Children's home run by Rockhopper Children’s Services Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 1 Registered provider: Kedleston Group Ltd

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to five children with social and/or emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, four children were living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since July 2023.

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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

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

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good

Date of last inspection: 17 September 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/09/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 17/06/2024 Full Inadequate 16/01/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a clean, spacious and welcoming home. They are actively involved in choosing soft furnishings and wall art to make it feel homely. Children are given choice regarding which photos of themselves are displayed around the home. This enables them to feel comfortable in the environment they live in.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Each child is making progress from their starting points. Children who were resistant to therapy are now engaging and other children are consistent in their school attendance. All children are developing life skills. There are times when children’s progress in this area has not always been consistent. However, staff encourage children’s efforts and set individual goals to keep each child on track.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children access education and, for most, their attendance and levels of engagement are good. To support this, staff have built positive relationships with education professionals. Staff advocate for children when challenges arise, and they work with education professionals to ensure that children’s learning environments meet their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive relationships with staff and have at least one staff member that they trust and can talk to about any concerns. Children’s views are considered in deciding which staff take them on specific outings. As a result, these outings are enjoyed by both the child and staff, due to shared interests in the activities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have opportunities to voice their views, and share worries they may have. This is achieved by staff supporting consultations with them individually and as a group. Children choose how they want to celebrate their birthdays and to mark cultural holidays. Food choices are well considered. For example, children are supported to manage food budgets, go shopping and prepare meals as part of developing their independence skills. This ensures that children have choice, are supported to learn important life skills and gain independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children spend time with their families and loved ones in line with their agreed plans. For children’s families who live a long distance from the home, their family members are encouraged and supported to visit if appropriate to do so. One child’s family visited them at the home for Christmas and they were able to celebrate the festive season together. This supported the child to build positive family relationships.

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

Staff understand children’s risks and vulnerabilities well. They support children to understand risks by having appropriate conversations with them. Additionally, staff work with partner agencies and professionals to reaffirm the messages given. These consistent messages help children to understand how to be safe and know what is Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 4 expected of them. For example, following incidents relating to fire safety, physical aggression and substance misuse, staff arranged for professionals from specialised teams to talk with the children. This has resulted in no further incidents in relation to fire safety and substance misuse, and incidents of physical aggression have reduced.

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

Staff support children effectively to manage challenges around their emotional well- being. Most children engage with the linked therapist for the home and some have started having sessions with mental health professionals. This has resulted in a reduction of self-injurious behaviours for one child and another child has made vast improvements in their engagement with mental health professionals.

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

Staff have effective strategies in place to support children with their behaviours that challenge. This is achieved through implementing children’s individual support plans and giving children opportunities to reflect on their behaviours. At times, staff have given children consequences to discourage unhelpful behaviours. Consequences are appropriate and reasonable.

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

When children and staff raise concerns about individuals, these are taken seriously by leaders and managers. Concerns are reported to the relevant safeguarding partners and are investigated without delay. This promotes a positive safeguarding culture in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager and staff prioritise the needs of children, putting them at the centre of the care they provide. Staff are consistent in their practice and have a secure understanding of each child’s needs. The manager and staff have great hopes for children and set realistic goals to encourage children’s resilience.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers ensure that children’s needs are consistently prioritised. For instance, when children are not engaging with the chosen education provision, managers are quick to discuss concerns with the local authority and propose alternative options. This positive role modelling helps staff to keep children’s needs at the forefront of their practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is fully staffed, and the manager is supported by an experienced deputy manager. This enables the manager to dedicate their time to managing the home and having oversight. However, on occasion, leaders and managers have not notified Ofsted of serious incidents in a timely way. This means that Ofsted is not always aware of incidents in the home, or the action taken by leaders and managers to ensure the safety and welfare of children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are well supported. They meet with the linked therapist for the home, which has supported them to grow in confidence with their practice. This has also enabled staff to build positive relationships with children and carry out effective and meaningful work with them. Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 5 The manager supports staff to develop positive working relationships with external professionals. One social worker said, ‘Communication is great.’ The manager and staff attend all meetings relating to children and communicate closely with education professionals.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the strengths and vulnerabilities of the home and the quality of care children receive. Generally, staff have access to relevant training to support them in their roles. However, there has been a lack of oversight to ensure that all staff have completed the required training relating to the specific needs of some children within an acceptable time frame. This is a missed opportunity to ensure that all staff fully understand all aspects of children’s needs. Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure all serious events are notified to Ofsted in a timely way. The notification should include details of the event and the action taken to ensure children’s safety and well-being. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)  The registered person should ensure that staff receive suitable training to meet the needs of all children who live in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)

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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: 2729532 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Kedleston Group Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Kedleston Group Ltd, Unit 7, Brook Business Centre, Cowley Mill Road, Cowley, Uxbridge UB8 2FX

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Inspector

Karen Flanagan de Martinez, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2729532 8 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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