Children's home run by Island Choices Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 1 Registered provider: Island Choices Ltd

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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 one of three homes operated by a private company. It is registered to provide care for up to three children. At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since July 2021.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/01/2024 Full Good 28/03/2023 Full Good 24/03/2022 Full Good 11/12/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children make significant progress from their starting points, owing to the warm, committed and consistent care they receive. Relationships between children and staff are based on good humour, trust and transparency. As a result, children are confident in the responses they receive from staff and supported by consistent routines. Continued engagement and nurturing relationships mean that staff understand and recognise children’s emotional triggers and respond accordingly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children enjoy spending time with each other and with staff. As a result of established relationships, children are sensitive to each other’s likes and dislikes. Staff model kindness and empathy. Consequently, children learn how understanding feelings and how responses can contribute to building and maintaining positive relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children’s education and the opportunity for them to make progress are a priority of staff, who have a very strong belief that children can do well in life. Managers and staff proactively advocate for children when they believe they are not receiving the support they need from external agencies. For instance, when children are unable to access mainstream education, the manager and staff are tenacious and creative in the search for alternative provisions and activities. One child is now volunteering in the community and is being interviewed for employed work, having put together a fantastic CV with the support of staff. One child said: ‘I have grown a lot here, I know what I want from my future now. I have a plan.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

All children’s achievements are celebrated, which improves their self-esteem. The unwavering support that children receive from staff gives them confidence that they can achieve their goals and helps them to be aspirational for the future. Children are encouraged to try new activities. These opportunities enrich children’s lives. One child is currently volunteering at a community café, to support their efforts in securing work while also developing new skills.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children have plentiful opportunity to share their views. These are carefully recorded and incorporated into care and support plans. As a result, children are looked after in line with their preferences and feel empowered to make their wishes known in other ways.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Excellent partnership working with children’s placing local authorities ensures that staff understand and implement children’s care plans effectively. Children’s views about the way they are looked after are gathered and carefully recorded in their relevant plans. As a result, children are looked after in line with their preferences, and they feel secure because they understand what is expected of them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Processes that are followed when children move into or on from the home are thorough, thoughtful and creative. Moves take place at a pace that is suitable for children’s individual needs. During their time at the home, children are encouraged and supported Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 4 to learn the skills that they will need to live more independently in the future. Children who have moved on from the home enjoy enduring relationships with staff and children, creating a sense of connection and community. This is the case for all children who have moved on from the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager and staff understand the importance of children maintaining contact with family, friends and other important people. Staff work hard to find the best way to achieve this and will, for example, invite children’s friends to the home and support children to attend special occasions with their family. This has had a positive impact on children’s relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children are encouraged and supported to attend all health appointments. When children decline to attend, staff are tenacious in their follow-up with them and professionals, focusing always on their well-being and safety.

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

Children say that they feel safe living in the home. Children know that they can share any concerns they have, because of the trusting relationships they have with staff.

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

Staff have a strong understanding of children’s individual strengths and vulnerabilities and what is needed to help them become safer. This is underpinned by robust risk assessments which are informative, up to date and in line with the home’s statement of purpose. As a result, children are confident in sharing their worries or concerns and feel valued.

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

Staff and managers know the children extremely well and have an exceptionally thorough understanding of their strengths and vulnerabilities. Risk management plans clearly describe how to keep children safe and are updated when children’s needs change. Staff know these processes well and respond quickly when needed to ensure that children are safe and have access to appropriate support.

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

The registered manager leads by example when dealing with and assessing risk. Children are spoken to openly about concerns and the manager makes plain to children what measures will be put in place to mitigate any identified risk. As a result, children are clear in how they will be cared for and what the expectations are of them.

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

There are times when children have gone missing from the home. When this happens, staff follow missing-from-home procedures consistently and well. They appropriately involve family, friends and professionals to ensure that children are returned home safely and as soon as possible. Furthermore, staff help children to understand the risks associated with going missing from home and using substances. This has had a profound effect. For example, for one child the risks of exploitation and going missing from home are no longer a concern, and for another their missing-from-home episodes have significantly reduced. Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 5 Physical intervention is not used in this home. Staff use their chosen model of care well to de-escalate situations when necessary and use well-structured key-work sessions to support children to learn safe ways of managing their emotions. As a result, the

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

frequency of incidents where children become upset, to the extent that they are a risk to themselves or others, has significantly decreased.

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

Shared spaces are warm and welcoming and have a homely feel. However, two of the children’s bedrooms did not reflect the same standard as the communal space. One child’s room had offensive words graffitied on the wall and lots of debris on the floor. The registered manager was already aware of this, and staff were actively attempting to address the concerns daily. Another child had mould in her wardrobes which prevented her from using them. There has been a lack of urgency by leaders to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The home is led by a committed and knowledgeable registered manager who leads by example. She is supported by a dedicated and proactive staff team who share her vision that children can achieve well in life. As a result, all staff are aspirational for children and committed to providing high-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager and staff have a rich understanding of children’s stories and use these, alongside local authority information, to create comprehensive plans for the children’s care and support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular supervision, appraisals and training that helps them to meet children’s needs. This is further supported as safeguarding, children’s individual needs and progress are regular agenda items. As a result, staff feel well informed, valued and respected, which promotes a culture of positivity.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager’s oversight and response to safeguarding concerns is timely and sensitive. Records of what has taken place are robust and every incident is used as a learning opportunity for staff and children alike. Learning then informs care and support planning, promoting continued curiosity in staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has effective systems in place for monitoring and quality assurance. These provide the registered manager with the information she needs to thoroughly scrutinise the quality of care that children receive. The registered manager’s oversight enables her to monitor patterns and trends and to swiftly adjust systems and processes when needed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager proactively seeks independent scrutiny of the home’s function and staff’s practice via feedback from the children, their families, professionals and the independent person’s monthly reporting. Consequently, the manager has a firm understanding of the home’s strengths and weakness, and has clear plans for continued improvements in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 6 Feedback about the registered manager and staff from parents and professionals is entirely positive. The manager’s tenacity and commitment to children constitute a particular strength. Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 7

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that children’s bedrooms are consistently well maintained and meet their day-to-day needs and physical necessities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)

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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: 1241939 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: East Quay, Kite Hill, Wootton Bridge, Ryde PO33 4LA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: William Stanbridge

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Inspector

Becky Paradise, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1241939 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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