Children's home run by SWAAY Child & Adolescent Services Ltd in Sutton

Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 1 SC431807 Registered provider: SWAAY Child & Adolescent Services Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered to provide care for up to five children who require specialist support and therapeutic intervention. It is owned and run by a private organisation. There were four children living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/08/2023 Full Outstanding 18/10/2022 Full Good 28/06/2022 Full Inadequate 16/03/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress because of the strong and stable relationships they have with staff. They can speak to staff about challenges they experience and when they have questions about their identity. Children learn about tolerance and acceptance through staff mentoring and as a result, they live more comfortably together.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage children to value their education. Most of the children attend local colleges. Staff provide extra help at college when this is required. If a child’s attendance decreases, staff work with the college and the children collaboratively to overcome barriers. Staff have helped one child to apply for volunteering roles locally to pursue their passion for working with animals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the children to develop new skills. The children learn to shop for themselves, cook meals and look after their own personal hygiene. Most children now travel to college on their own using public transport. As a result, children’s confidence is growing. They are learning to become increasingly independent and be better prepared to live independently when the time comes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the children to prepare for their futures. Staff work closely with the children’s therapists to help the children to repair and improve their relationships with their families. The staff make sure that the children learn about their rights and entitlements. They are helped to understand how to look after themselves when things do not go to plan. When children experience loss, they receive a highly caring and thoughtful approach from staff to help them through this difficult time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make a complaint. Their views are taken seriously, and staff act on them promptly. Managers check that the children understand the response they receive. To address their issues, children are encouraged to advocate for themselves in a supported way. This encourages children to develop their skills and take responsibility for situations. This has had a positive impact on the group-living dynamic.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When children move on from the home, they do so in a planned way. Staff advocate strongly for children to ensure they have a positive experience of moving on, even in challenging circumstances. Staff continue to maintain appropriate contact with children and young people once they have left the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is warmly decorated and children’s bedrooms are highly personalised. Children’s views are considered in decisions about changes in the home. However, a loud musical alarm which can be heard through the house is used to remind staff about medication administration. This is overly intrusive for children and is not in keeping with the otherwise homely atmosphere. Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 4

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

When children go missing from home, they experience a well-coordinated response from staff. The staff work with the police and others in the children’s networks to locate them and ensure their safe return. The children are welcomed back to the home warmly; this encourages safe return in the future. Staff work efficiently with placing authorities to ensure children are offered an opportunity to speak to someone independent about their time away from the home.

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

Children’s safety online is well managed. Staff monitor children’s online activity to ensure that they are not accessing inappropriate sites. When there are concerns about children’s actions, staff provide advice and support in a non-judgemental way. As a result, children can continue to access the internet safely.

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

Physical intervention has not been used since the last inspection. The manager and staff have developed a culture in which children do not expect to be restrained. Staff know the children well. They use their relationships with them to better understand the challenges the children face and provide a more personalised and supportive response. As a result, children have more positive experiences.

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

Staff understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities. They take effective action to address concerns about children’s safety. However, one child’s plans had not been updated to fully reflect the progress the child had made in reducing their risk. As a result, this child has experienced undue restriction and supervision.

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

Positive behaviour is consistently promoted. Children’s achievements are rewarded frequently, while the use of consequences is focused on restoration and learning outcomes. Children are involved in decisions about how to make amends for their actions. However, some consequences given to children have not been recorded. This means that the manager has missed opportunities for analysis and external scrutiny to ensure that consequences are fair and proportionate.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager ensures that the staff deliver high-quality care for the children. The manager works closely together with the experienced deputy manager. The manager feels well supported by senior managers and the wider organisation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have a clear understanding of the progress the children are making. They recognise what progress looks like for each child individually. They use effective monitoring systems to understand the strengths of the home and have clear plans in place to address areas for development.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say they feel supported, and they benefit from regular, high-quality professional supervision. This has helped managers to identify how they can better help staff to support children. For example, they have provided further training opportunities. Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 5 Managers have promptly addressed issues when staff have not provided care in line with the standards expected. As a result, children receive good-quality care from staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers demonstrate strong networking to build effective relationships in the local community. They have built robust relationships with local colleges to provide further support to the children when they have experienced challenges. This has resulted in a sustained placement at college for one child that might otherwise have broken down. Managers have also consulted with local safeguarding partners to review incidents when children have gone missing from home. This has meant that children experience a more collaborative response from professionals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staffing arrangements do not always ensure sufficient staff to respond to children’s needs. While relevant risk assessments identify associated risks, they do not always adequately mitigate risk. As a result, there is the potential that children may experience more restrictive practice than would otherwise be needed to keep them safe. Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 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

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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 home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that the staffing of the home is arranged so that the staff on duty are safely able to meet the assessed needs of all children. 21 March 2025

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess children’s risks and the arrangements in place to protect them and others. When these risks are assessed as having reduced, relevant plans and safeguards should also be reviewed to ensure that children are not disproportionately restricted or excessively supervised. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  The registered person should ensure that the home provides a nurturing and supportive environment and seek as far as possible to maintain a domestic rather than institutional impression. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that all incidents of control, discipline and restraint are subject to systems of regular scrutiny to ensure that their use is fair. Any

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Recommendations

consequences used should be appropriately recorded and reviewed independently. Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 7 (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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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: SC431807 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: SWAAY Child & Adolescent Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: SWAAY Child & Adolescent Services Ltd, 591 London Road, Cheam, Sutton, Surrey SM3 9AG

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Inspector

Glen Strowbridge, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC431807 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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