Children's Home run by Step-A-Side Company Limited in Gloucestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 1 SC030650 Registered provider: Step-A-Side Company Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run company provides long-term care and short breaks for up to five children who have experienced trauma and have social and emotional difficulties and/or special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, three children were living at the home. The inspector met all of the children and spoke with them. Five children have lived at the home since the last inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since August 2017.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The children’s home provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the children’s home contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people who need help, protection and care.

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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outstanding

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/07/2024 Full Good 07/11/2023 Full Good 04/01/2023 Full Good 16/02/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager and staff provide children with a stable and loving home. The staff are committed to children and deliver consistent, kind and nurturing care. Children and staff have strong bonds based on respect and trust. Children flourish at the home and generally make excellent progress because they feel safe and secure. They feel loved and value by staff and they are confident that staff will act in their best interests. Due to this, children are honest with staff about their views, feelings, worries and mistakes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff adopt a thoughtful approach in relation to children’s health needs. For example, they consider how children prefer to communicate and ensure children have sufficient time to process new information. Staff are keen to hear children’s views, and while some children verbalise their feelings, others use alternative communication methods and games, such as scrabble. Staff are adaptable and praise children for sharing their views. When appropriate, they offer children reassurance. They routinely check children’s understanding of instructions, routines and rules, with the aim of limiting any confusion and upset.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Children make sustained progress with their education, social skills and behaviour because staff motivate them and help them to understand healthy boundaries and safe responses. One child has been invited to complete another year at college, which is a huge achievement. Another child is significantly calmer, reflective and willing to ask for help. A new child recently moved into the home, and they are engaging with four different professionals covering therapy, substance misuse, keeping safe in the community and education mentoring.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff help children to understand their lived experiences and complex emotions. They show children that they accept them, unconditionally, through their consistent approach and caring demeanour. This gives children the confidence to talk to staff about thoughts that make them feel unsafe, their experiences in the community and factors relevant to their identity, such as sexuality. When appropriate, staff use social stories to help children understand their needs and how to express them safely. Staff devise these social stories with children, using language that they are familiar and comfortable with.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

The registered manager and staff are incredibly committed to ensuring that children have meaningful and positive time with their parents and siblings. When arrangements are too restrictive and fail to take full account of children’s preferences, the manager spearheads changes to family time. She devises new plans and risk assessments outlining her proposal and shares them with social workers for their input and sign off. The manager helps families progress to unsupervised time, including sleepovers. She recognises that good quality time spent with family helps improve children’s self-esteem and sense of belonging. Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 4 The registered manager makes concerted efforts to ensure that children have positive transitions when they move into and out of the home. One child, who had been living at the home for several years, recently moved to supported accommodation for adults.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: outstanding

Staff helped him to develop independence skills, including using public transport so that he could visit his family. They had conversations with him about his future and the experiences he might come across. Staff took the child to visit his new home and asked important questions on his behalf. The child is fond of the registered manager and the staff and remains in contact with them.

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

The registered manager and staff have an excellent understanding of children’s lived experiences, needs, vulnerabilities, risks and strengths. The psychology team has become integrated in the home and works seamlessly with residential staff to devise effective strategies that reduce the likelihood of risk or confusion for the children. Both teams keep each other updated about safeguarding concerns. Consequently, children benefit from continuality of care and consistent messages, regardless of whether they are speaking with residential staff or the psychologists.

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

Staff skilfully explore risks and safeguarding concerns with children. They involve children in safety planning so that they understand the rationale for new rules and the changes they need to adhere to moving forward. Staff are adept at balancing positive risk taking with age-appropriate freedoms. For example, they supported one child to access the community and spend time with his friends, while remaining in the local area and physically checking in with him at specified times. They restricted another child’s free time due to safeguarding concerns, but they worked with him to work safely towards free time in the community again.

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

Children who have lived at the home for several years rarely demonstrate behaviours of concern. This is because staff and psychologists work together to help the children to recognise when they are feeling overwhelmed, frustrated or distressed and remind them to use healthy coping strategies. They are also mindful of children’s individual needs, for example the importance of routine and specified timeframes for activities. They have a thorough understanding of factors that cause children to feel emotionally unsettled and take proactive steps to avoid this.

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

There have been 11 incidents of physical intervention since the last inspection. This approach is used sparingly and only when it is necessary and proportionate. The majority of physical interventions are linked to a child who moved into the home in an emergency situation and was highly confused and distressed. The child lived at the home for a short period and received mixed messages towards the end of his placement, which was outside of staff’s control. Staff made concerted efforts to use de-escalation strategies and sometimes they were impactful and helped the child to settle. Staff supported the child to return to his parents’ care. Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 5 The home has received three complaints since the last inspection. The registered manager and responsible individual have responded swiftly to these complaints and approached them with curiosity. They carry out investigations and consult with external

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

professionals, for example social workers and the local authority designated officer. They create space for children and parents to express their views and share outcomes verbally and in writing to aid their understanding. Children and parents have confidence in the home’s complaints procedure and know that the registered manager will take concerns seriously.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager is aspirational for children and a tenacious advocate for their rights. She has strongly challenged a local authority in order to secure an education provision for a child. The local authority awarded her a certificate for her outstanding commitment towards the child’s education. The manager has also successfully challenged a school’s decision-making and highlighted shortfalls in a local authority’s transition planning. Additionally, she has pushed for medical reviews to ensure that any prescribed medication does not have an adverse impact on children’s well-being. The manager holds other professionals to account and this results in proportionate decision making and positive outcomes for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has established a remarkable learning culture at the home. Staff are passionate about completing training that helps them to deliver personalised care to children, for example on fetal alcohol syndrome. Staff’s practice is informed by research, and this is evident in their interactions with children and in meetings with the psychological team. The manager has attended practice learning sessions and reflected on whether the home does enough to support children’s sense of identity. This prompted her to work collaboratively with children and parents to create identity journals for each child. Parents shared information and photos with the manager for this purpose. The journals help children to understand their life story and this increases their sense of belonging and self-esteem.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has an in-depth understanding of the home’s strengths and areas for development. When staff talk with her about areas for improvement, she is open to their views and proactive about making changes that benefit children. For example, the manager intends to conduct research about children’s transitions, and she is keen to work with other providers and the local authority in relation to this. The purpose of this is to promote high standards of care, across all services, when children with disabilities become adults and move to supported accommodation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The registered manager has wonderful relationships with parents and professionals. When times get difficult, she tends to lean in and intensify support. For example, one child was extremely reluctant to move into the home, and his transition did not go as smoothly as expected. Professionals decided to abort the plan, but the manager did not give up on the child. She stayed with the family and helped the child to navigate his feelings. After lots of talking, reassurance and comfort, the child decided to move to the Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 6 home. He has started to make exemplary progress, working with several professionals that were unable to engage him in his previous environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Children, parents and professionals speak highly of the home and the quality of care delivered. One child rated the home ‘1,000 out of 10’ and described the staff as ‘amazing.’ Parents voiced that they have always felt welcomed when they visit the home and they are grateful that staff have invited them to spend time with their children on Christmas Day. They value the registered manager’s honest communication, and they trust her. Professionals are confident that the manager keeps the children’s best interests at the heart of decision-making. They praised staff for capturing children’s views and for developing positive relationships with children and their families. Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 7

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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: SC030650 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Step-A-Side Company Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 29 Market Place, Coleford, Gloucestershire GL16 8AA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Rachel Carwardine

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Inspector

Tara Webb, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC030650 9 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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Inspector

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