Children's home run by Aria Residential Care Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 1 Registered provider: Aria Residential Care Limited

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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 cares for up to two children who may have experienced trauma and have social, emotional and/or behavioural needs.

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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: 22 October 2024

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/10/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of the inspection, there were two children living at the home, who both took part in the inspection.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the last inspection, one child has moved out and one child has moved in. The child’s move back to their family went very well. A family member wrote to the manager to thank them and said, ‘From day one you have cared, supported and advocated for our family. You are very special people indeed.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children like living at the home. They are positive about staff and have no complaints. The manager and staff establish good relationships with children. This is evident from what children say, observations of children and their feedback. Children are listened to and encouraged to make progress. The staff are committed to helping children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children with education. There are significant learning barriers for both the children, who were not in education when they moved into the home. One child has agreed for professionals to apply for an education, health and care plan. Staff advocate for children to learn. The home has funded courses for one child in areas of interest to them. This helped the child to gain skills, confidence and motivation. The child has developed a pastime creating gifts to sell. A virtual school professional said the manager is involved in every education meeting and that staff do all they can to support the child. The other child is provided with educational worksheets while professionals identify a suitable education provision.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children’s family relationships. The manager involves families in children’s care plans and appreciates the importance of families. Children regularly spend time with their families. One parent said how well they work together, and their child has ‘really calmed down, is very settled. Honestly, they [the staff] are doing a very good job.’ This support improves children’s family relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff assess children’s skills for independence. However, there is not enough input or expectation from staff and, as a result, children’s progress towards independence is limited.

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

Children have become safer since living at the home. At the point of moving to the home, both children were regularly going missing and at risk of exploitation and criminalisation. The manager and staff work closely with children’s professionals to address these risks. One child’s risks of going missing, exploitation and criminalisation have significantly reduced. There have been some missing-from-home incidents for one child. Staff search for them and request support from the police. Staff always pick the child up, whatever the time. The child’s social worker said that their child always calls the Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 4 staff when they want to return. Staff persistently encourage the child to talk about their experiences so they can understand what is happening for them and make them safer.

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

Managers and staff manage risks well. A social worker said that they have confidence in the staff. Children’s support plans detail risks and include strategies for staff to reduce these.

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

Some children struggle with substance misuse. Staff educate children about the harm caused by smoking. One child worked well with an external organisation who visited the home to provide support in relation to their substance misuse. Staff try to understand the reasons for substance misuse and help children to find alternative, healthier ways of coping. If staff suspect children are bringing substances into the home, they conduct room searches. Staff follow procedures but there is no consistent way to record the room searches. This limits the manager’s quality assurance of these.

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

Staff have the skills and experience to manage challenging behaviours. Staff effectively use their relationships with children and de-escalation techniques. The staff do not use physical restraint or call the police for support with behavioural incidents.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by an experienced and confident manager who has a level 5 qualification. She is supported by other experienced staff. Professionals, families and staff are complimentary about the manager. The manager has very good relationships with both children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows the home’s strengths and areas for development. She has clear expectations regarding development plans. The staff receive high levels of support from the manager. At times, and when necessary, staff practice is challenged.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff team is stable, which creates consistency for children. The team is diverse. Staff are happy working at the home and create a homely atmosphere. One member of staff described how the responsible individual and manager are ‘very concerned with work-life balance’. The staff are supportive of one another and together they work hard to ensure the best care is provided to the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff use reflection in team meeting discussions. There is an emphasis on being curious about behavioural causes. Staff feel listened to and their ideas are welcomed, which helps them to feel valued and part of a healthy working environment.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Feedback from families and professionals is positive. However, feedback is not sought to inform the in independent person’s reports. This means opportunities to reflect, learn and use feedback are limited.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Records capture children’s voices and are generally of good quality. However, there are some inconsistencies in records which can be misleading. There are times when children’s initials and professional jargon are used. On one occasion, a child asked staff Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 5 what they meant by ‘safeguarding concerns’. Staff do not adequately consider the language used and fail to ensure that records are consistently accurate. Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs. In particular, ensure that all staff have autism and substance-misuse training. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)  The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring reviews. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)  The registered person should enable children to develop independence skills within the supportive environment of the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 17, paragraph 3.25)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear

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Recommendations

recording. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2773738 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aria Residential Care Limited

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Inspector

Carrie Twinn, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2773738 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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