Children's home run by Support and Sustain Care Ltd

Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 1 Registered provider: Support and Sustain Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This home is owned by a private organisation. It provides care for up to four children who have had adverse childhood experiences that have led to associated trauma and social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The manager is also a director, and she took over as the manager of the home in February 2025. She has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children's home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home and spoke with the inspector.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

A full inspection was completed on 2 and 3 July 2024. Serious and widespread concerns were identified in the care and protection of children and the leadership and management of the home. Compliance notices were issued under Regulations 12 and 13. A restriction of accommodation was also imposed. Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 2 On 6 August 2024, Ofsted carried out a monitoring visit to review the organisation’s progress with meeting the steps set out in the compliance notices. Although the managers had taken actions to meet some steps in the compliance notices under Regulations 12 and 13, some steps were unmet. Therefore, the compliance notices under Regulation 12 and 13 were reissued, and the restriction of accommodation remained in place.

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

On 1 October 2024, Ofsted carried out a further monitoring visit to review the organisation’s progress in addressing the shortfalls identified at the last monitoring visit. Following the visit, no further requirements or recommendations were made, and the restriction of accommodation was lifted. Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/07/2024 Full Inadequate 13/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 4

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improvement to be good

One child has recently moved into the home and has made some progress. However, some safeguarding arrangements and management strategies continue to require improvement. Therefore, shortfalls in these systems have had some impact on the child’s overall experiences of living in the home.

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improvement to be good

The home’s physical environment is clean and tidy. While the child’s bedroom is personalised, many areas of the home are bare and do not reflect the child’s identity. Consequently, the child lives in a home that does not feel homely or reflect their personality, and the child is unlikely to feel a sense of belonging within the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff are starting to build positive relationships with the child. They spend time with the child, doing things the child enjoys and getting to know them. Warm and affectionate interactions were observed between staff and the child. The child often seeks out the manager and staff to talk to about their daily experiences. This helps the child to feel valued and connected to those caring for them, which develops their self-esteem and confidence.

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improvement to be good

The child’s views, wishes and feelings are gathered regularly. Daily informal chats and weekly meetings provide the child with opportunities to share their views and contribute to planning their week. The child said they feel happy living at the home and that they would not change anything about the home. They stated that the manager and staff are really good and that they would rate the home 10 out of 10.

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improvement to be good

Staff actively support the child to develop their independence skills. They encourage the child to carry out daily tasks and learn important skills. The child is now able to plan and cook some of their meals independently. Staff are supporting the child with developing skills around budgeting their money. These skills build independence and prepare the child for adult life.

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improvement to be good

The child has been engaged in activities and hobbies they are interested in. Also, staff encourage the child to try new experiences and develop hobbies they enjoy. The child is attending a music club due to their passion for music and singing. The child has also been trampolining and visits the farm regularly. As a result, the child has fun while developing new skills.

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improvement to be good

Staff prioritise the child spending time with family members. Staff encourage and support the child to maintain connections with their family by transporting them and supervising the time spent with family to ensure this is a positive experience. This support ensures that the child is able to maintain positive family connections, which supports them in understanding their identity and heritage. Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 5

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improvement to be good

The leadership team do not always assess risks or implement plans effectively to keep the child safe. For example, when staff have known that the child will conceal items to self-harm, they have not consistently completed searches of the child’s belongings or their room, which is specified in the child’s risk management plan. These safeguarding shortfalls increase the child’s vulnerabilities and compromise their safety.

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improvement to be good

Individualised risk assessments help to inform staff about the issues pertinent to the child. However, not all risk assessments are up-to-date or reflect all the known risks. Subsequently, staff are unclear about the actions they should take to protect the child. Staff use a variety of strategies to manage the risks of self-harm, which has resulted in the child receiving inconsistent care from the staff team. These shortfalls in risk management have increased the child’s vulnerabilities and resulted in them coming to harm on some occasions.

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improvement to be good

Staff supervision of the child is not always in line with the child’s needs or risks. The child is at high risk of self-harm and always requires supervision. On one occasion, the child went missing from home and self-harmed due to a lack of adequate supervision from staff. Inconsistent approaches from staff to supervising the child do not always ensure the child’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Although shortfalls in safeguarding practices have been identified, some staff responses to self-harm incidents are good. For example, staff ensure medical assistance is accessed immediately, even when the child is reluctant to do so. The child is offered support and reassurance during and after the incident, and reflective work is completed with the child to support them in making positive choices and considering alternatives to harming themselves.

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improvement to be good

Staff respond appropriately when the child goes missing from home. They contact the police, manager and necessary professionals while actively searching for the child to ensure the child is located promptly. Following incidents, the child is supported through reflective discussions and return home interviews.

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improvement to be good

The manager takes complaints seriously and investigates them promptly. The child is reassured throughout the complaint process and provided with a clear outcome to their complaint. The child feels heard and understands that the manager prioritises their well- being, which promotes their sense of self-worth.

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

The home is led by a manager who is child focused and invested in ensuring the child is supported well. She has a good understanding of the child’s needs and staff practice. However, the home’s leadership procedures are not yet consistently effective in making continual improvements to the care that the child receives in the home. Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 6 The manager’s presence in the home is visible, both physically and in oversight of recordings. However, her oversight of incidents is not always reflective or meaningful, which has resulted in missed learning opportunities for improving staff practice and risk management. These shortfalls do not develop staff to improve their safeguarding practice and ability to manage complex incidents.

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

The manager does not always work effectively with partner agencies to improve the quality of care received by the child. For example, due to ineffective working relationships, the manager has not been robust in sharing concerns with the local authority about the staffing ratio to support the child. This has resulted in a lack of joined-up working and miscommunication around the expectations of staffing and supervision of the child. This has compromised the child’s safety and well-being.

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

Staff training is up to date and relevant to the needs of the child. Supervision sessions are sometimes used to provide staff with additional support and share updates on the child’s changing needs. However, leaders are not using their systems effectively to fully develop staff to improve their safeguarding practice and ability to assess and manage the child’s risks adequately and consistently.

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

Safer recruitment practices are in place to ensure that all staff working with children are safe to do so.

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

Staff feel well supported and speak extremely positively of the manager. One member of staff said, ’I feel very well supported. This is the best management team I have experienced in my many years of working in residential care.’ As a result, the child is cared for by staff who are happy to be at work, which creates a positive environment for the child to live in.

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

Feedback from a family member was extremely positive. A parent said, ‘Staff are very good with [name of child], and they speak positively about each of them. [Name of Child] is more relaxed since moving here; they smile more, laugh more and just seem more relaxed.’ Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 7

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child's relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that staff are equipped with the skills to assess children's risks effectively and take action to reduce risks to children.

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Requirement Due date

This also refers to the registered person’s understanding and implementation of risk assessments and the actions to take when she has identified concerns for the safety and welfare of children. 6 June 2025

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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

promotes their welfare. 6 June 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 8 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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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;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(d)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that the home has enough staff to ensure the safety and well-being of children. She must also ensure that learning is taken from incidents to inform and improve risk management and staff practice.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to the registered person ensuring that if the home is unable to offer the level of supervision a child requires to keep them safe, she raises this with the placing authority to address this issue immediately.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs;

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; and 6 June 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 9 seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person should ensure that they work in partnership with the placing authority to meet the child's needs and share any concerns in relation to the expectations placed on them.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person should be proactive in sourcing services to meet the child’s needs, specifically in relation to therapeutic interventions.

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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.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure the child's care plan and risk assessment reflect all of their needs and risks as identified by their placing authority. The registered person must also ensure that all staff are clear on how these needs and risks are to be managed. 6 June 2025 Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 10

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the children's home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of the children. This relates specifically to the home environment needing to be homely and window restrictors being used throughout the whole property without justification. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 15, paragraphs 3.9 and 3.10).

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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: 2730637 11

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Support and Sustain Care Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 27 Morrison Avenue, Wolverhampton WV10 9TZ

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Inspector

Menaka De Silva, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2730637 12 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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