Children's Home run by Residential Child Care Community (Town Hall) Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 1 Registered provider: Residential Child Care Community (Town Hall) 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 home is owned and managed by a small private provider. The home 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, two children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2024. This was the first inspection since registration.

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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: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The registered manager and staff team know children well and have worked hard to develop positive relationships with them. Staff understand children’s individual communication needs and can adapt their approach in response to individual needs. As a result, children receive consistent, therapeutically informed care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s moves into the home are well planned and child focused. Children and their social worker’s visit the home and meet staff before they move in. Children are supported to gradually increase the time they spend with staff to develop their relationships and ensure that they feel comfortable in the home environment. Children are encouraged to personalise their bedrooms and communal areas of the home, which helps them develop a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are well known and understood by staff. When children have required additional support in their emotional well-being, staff have sought guidance from external practitioners. Both children receive individual therapeutic intervention, with the registered manager and deputy manager engaging in regular consultation with the children’s therapists. Staff are kept up to date regarding any developments from these discussions, which ensures that there is a consistent approach to children’s care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Following a significant incident, one child temporarily lived away from the home. The staff team remained consistent for both children and extensive direct work was completed to ensure that children maintained their relationships and an understanding of the concerns identified. A detailed plan supported the child to safely return to the home in line with both children’s wishes and feelings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make a complaint. Prior to children moving into the home, the managers consulted with professionals and adapted the home’s children’s guide to meet their individual needs. This ensured that this was accessible to children and provided them with clear information on the home and additional support services. There are clear, consistent and appropriate boundaries for children. This means children have a good understanding of the expectations in the home. This is an area that is continually being reviewed and developed by managers to adapt to children’s changing needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There have been challenges faced by children in accessing education. When children have not been in school, staff provide children with appropriate educational activities in the home and the local community. When barriers to learning are identified, managers have prioritised children’s emotional well-being and have sought to ensure that children access education that is bespoke and meets their individual needs. Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 3 Staff understand the importance of children’s relationship with family members and those who are important to them. Managers have advocated children’s views in an ongoing attempt to promote positive relationships with people important to them.

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

Individualised risk assessments ensure that staff understand the risks faced by children and the actions to take to promote their safety. Following a safeguarding incident in the home, the registered manager completed a detailed risk management plan and reviewed all strategies to ensure that the staff team could continue to meet the needs of both children living together. Staff have engaged in subject-specific training that ensures that they are well informed and equipped to provide appropriate responses to safeguard children.

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

Staff are skilled in de-escalating incidents, which means the use of physical intervention is rare. When incidents have occurred, managers have spoken to children to seek their views. Managers have consulted with the children’s therapists and have completed a review of incidents with the staff team to identify any areas for development, ensuring that there is consistency in staff responses.

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

Staff use positive behaviour approaches, which are informed by therapeutic consultation. Staff support children to make positive behaviour choices and have developed individual incentives to promote their effective engagement. As a result, staff avoid the use of negative or punitive measures to manage children’s behaviours.

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

There has been a recent reduction in the number of incidents in the home, which is reflective of children developing their trust in staff support. When incidents do occur, staff react quickly and effectively. Detailed reviews of any incident by the managers mean that children receive a predictable staff response and any shortfalls in staff practice are identified and supported. Children do not go missing from the home. However, there are clear procedures in place for staff to follow in the event that this was to happen.

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

The registered manager has developed and maintained regular and effective working relationships with professionals working with children. Regular care planning meetings continue to take place to review both children’s needs, to ensure that any new or emerging risks are identified and supported effectively. Managers have escalated a request for further assessment for one child to ensure that they receive any additional support as required and to inform future care planning.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is led by a confident and dedicated registered manager who models excellent practice and strives to achieve the most positive outcomes for children. The registered manager knows the children well and speaks passionately about their progress. He is supported by an enthusiastic deputy manager, who shares his motivation to promote children’s care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 4 The registered manager has high aspirations for staff and promotes their learning through continuous practice development. Staff are encouraged to engage in further training relating to their professional practice as well as training specific to individual children’s needs. The registered manager and deputy manager regularly identify additional research that is shared and explored with the team to develop staff’s skills and understanding of children’s individual needs. Staff have been educated around a

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

specific health need of the parent of children placed, which ensures that they are knowledgeable and can provide information to children when they are asked.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager understands the importance of detailed and evaluative quality assurance. He is thorough in his management oversight, which has enabled him to identify any patterns of behaviour for children. This ensures that the right support is put in place for children. The registered manager increased staffing ratios for specific days and times where he noted an increase in behavioural incidents with children. Due to this support, children have been better able to adapt to routines, and the need for additional staffing has now reduced.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the support they receive from managers and the wider staff team. One member of staff said, ‘[I] love working at the home due to the immense support from the managers.’ Staff say that the managers have developed a culture that promotes good-quality relationships between staff and children. Consequently, children trust the adults who work in the home, which helps them to feel safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is a strong advocate for children. Children are confident that their wishes and feelings are listened to and that their views are promoted when decisions are being made about their life.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular high-quality supervision from the registered manager or deputy manager. Staff are encouraged to discuss and review any new or emerging needs for children, as well as any progress made in their own professional development. The registered manager provides constructive challenge for staff and has supported their reflection on incidents where their response could be improved.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Team meetings are regular and well attended. The managers use these sessions to provide detailed updates on children in addition to reviewing any significant incidents in a constructive manner to identify any areas of development. The review of incidents is in-depth and focuses on utilising therapeutic models and approaches, which have significantly developed staff’s skills and understanding of behaviours. Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 5

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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: 2770880 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Residential Child Care Community (Town Hall) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 843 Finchley Road, London NW11 8NA

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Inspector

Carrie Mayes, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2770880 7 regulates 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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