Children's Home run by Choices Home for Children Limited in Stockport

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 1 Registered provider: Choice Home for Children Limited

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private company. It is registered to care for up to four children who may experience social or emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

There were three children living at the home at the time of inspection. One child spoke to the inspectors.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

An interim manager has been appointed to manage the home. He is yet to submit his application to register with Ofsted.

p.1

This monitoring visit

Serious concerns were identified at the assurance inspection completed on 6 March 2025. A compliance notice relating to regulation 11, the positive relationships standard, and a restriction of accommodation notice were issued under section 22A of the Care Standards Act 2000.

p.1

This monitoring visit

The purpose of this visit was to review if leaders and managers have met the steps required within the compliance notice and assess whether action taken means that the restriction of accommodation can be lifted or not.

p.1

This monitoring visit

Staff did not check the identity of the inspectors when they entered the home. This means that any adults could gain access to the home, which could present a safeguarding risk to children who live there.

p.1

This monitoring visit

Children are not provided with regular opportunities to share their views, wishes and feelings with staff. Few staff make efforts to engage with children or to spend quality time with them. Overall, staff have a limited interest in the well-being and progress Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 2 of children. One child said that there were no staff members who they would confide in. This means that children do not feel listened to, nurtured, loved or respected.

p.1

This monitoring visit

Since the last visit, a manager has been appointed to manage the home. He has started to embed new systems to help him monitor the quality of care provided in the home and to improve the outcomes for children living there. One staff member said that the manager is ‘putting in the effort to make changes’. However, one child said that the manager had not spent any time with them.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Enough staff have now been appointed to work in the home, including two deputies to help support the manager. However, there continues to be a reliance on agency staff or staff from the company’s other homes to care for the children. This means that children have not been given the opportunity to develop meaningful and positive relationships with staff who care for them.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Children are not provided with structure or routines and spend a lot of time alone in their bedrooms. Although staff have offered children opportunities to take part in some activities, if children decline to take part, staff do not always record this in a way that is positive for children.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Children do not attend school regularly. Staff are unclear about the children’s day-to- day routines and limited efforts are made to instil structure into the children’s lives or to provide loving and nurturing care.

p.2

This monitoring visit

The manager has addressed areas of the home that needed replacement or repair. Broken floor tiles in communal areas have been replaced and there are no loose blind cords in the conservatory. However, electrical wires continue to hang loose in communal areas, which present a health and safety risk to children.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Leaders and managers meet with children to explain changes. However, this is infrequent and not individual to each child’s needs. Children continue to be unclear about some of the rules, boundaries and expectations.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Recently, staff relied on police intervention to manage children’s behaviour, which resulted in children being criminalised. No reasonable attempts were made by staff to de-escalate the situation safely. The on-call manager advised staff to stay away from the children. Records of the incident are brief and do not reflect on practice or consider any learning to improve the quality of care provided to children.

p.2

This monitoring visit

Staff have attended team meetings with leaders and managers. However, staff have not received individual supervision sessions. This means that staff have not had the opportunity to discuss or reflect on their practice.

p.2

This monitoring visit

The other requirements regarding areas of concern raised at the assurance inspection have not been considered during this visit. They remain in place and will be reviewed at the full inspection. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 3 A case review was completed following the monitoring visit. It was decided that the compliance notice had not been met. A further compliance notice under regulation 11 has been issued. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 4

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/10/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 19/06/2024 Full Inadequate 21/11/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 5

p.4

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 with the given timescales.

p.5

Requirement Due date

* The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

p.5

Requirement Due date

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

p.5

Requirement Due date

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

p.5

Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

p.5

Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same. (Regulation 11 (1)(a) (2)(a)(i)(v)(viii)(x)(xi))

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff spend quality time with children and develop meaningful and trusted relationships with them;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff provide structure and routines, including enriching activities to children;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that the records kept use respectful language that cares; 25 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 6 ensure that staff provide nurturing, loving and respectful care;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff check the identification of all visitors to the home;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff respond to children positively and that they strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that children feel listened to and their views, wishes and feelings are accurately recorded and responded to;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff communicate expectations about children’s behaviour clearly and consistently, and these are accurately recorded;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff are provided with individual supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children do the same; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the skills and confidence to de- escalate confrontations or potentially aggressive behaviour with children.

p.6

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.6

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

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.6

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; 25 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 7 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)(f)(h))

p.6

Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that leaders and managers have oversight of all work undertaken in the home. This includes reviewing and evaluating all incidents and key-work sessions to identify any learning and to support and develop practice in the home.

p.7

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated.

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

p.7

Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(iv)(b)(d))

p.7

Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that staff help children to manage relationships safely and prevent children from vaping in the home. In addition, ensure that the home does not present any hazards to children and is maintained to a high standard.

p.7

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated. 25 May 2025

p.7

Requirement Due date

The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

p.7

Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

p.7

Requirement Due date

engage with them; and 25 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 8 take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c))

p.7

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated.

p.8

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.8

Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

p.8

Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b))

p.8

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated. 25 May 2025

p.8

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

p.8

Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

p.8

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated. 25 May 2025

p.8

Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every 6 months.

p.8

Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review ("the quality of care review report").

p.8

Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1) (3)(a) (4)(i))

p.8

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated. 25 May 2025

p.8

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

p.8

Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. 25 May 2025 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 9 (Regulation 40 (4)(e))

p.8

Requirement Due date

This was not reviewed at this inspection and is restated.

p.9

Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 10

p.9

Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

p.10

Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 11

p.10

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Choice Home for Children Limited

p.11

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 31 Wellington Road, Nantwich, Cheshire CW5 7ED

p.11

Inspectors

Zillah Brooks, Social Care Inspector Caroline Bertram, Regulatory Inspection Manager Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2724171 12 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.11

Inspectors

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.12

Inspectors

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

p.12

Inspectors

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

p.12