Children's Home run by The Rubix Care Group Limited in Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 1 Registered provider: The Rubix Care Group Limited

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for one child who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in October 2024.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean and welcoming and provides a nice environment for the child to live in. The child is encouraged to personalise and decorate their room to their own taste.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is now making progress in education considering their starting points. Managers and staff communicate effectively with teachers, ensuring that children’s needs are known and well supported. Managers and staff are good advocates for the child. Staff help the child, who did not attend formal education, to return to school and is preparing for their next steps. This means the child has an improved outlook on their future.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff recognise how important it is for the child to maintain connections with their family. To promote these relationships, staff actively encourage and support family time and support the child to have overnight stays.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s wishes and feelings are gathered in multiple ways, and staff work creatively to gain these. This supports the child’s positive relationships with staff. The child is listened to by staff. They are confident in sharing their views or to make a complaint. Staff share any actions that they take to help the child understand.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is helped to develop their independence skills, which are appropriate to their age and stage of development. This includes helping the child plan their daily routines. This promotes children’s sense of responsibility.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the child’s individual health needs and support them to access necessary services. The child benefits from regular sessions with the home’s therapist, which contributes positively to their emotional well-being. Staff offer consistent guidance around self-care, and the child has been supported to make improvements. This means the child is taking greater responsibility for their personal health, resulting in sustained progress.

p.2

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

Staff have a detailed understanding of the individual risks for the child. They take a proactive approach to help mitigate risks and keep the child safe. The child receives support from a consistent staff team. This continuity helps the child to develop meaningful relationships with staff, which is fundamental to keeping them safe.

p.2

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

Most safeguarding concerns are well managed and carefully documented. On one occasion, the record of an incident did not provide a clear account of events. Although this incident was reviewed by a manager, this did not Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 3 provide the level of scrutiny needed to identify practice shortfalls and support any lessons learned. This, however, was an isolated event, with all other safeguarding incidents being clearly recorded and including management oversight.

p.2

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

There is a consistent and robust approach to incidents of challenging behaviour. Staff help the child manage their emotions in a safe way, taking advice from the home’s therapist. The child has detailed behaviour support plans. Staff know how to respond when the child is struggling to communicate their feelings. There has been no use of restraint in the home. Staff have effective strategies for supporting the child when they are in crisis.

p.3

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

The child has an incentive chart that supports them to maintain daily routines. They respond well to this. Staff record praise for the child and capture numerous positives in daily records for the child to read, to let them know when they are doing well. This gives the child a sense of achievement and improves their self-esteem.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has been absent for a period, and the home is being managed effectively by the deputy manager, with support from the responsible individual. This means there has been minimal disruption and impact on the child.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported in their roles by managers. Team meetings take place regularly and provide an invaluable learning opportunity for staff. Staff receive supervision that is purposeful and reflective. However, it is not always carried out in the stated timescale.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive an annual appraisal to evaluate their performance and identify areas for professional development. However, this does not incorporate feedback from external stakeholders such as children, parents or other professionals involved in the child’s care.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders have a clear understanding of children’s progress and oversight of the service. They know the strengths and weaknesses of the workforce and are continually striving for improvement. Leaders have started to develop systems to monitor and review staff practice effectively. There are clear plans of how these systems will be used to identify and make improvements.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Safe staff recruitment practices are in place, but the reasons for staff leaving their roles are not always explored.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Managers and staff have good relationships with partner agencies. One social worker said that they ‘could not have imagined the amount of progress [name of child] has made since moving in’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 4

p.3

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.

p.4

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—

p.4

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

p.4

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;

p.4

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

p.4

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)(c)(h))

p.4

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that there is effective oversight of the recording of significant incidents, ensuring that details are accurate and oversight captures future learning. 25 May 2025

p.4

Recommendations

 The registered person should include the views of the children and other professionals when completing appraisals with staff. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)  The registered person should have systems in place so that all staff receive supervision of their practice which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care, in line with the homes’ statement of Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 5 purpose. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)  The registered person should be responsible for maintaining good employment practice, as set out in regulations 31-33. This includes ensuring that the reasons for leaving previous roles are captured. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

p.4

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: 2799971 6

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider: The Rubix Care Group Limited

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 1 Cottam Lane Business Centre, Cottam Lane, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston, Lancashire PR2 1JR

p.6

Inspector

Sally Mitchell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2799971 7 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

p.6

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.7