Children's home run by Aspris Children’s Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 1 Registered provider: Aspris Children’s Services 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

This privately run home provides care and support for up to six children who may have experienced neglect, abuse and/or trauma that has left them vulnerable. The children may have autism, a diagnosis of developmental delay or have learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a Department for Education-registered school on the same site. The inspector only inspected the social care provision.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 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 outstanding

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/08/2023 Full Outstanding 11/05/2022 Full Good 07/02/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 13/04/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, three children have moved out of the home and three children have moved in. Three children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. All three children were seen, two of whom were spoken with.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children continue to receive generally good support to help them move in and out of the home. Approaches are individualised, inclusive and well documented in records that help the children understand the plans for their moves. One child was able to move out to an adult living setting. When children move in, they are made to feel welcome. They are given helpful information about the home in a format they will understand and receive letters from other children who live there. For two children, their moves were linked to the home no longer being able to meet their needs. Leaders managed this sensitively. This has helped children have as positive an ending as possible in the circumstances.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All three children are in education. One child attends the school on site and has made progress. Each child has a timetable that meets their needs and helps them engage with education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has made significant progress because of the care and support that they have received. They have grown socially, emotionally and physically. The positive change for this child has been substantial.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to live healthy lifestyles. They help the children to think about their food choices and what is good for them. Staff encourage children to access support for their mental well-being. Leaders and managers are introducing therapeutic practitioners to the home to help staff understand how to best support children’s health and well- being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children experience an array of activities with staff. Children regularly attend youth clubs in their local area. They enjoy days out, trips to beach and holidays. One child was helped to explore some of their family history from the area where they grew up as part of a holiday experience. This helps children to make sense of their identity.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff regularly speak to children about their thoughts and feelings. Children are helped to share their views in regular conversations and in children’s meetings. Children are confident to share their views, and the suggestions children make are listened to.

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

Staff have good relationships with children. Children have identified key people who they can talk to and trust. A child said they love a staff member who helps them and keeps them safe. Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 4 Staff help children to learn new strategies to think about their feelings and how they can express themselves. This has helped children to learn to speak to their peers to resolve conflict. For another child, their episodes of self-harm reduced significantly because they could talk to staff about their feelings.

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

Staff regularly reward children and offer them positive affirmations about their experiences and what they are doing well. Staff capture children’s experiences in detailed memory books. This helps to create a sense of belonging for children. In return, children have created positive books for staff.

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

Staff understand the risks the internet may pose to children. Some children who live at the home are vulnerable on social media. Staff have supported children to think about ways they can keep safe online, with specific workbooks and information to help them think about safe experiences. The manager suitably identified when steps to keep one child safe were not working and worked with relevant professionals to improve safety.

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

Children sometimes go missing from home. When this happens, staff look for the child and will involve the police when necessary. Often, when children have left the home, they do not travel far and are only missing for short periods of time. The manager regularly requests return home interviews to help understand why children have left the home. However, on one occasion, a child went missing from the home and staff did not immediately notice. Records relating to this incident lacked some detail and had the potential to dilute opportunities for improvements to be made.

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

On one occasion, an incident between two children took place because of poor adult supervision. This incident was notified to the local authority designated officer and Ofsted. There was an appropriate investigation into the incident and leaders and managers took the necessary steps to ensure a similar incident did not occur in future.

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

Children rarely need to be held by staff at the home. Despite some periods of time when behaviour has been difficult, there have only been two occasions since the last inspection when staff have needed to hold children. However, the records of these interventions are not sufficiently detailed and do not capture debriefs with staff or children. Consequently, although there were no concerns about the incidents themselves, the records offer limited value to enable reflection or review.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and deputy manager are long-standing members of the team. They are dedicated to the children and strive for excellence in the experiences children have when they come to live at the home. The manager is suitably qualified and experienced. The manager is supported by a confident deputy manager who is undertaking a relevant management qualification.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Notwithstanding the issues with some recording, the manager has an excellent overview of almost all records and tracks children’s progress and experiences over time. Records Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 5 show the attention to detail, care and planning that go into creating plans for children to help them thrive. There are consistent and proactive conversations with professionals to help make the best decisions for children, even at times when staff are challenged by children’s behaviour. Despite these challenges, staff remain committed to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Aspirations and expectations are high in this home. Leaders and managers want the best outcomes for children. A social worker said: ‘David is an incredibly therapeutic and realistic manager and he ensures staff tailor their approach to the child.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff have regular and highly effective supervision sessions. Supervision sessions are detailed and cover relevant topics and explore scenarios to help staff learn. Staff said they felt extremely well supported by the home’s manager and deputy manager. If staff need additional support, this is provided with additional supervision. When staff are not meeting the manager’s practice standards, there is clear challenge in supervision to address any practice issues.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular training in line with the home’s policy. Staff said the training has really helped them to think about children’s needs and the manager reinforces learning through practice discussions. When children move into the home with additional needs the manager ensures training is available to help staff learn about and understand children’s specific needs. Team meetings are thorough and are used successfully to improve staff knowledge and understanding.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers ensure the home is maintained to a high standard. It is homely, welcoming and personalised to children. Repairs to the home are made in a timely way and children contribute to decisions made about the home. Social workers commented on the quality of the home environment and how this made children feel valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers work extremely closely with children’s social workers to help develop plans that are right for children. There are extensive records to support the careful care planning decisions that are made with professionals to help keep children safe. Social workers were consistently positive about communication from the manager and staff’s understanding of children’s needs at times of challenge. Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 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 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.

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iv)(vii)(b)(i)(c)) 28 February 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure there is an evaluation of episodes of going missing to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff, or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.31)

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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 Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 7 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: 1278017 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aspris Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 Barton Close, Grove Park, Enderby, Leicester LE19 1SJ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Michelle Batchelor

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Inspector

Rebecca Hannell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1278017 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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