Children's home run by Action for Children Services Ltd in Watford

Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 1 SC057804 Registered provider: Action For Children Services 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 operated by a private organisation and provides short breaks for up to five children with learning and physical disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, five children accessed short breaks.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2022.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/08/2023 Full Good 25/10/2022 Full Good 20/01/2022 Full Good 23/01/2020 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff form trusting relationships with children. Leaders have used research-based practice on The 5 Love Languages for Children to develop the initial assessments for children who access the service. This has enabled leaders and staff to better meet the needs of each individual child. Leaders and staff have regular communication with families of children who access the service. Families share that they feel assured that their children are safe, and one parent shared, ‘I can sleep at night knowing that my child is attending short breaks and is safe.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and staff support children to make progress with their education. Children are provided with the opportunity to gain additional vocational qualifications. This provides them with the opportunity to achieve better outcomes in adulthood with future education and employment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and staff have supported children to achieve great individual outcomes. One child, who struggled with the sensory element of getting their hair done, staff sensitively completed work to support the young to develop confidence in this area. Also, staff support children to develop healthier lifestyles through healthy eating and exercise. As a result, children have a sense of pride in themselves.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand children’s health care needs well. Leaders ensure that there are clear risk management plans regarding individual health conditions. Due to this, staff safely manage the complex health conditions of the children, leading to safer experiences in the service.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Leaders and staff regularly gain the views of children. Staff communicate using the individual communication aids for children. This has enabled staff to gain feedback from children on how their stays have gone, and to implement any change where required. Children have shared with staff what activities they would like to do. This has included trips to the theme park, to the airport to see planes and walks in the local community.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The environment is warmly decorated and child centred. There is a focus throughout the setting on a sensory environment to meet the needs of children. Children thrive due to the facilities that the service has to offer. Children enjoy the use of many sensory features such as sensory displays and toys, which provides an enjoyable experience for them.

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

Leaders and staff understand children’s individual risks well. Leaders ensure that there is a robust risk management plan in place for each child. Staff focus on providing a caring and loving approach to providing care for the children. This has contributed to strong relationships and a low number of incidents taking place in the service. Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 4 No complaints have been made by children or their families. However, it is ensured that as part of the induction to the service both children and families understand the process should they wish to raise any concerns.

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

Leaders have developed processes around medication recording and storage. Staff understand the new processes, in which they regularly check and sign off medication per shift, after which a thorough audit takes place by leaders in the home. There has been great work supporting children to self-administer medication as part of their independence skills. As a result, children are safely managing their own medication.

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

Physical interventions are proportionate and safe. Prior to using physical interventions, staff try to deescalate the concern and support the child to return to a calm level. Staff can identify if a situation is getting worse and will change technique and consistently try alternative approaches that are suitable for the child. This has been successful and has prevented interventions being needed on occasion.

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

Children are supported to understand how to keep themselves safe. Staff provide key- work sessions on stranger danger and keeping safe in the community. This has supported children when outside of the short breaks service.

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

It is not always clear to see what action has been taken by leaders in response to concerns about staff practice. On one occasion, there was no risk management plan or rationale regarding why a staff member had remained working in the home following concerns being raised about their practice. However, following an internal investigation, the staff member was dismissed on the basis of the concerns.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The service is led by a dedicated and enthusiastic registered manager. She has high expectations of what children can achieve. She ensures that the staff are suitably trained to provide individualised and bespoke care, which supports children to thrive.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Positive feedback has been shared by staff about management. One member of staff told the inspector, ‘I feel the management team have the best interests in their staff team, to encourage personal growth and progression within the role.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders have positive working relationships with external professionals. One professional shared with the inspector, ‘I have built positive relationships with many of the staff in the past 10 months. This is a new job for me, and I know that I can ring them at any point if needed and raise any concern.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring systems are effective. The registered manager regularly reviews the quality of care in the home to ensure staff are working in line with children’s plans. This has enabled the manager to identify shortfalls at the earliest opportunity, which has supported her and the team to make progress. Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 5 Leaders provide a good quality supervision. Staff’s well-being and development are the key focus of supervisions. Staff are confident approaching management if they require additional supervision. This has contributed to staff feeling more confident and supported in their roles. Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff skills for safeguarding should include being able to identify signs that children may be at risk, and support children in strategies to manage and reduce any risks. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.10) In particular, the registered person should ensure that there is clear risk management for staff where there are concerns about their conduct.

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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: SC057804 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Action For Children Services LTD

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Action for Children, 3 The Boulevard, Ascot Road, Watford WD18 8AG

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Inspector

Chanel Bryant, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC057804 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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