Children's Home run by Brooks & Brooks Recruitment Ltd in Rochdale

Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 1 Registered provider: Brooks and Brooks Recruitment Limited

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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 private home provides care for one child who may experience a range of social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager left their role in October 2024. There have been two interim managers since the last full inspection. A new manager has been recruited for the role. He has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector spoke with the child who was living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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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 requires improvement to be good

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good

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

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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: 2713287 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/07/2024 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/06/2023 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has developed positive relationships with the staff team and enjoys spending time with them. Staff have used these relationships to help the child to develop trust in adults, to feel settled and secure in their home. There is evidence of significant positive change and progress for the child since living in the home. The child told the inspector that they were proud of the progress they had made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child now attends mainstream school, after a lengthy period out of school. Staff have supported the child in school and with any challenges they have faced in relation to peer relationships. They promote daily routines and structure for the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is in good health. Their engagement with the in-house psychotherapist has improved, as the child develops their confidence in professionals. The child had been enabled to access weight loss milkshakes. This does not demonstrate appropriate role modelling by the staff team or promote positive body image for the child. The manager took immediate action when the staff team recognised the potential impact on the child’s well-being. The concerns were addressed at a team meeting, and the child was no longer allowed to purchase the item. However, no specific educational work has been undertaken with the child in relation to healthy eating and potential risks associated with weight loss aides.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s voice is central to everything that the staff team do. ‘You said, we did’ consultations provide the child with an opportunity to raise any concerns and to make requests as part of their care planning. The child is also supported to attend their own meetings, to share their views, wishes and feelings. Detailed key-work sessions focus on a wide range of subjects, such as emotional well-being, future planning and skill development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is encouraged to develop their independence skills in preparation for adulthood. They engage well with independence skills, such as cooking, budgeting, furniture building and gardening.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home has been refurbished. It is now homely and welcoming. The child has been involved in decisions about changes to the environment. This has helped them to develop a sense of belonging and ownership of their home. The child still requires some belongings to be returned from their previous home in the organisation.

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

The child’s risk behaviour has reduced. The child is working positively with staff to build up trust and enabled to take more age-appropriate risks. This includes having a mobile phone, reduction in supervision at school and reduced staffing supervision levels out of the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 4 Staff understand the child’s risk management plans. They are attuned to the child’s needs, and they implement effective strategies to help to keep the child safe. They follow missing-from-home protocols and actively search for the child to return them home safely. Direct work is conducted with the child to gather key information and to educate the child about the risks of being missing from the home. Consequently, the child’s missing-from-home incidents have significantly reduced over the last few weeks.

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

The use of restraint has been minimal and there has been no self-injurious behaviour since the child moved into the home. Staff use their positive relationships to support the child to make safer choices and to help them to regulate their emotions.

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

The child has received no sanctions. The members of the staff team talk to the child and negotiate acceptable boundaries and expectations of behaviour. Rewards are visual and engage the child well. Incentives are individualised to the child. They support risk reduction and promote the child’s specific needs.

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

There has been no allegations or complaints made by the child. Previous concerns raised by the child have been appropriately concluded and the child provided with feedback on the outcomes.

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

The location of the premises risk assessment is purposeful and specific to the area in which the home is situated. It sets out strategies of how to mitigate risks in the local area and considers the child’s individual risks and how they are to be supported in the community.

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

The new manager knows the child well. The child has a trusting relationship with the manager. He is a positive advocate for the child and drives progress and improvement for them.

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

Leaders and manager’s monitoring of records is not yet effective. Some of the child’s risk assessments and safety plans have not been updated to reflect the reduction in the child’s level of supervision, changes to family time or the introduction of a mobile phone. This has not been identified in the manager’s monthly audits or senior leaders’ oversight of records. This is key to ensure that staff are aware of any changes to the child’s plans.

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

Team meetings take place regularly. They are used to review the child’s needs and risks. However, leaders and managers have failed to use the meetings to share lessons learned from incidents with the broader team. This is a missed opportunity to share information and to strengthen team knowledge and practice. In addition, the manager has identified some shortfalls in staff’s recording of a restraint, but he has failed to conduct a debrief with staff involved to address the shortfalls and to improve staff recording practice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 5 The staff team is starting to stabilise. A new deputy manager has joined the team and offers valuable support to the manager in his role. Staff reported that they feel well supported. Positive affirmation is promoted within the team.

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

Long-term agency staff continue in their waking night roles, and they have positive relationships with the child. However, they are not provided with regular supervisions to ensure that they have the same support and guidance as the core staff. This has been a requirement at the last two visits and has been restated. All staff, including long-term agency staff, have been provided with relevant training to meet the child’s needs and to keep them safe.

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

The manager is receptive to feedback to develop and improve the quality of care. He requires time to embed his vision into the home and to develop his leadership skills. He has commenced leadership and management development sessions and is responsible for delivering some practice workshops to staff across the company.

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

The manager’s review of the quality-of-care report captures feedback from children, staff and professionals to assess effectively the impact of the quality of care on children’s experiences. The manager provides a clear and honest account of the improvements made to the operation of the home and the areas that are to be developed to improve the service provided to children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 6

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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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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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

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 3 July 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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— 3 July 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 7 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;

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Requirement Due date

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

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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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, leaders and managers should ensure that long-term agency staff are provided with regular practice-related supervision in line with the provider’s policy. 3 July 2025

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)) 3 July 2025

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff seek to meet the child’s basic needs in the way that a good parent would. Specifically, action must be taken to ensure that personal belongings that have been left behind at the child’s previous home should be returned to the child or replaced. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7) Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 8

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Information about this inspection

The inspector has 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: 2713287 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Brooks and Brooks Recruitment Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hilton Jones Hollinwood Business Centre, Albert Street, Oldham OL8 3QL

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Junior Brandford

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Inspector

Cheryl Field, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2713287 10 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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