Children's Home run by Spark of Genius North East LLP in Stockton-on-Tees

Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 1 SC484242 Registered provider: Spark Of Genius North East LLP

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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 owned and managed by a private company. It provides care for up to five children who many have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There were five children living in the home at the time of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since October 2024.

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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 requires improvement to be 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: 12 December 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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Enforcement action since last inspection: none

Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/12/2023 Full Outstanding 21/03/2023 Full Outstanding 22/02/2022 Full Outstanding 21/08/2019 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have secure and trusting relationships with staff because they invest time in the children and know them well. Staff help each child adjust to changes within the home, showing the children that they can rely on staff. All children talk positively about staff and have a greater sense of belonging as a result.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children who are new to the home are welcomed in a planned way. Staff get to know the children and support them to get to know each other and become familiar with their surroundings before moving in. This helps children to feel less anxious and have a positive experience of moving to the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Most children are attending school or employment. Staff know the importance of education for the children’s future and encourage them to attend. Staff work effectively with the school staff to support children’s progress. Three children have excellent school attendance and are enjoying their school life. Staff support other children into further education or employment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are generally in good health. Staff ensure that health appointments are attended and help children access specialist support where necessary. Staff support children to learn the skills they will need to meet their own health and well-being needs independently. This includes supporting children to manage lifelong conditions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children are learning the skills they will need as they get older. Staff involve children in household tasks and wider decision-making in line with their age and understanding. Staff help children to identify and understand the risk around them and what they can do to be safer. Staff are creative in making the time they have with the children count.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff consistently recognise and celebrate children’s achievements. Staff continue to capture important memories and experiences for children. This provides the children with a record of their time in the home that they can take with them when they leave.

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

Staff know the children and their risks well. Staff work with partner agencies to reduce risks for children. When children make unsafe decisions, staff help the children to understand the impact of their actions and explore what they could do differently in the future. This has resulted in one child being able to break away from an unhealthy relationship.

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

Staff know what to do when a child is missing from home. Staff follow the missing-from- home process and search for children until they return home. Staff keep in touch with children while they are away from home so that they can be reassured that they are safe and well. Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 4 Children are given the time and support they need to understand their feelings. Staff work with the children to help them to reflect on how events make them feel and behave. Children have been able to develop strategies to manage their strong emotions, and one child has been able to do this so successfully he no longer gets excluded from school.

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

Staff follow an appropriate practice when searching children’s rooms and keep accurate records. This resulted in items that would place children at risk of being promptly removed from the home. While management oversight is missing from this, staff action has contributed to children being safer.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

The home has been without a registered manager since October 2024 and a number of permanent staff also left. This has resulted in instability in the home and a lack of management oversight. Leaders and managers did not put effective arrangements in place to oversee the running of the home for a period of time. Leaders have recognised the challenges faced by the home and have now recruited to the manager’s post. New staff have been recruited and are starting their induction and training. This has helped to reduce the impact on children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Managers do not ensure that all plans for children are effective in keeping children safe. Two children are regularly returning to the family home, which is not safe for them. The local authority put in place a plan that did not include sufficient safeguards to oversee the time children were spending with parents. This plan was challenged by staff, but managers did not escalate this to the local authority. Consequently, the children remained at risk of harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders and managers do not have sufficient oversight of the running of the home. Monitoring and review processes are not used effectively, and this prevents managers from identifying patterns or trends in all areas of the home. For example, managers do not have a good understanding of the children’s behaviour or what might influence this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

Leaders do not have oversight of the development needs of the staff. This is because not all staff are not receiving regular supervision or their annual appraisal. This means that staff are not given opportunities to reflect on their practice or discuss any issues or concerns related to their care of the children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 5

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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

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2) (a)(e) (f)(h)) 25 April 2025

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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— 25 April 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 6 that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s parents, relatives and friends, is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

that the child’s placing authority is contacted, and a review of that child’s relevant plans is requested, if—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person considers that the child is at risk of harm or has concerns that the care provided for the child is inadequate to meet the child’s needs; and

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Requirement Due date

the child is, or has been, persistently absent from the home without permission. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)(e)(i)(ii))

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, 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 Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2).  All staff must have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. This appraisal should take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5).

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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: SC484242 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Spark of Genius North East LLP

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: King Edwin School, Mill Lane, Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland TS20 1LG

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Inspector

Lisa Gordon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC484242 8 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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