Children's home run by Homes2Inspire Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 1 Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire 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 run by a private organisation that operates several registered children’s homes. It provides care for up to two children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child lived at the home, and one child had recently moved out.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in November 2022; she is currently away from the home on long-term leave. An interim manager is in place and has applied to register with Ofsted alongside the registered manager.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/05/2023 Full Good 26/04/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 25/01/2022 Full Inadequate 09/11/2021 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The atmosphere of the home is warm and welcoming throughout. The children are happy, safe and supported. Notably, one child has made significant progress in a short period of time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move into the home, they settle quickly because the staff learn about their needs and support them effectively. The staff use creative approaches to build connections with the children. They provide the children with the time and space necessary to develop trust and respect. Consequently, positive relationships are established. These relationships underpin the sensitive care that is responsive to the children’s identities and family histories.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the value of children’s relationships with the people who are important to them. They encourage them to spend time together or have video calls. The staff support children in re-establishing relationships with family and exploring links with their wider family networks, irrespective of how far away families live.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that the children have many opportunities to discuss their views, opinions and ideas. House meetings, meaningful conversations and one-on-one time with staff and managers ensure that children feel heard. The children see that their views are valued and acted on.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff encourage the children to attend regular health appointments. When these appointments are declined, the staff explore alternative options, such as having health professionals visit the child at home. Staff engage with the child in discussions about their health and well-being. This helps to motivate them to access these services.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff actively promote equality, diversity and inclusion among the children. For example, they supported one child to understand their sexuality and another their cultural identity. They enabled each child to express their views, wishes and feelings. Staff provide the children with opportunities to learn about different cultures and attend celebrations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager has been proactive in trying to ensure that the children have appropriate access to a suitable education. However, children have had varying experiences in relation to quickly accessing formal education. In cases when partner agencies have not ensured sufficient appropriate education for children, the manager and staff have taken appropriate and positive steps. Staff support the children’s learning and development, providing enrichment such as educational activities, trips and access to online learning. Feedback from educational professionals was unanimously positive. Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 4

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

Staff understand the vulnerabilities of the children and their responsibility to keep them safe. When concerns arise, they take appropriate action to ensure that the children receive the support they need to remain safe. Staff assess risks for children carefully and review these assessments regularly. Staff are not risk-averse. They recognise that taking well-managed risks is essential for children’s development. They strike a good balance between ensuring the children’s safety and allowing them age-appropriate freedoms and responsibilities, such as spending time in the community and socialising with friends.

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

The children who live, or have lived, at the home present various complex vulnerabilities, such as going missing from home for extended periods and the potential for exploitation. The staff manage challenging and risky situations effectively while remaining attentive to the children’s progress and development. The staff successfully collaborate with the multi-agency team to ensure the children’s safety and well-being.

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

The staff are skilled in helping the children understand their emotions and behaviours. As a result, physical intervention is rarely used. The staff support the children to reflect on difficult situations and explore strategies for managing their feelings. When necessary, staff seek advice from external professionals on how to best support the children through these difficult situations.

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

When children leave the home without permission or fail to return at the agreed time, staff take proactive steps to ensure their safe return. They communicate directly with the child, reach out to connected individuals and contact relevant agencies. For one child with a high level of risk, staff’s close partnership working and multi-agency collaboration played a crucial role in safeguarding the child.

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

The manager ensures that any concerns raised, or allegations made by children, are thoroughly investigated and addressed appropriately. Relevant information is shared with partner agencies, including the local authority designated officer for safeguarding. There is an open culture in which staff feel comfortable raising concerns with managers, who respond promptly to any issues raised. Managers follow procedures to safeguard children while investigations are conducted. Additionally, the manager has monitoring systems in place to facilitate continuous learning from incidents and events. This includes reflection sessions with individual staff members and the entire team to discuss what occurred and how it could have been handled differently or improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The experienced interim manager is a registered manager at another home within the organisation and has submitted an application to register with Ofsted. Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 5 The responsible individual is actively involved in the home. She places a high importance on investing in staff and is focused on developing the team to ensure that children receive consistent, high-quality care and support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is passionate and committed to the children and strives for them to receive the best care and life experiences. She knows the children and staff well and has plans in place to further develop the team. There is continual reflective learning to improve practice and ensure effective oversight of the children’s care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel well supported by the manager and senior leaders, who they describe as knowledgeable, experienced and approachable. Consequently, there is good morale and enthusiasm in the staff team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The leadership team values the diverse culture within the home. Staff feel well supported and express that their cultural backgrounds and perspectives are respected and appreciated. This creates an atmosphere of acceptance that is also demonstrated to the children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a comprehensive induction and training programme for the staff to ensure they have the skills and qualifications required for their role. This training is tailored to address the specific needs of the children residing in the home. Staff knowledge is regularly updated through discussions held during team meetings, supportive conversations, learning circles and supervisions. This enables staff to apply what they have learned in their daily practice effectively. However, for some staff members, the supervision provided is neither reflective nor well documented. This is a missed opportunity to ensure that all staff have the opportunity to develop in their roles and improve the care given to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The children’s care, support plans and records are of good quality. They provide a clear understanding of each child’s history and outline how to support each child individually. The children’s voices are included throughout. However, the language used in the recordings is not always child-focused, and it does not fully reflect the high quality of care and support that the children receive. Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the staff record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that all staff receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: 2515370 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Homes 2 Inspire Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lumonics House, Valiant Office Suites, Valley Drive, Swift Valley Industrial Estate, Rugby, Warwickshire CV21 1TQ

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Inspector

Sharron Dormand, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2515370 8 and inspects 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 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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