Children's Home run by Warwickshire County Council in Warwickshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2815604 1 Registered provider: Warwickshire County Council

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by the local authority and provides care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties. At the time of the inspection, two children were living in the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since the home opened in January 2025. He has the appropriate qualifications and is suitably experienced.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2815604 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home opened, three children have moved in and one child has moved out. Managers and staff ensure that children’s experiences of moving into and out of the home are positive. For example, children are given the chance to visit the home and spend time with staff before moving in.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is welcoming, with lots of spaces for children to relax. It has a wide range of exciting games and toys for children to enjoy. Staff were playing games with children and laughing, which creates a nice atmosphere that children enjoy.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff place children’s well-being at the centre of their practice. They are confident in working with the home’s therapeutic model. Both children spoke positively about staff and said they felt safe. This creates an environment where children feel able to talk to staff about their feelings or any worries they may have.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Healthy lifestyles are promoted. Children have good stable routines and staff support them to attend routine health appointments. For example, one child has better settling routines when going to bed. Staff spend time reading to the child and sit with them until they are ready to fall asleep.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There are lots of opportunities for children to take part in activities inside and outside of the home. One child has joined a local football club and is enjoying this. This provides children with opportunities to make friends.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When there are barriers to children’s education and learning, managers and staff escalate this and work closely with other professionals. However, there are missed opportunities to speak with children about barriers to learning. This prevents staff from fully understanding the child’s views and feelings and how best they can support them.

p.2

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

Staff understand the importance of keeping children safe and they are vigilant around children’s safety. They are confident in raising concerns and understand how to escalate concerns should they need to, including using the whistle-blowing process.

p.2

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

Missing-from-home incidents are rare. When children do go missing from home, staff look for the child and work closely with local police to locate them. Children are welcomed back into the home and have independent return home interviews. This good support helps staff to understand why the child has gone missing and reduce the amount of time that children are away from the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2815604 3 When a concern has been raised about staff, this has been taken seriously. Managers share information and work closely with other professionals, ensuring concerns are thoroughly investigated. This promotes children’s safety and welfare.

p.2

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

There have been no incidents requiring physical intervention. Children have individual incentive reward charts. They can earn extra money in recognition of their achievements. This, together with praise and appropriate support, promotes positive behaviour.

p.3

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

There are effective safer recruitment processes in place. This practice reduces the risk of children being cared for by unsuitable people.

p.3

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

Children benefit from individualised care plans and risk assessments. Although these provide useful information, they are not always kept up to date. For example, one child’s risk assessment did not include information on how the child communicates they want to leave the home for a walk. This makes it difficult for new staff to have a clear understanding of the child’s plans and risk management strategies.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is managed by an experienced manager and deputy manager who know the children well. They are ambitious for children and staff, creating an environment where staff feel comfortable to seek help and support. One member of staff said, ‘I am provided with regular feedback on areas of competence and development, enabling me to feel supported and appreciated.’

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good monitoring and reviewing systems in place. These systems help him to understand the home’s strengths and areas for improvement. This has improved the support children receive and their experiences living in the home.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff and managers have regular team meetings. The home’s independent psychologist also attends these when needed. There are fun icebreaker activities which help to create a positive and productive environment where staff can talk about children and share their knowledge.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The managers and staff have good relationships with partner agencies. One professional said, ‘They have been brilliant, the communication is fantastic.’

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive training to meet the individual needs of the children. However, the home’s workforce development plan does not include clear development plans for the staff team.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

On occasions, there have been delays in notifying Ofsted of serious incidents in the home. Although this has not impacted on children, this does affect the regulator’s ability to oversee the quality of care in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2815604 4

p.3

Recommendations

 The registered person should understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. In particular, ensure that children’s risk strategies are clear in risk assessments and are kept up to date. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that for children who may have experienced severe trauma or have been out of education for significant periods, it may be necessary to address and work through their past experiences and present needs before they can positively participate in learning activities and formal education. Staff in children’s homes will play a key role in supporting these children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.3)  The registered person should notify Ofsted and other relevant persons if one of the situations specified in regulation 40 occurs, or if there is an incident relating to the

p.4

Recommendations

protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child living in the home which the registered person considers to be serious. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)  The registered person should have a workforce plan. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)

p.4

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: 2815604 5

p.4

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Warwickshire County Council

p.5

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Warwickshire County Council, Shire Hall, Warwick CV34 4RL

p.5

Inspector

Kirsty Truesdale, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2815604 6 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.

p.5

Inspector

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.6

Inspector

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

p.6

Inspector

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

p.6