for checking medication have been introduced to prevent a repeat of this in the future.

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

Children say that they feel safe in the home. Staff have a good understanding of the children’s risks and needs. Assessments are individual to each child, and staff work closely with the children’s care team to develop effective strategies to manage risk. This contributes to a more unified approach to keeping children safer. However, for one particular risk, staff were not consistent in how they would respond to safeguard a child. This inconsistent response may impact on the messages children receive about how to keep themselves safer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager promotes a culture of learning, seeking to develop herself and the team. The manager uses support groups and learning forums to enhance the staff’s skills and knowledge. Staff also have access to specific training relevant to the individual needs of the children. This has helped to improve the quality of care provided to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have the opportunity to discuss key elements of their role and better understand the children’s needs through regular, reflective supervision sessions. It is also an opportunity for the manager to enable staff to learn and develop their practice. Supervision sessions also help the manager to better understand the training needs of the staff team members and be assured of their ability to care for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported by their manager. One staff member said that the manager ‘will do everything she can to try and make things right’. The team dynamics have improved, and staff communicate with each other more effectively. Staff are supported to work better together, and this has led to an improvement in the consistency of care provided to the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 5 Not all documents were dated and signed by the author. The manager’s auditing systems have not identified this administrative shortfall. This makes it difficult to identify the most up-to-date information and could lead to staff having an inconsistent approach to caring for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

One requirement made under Regulation 14 has been reissued from the previous inspection. This is because there have been no children who have moved in or out of the home in this inspection period. Consequently, the provider has not been able to demonstrate that this has been met. Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 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 Home’s Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority; and

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is restated. 30 June 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff support children in strategies to manage and reduce risks. Staff should support children to understand how to stay safe. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.10)  The registered person should detail the records that must be kept in the home. All children’s case records must be kept up to date and be signed and dated by the author of each entry. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3) Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 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: 2758201 8

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Children’s Home details

Registered provider: Impact Childcare and Education

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Children’s Home details

Registered provider address: 3-5 Brenkley Way, Blezard Business Park, Seaton Burn, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE13 6DS

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Inspectors

Julia Hagan, Social Care Inspector Laura Roberts, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2758201 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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