Children's home run by Care Afloat Ltd in West Lancashire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 1 SC006014 Registered provider: Care Afloat Ltd

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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 home is operated by a private provider and provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, one child was living at the home. The inspector spoke with the child as part of the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager of this home registered with Ofsted in April 2014.

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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: 3 September 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: SC006014 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/09/2024 Full Good 07/11/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 08/11/2022 Full Good 24/08/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well maintained, and staff provide a warm and homely environment. Recent work has focused on providing an additional games room and improving the garden. This has ensured that the child and staff have identified areas to game, craft, relax and enjoy a comfortable space in the warmer months.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have built positive relationships with the child and are committed to the support of the child they care for, and working through challenges with them. The child said: ‘I like living in this home. The staff have helped me with my GCSEs, education, and mental health, and I get to do activities I haven’t tried before.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager and staff promote education. The child has attended education on a full- time timetable that has incorporated vocational activities and formal learning. The staff have supported the child with revision sessions, and additional tutoring was also in place in the lead-up to exams. The child has completed their GCSEs and is predicted to receive good grades. The child’s plan for further education is being supported; they are enrolled in their chosen course and will start college in September.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help the child develop life skills appropriate to their age. The child is encouraged to develop skills such as budgeting, cooking, travelling, laundry, and household chores, which will support them in preparing for independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child enjoys time with friends and takes part in various activities, such as horse riding, going for walks, flying kites and mini-breaks. The child does voluntary work at a riding club and has paid work at a horse stable, which supports the child’s passion for horse riding and equine care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child’s views and wishes are captured in daily conversations and regular key-work sessions. The child attends all key meetings and has an independent advocate. This ensures that the child is able to contribute to decisions about their care.

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

The staff team has remained consistent in the past year, which has provided stability for the child. Communication between staff is thorough, therefore there are consistent boundaries in the home. The staff have built positive, trusting relationships with the child. The child can speak to staff about their worries and concerns and feel they are listened to and understood. This enables the child to feel safe and secure.

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

Staff do not always use professional curiosity with regard to significant incidents, which has led to slight delays in reporting and investigating incidents. The manager and staff do not always document conversations and meetings that are important to conclude Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 4 investigations. This does not ensure that significant incidents have been responded to and managed appropriately.

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

Staff understand the impact of the child’s past experiences on their current well-being. They understand the identified risks to the child they care for and provide warm, nurturing responses. The child’s risks are documented in risk assessments that direct and support staff to prevent and reduce risk. However, risk assessments do not always give full, clear strategies for staff to follow, which does not ensure that staff are aware of response strategies.

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

Incidents of self-harm and low mood are managed well. Staff monitor the child’s moods and provide emotional support, reflecting on incidents and feelings. This lets the child know that the staff care and are available. Staff know when to escalate concerns and seek additional support if required. The child has access to therapy and an assistant psychologist, which also provides the staff with guidance on support approaches for the child. This has helped the child develop alternative coping strategies, which have resulted in a reduction in self-harm incidents.

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

Substance misuse incidents are rare and recent; however, staff recognise that the child is curious, and incidents may increase. When incidents occur, staff respond appropriately, monitoring the child and seeking medical attention. Staff speak to the child following incidents to explain the dangers of substance misuse and its impact. Referrals have been made to specialist agencies to ensure the child has access to the adults who are most able to help them with this specific issue.

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

The manager notifies the regulator when there is a serious incident. However, sometimes, the notification is delayed, which prevents the regulator from having prompt oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by an experienced manager; however, she does not hold the relevant management qualification. The manager is committed to supporting the child and staff team and improving outcomes for children in the home. She speaks very highly of the child and their progress and achievements, and speaks highly of the staff and the care they provide.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has good oversight of the home. All reports provide evidence of the manager’s oversight. The manager completes weekly tasks and uses data collection for reports to ensure oversight of the home. The manager ensures that regulatory reports are completed; however, the six-monthly quality of care review report is not always shared with the regulator and does not always include feedback from children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. This prevents the manager from exploring how practice directly impacts children and those invested in their care. Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 5 Team meetings take place monthly. This ensures that staff understand and work with risk assessments, are aware of and implement the routines and boundaries of the home, plan key discussions and learning for the child, and ensures that staff are supported with changes to the home’s documentation. The manager also uses meetings as an

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

opportunity to reflect on the monthly report provided by an independent visitor. This enables staff to understand and address any identified actions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive monthly supervision, and appraisals take place annually. The manager and staff have a good understanding of their individual strengths and areas of development. Staff are encouraged to use their individual strengths to support their practice, which helps them feel empowered in their role and ensures they are working collaboratively as a team. Staff feel they are fully supported by the manager and enjoy working in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Professionals said that staff and managers advocate for the child and communicate effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 6

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the manager must ensure that staff can identify significant concerns and report them to ensure they are investigated promptly and fully.

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Requirement Due date

In addition, the manager and staff must ensure that they follow up on concerns raised and document key conversations to evidence that significant concerns are responded to and managed appropriately.

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Requirement Due date

The manager must also ensure that risk assessments provide full, clear response strategies for staff to follow. 2 September 2025

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Requirement Due date

A person may only manage a children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

having regard to the size of the home, its statement of purpose, and the number and needs (including any needs arising from any disability) of the children— 1 October 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 7 the person has the appropriate experience, qualification, and skills to manage the home effectively and lead the care of children.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b)(i), a person has the appropriate experience and qualification if the person has—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 5 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered provider considers to be equivalent to the Level 5 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of a person who starts managing a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 3 years after the date on which that person started managing a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of a person who was managing a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2017.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 28 (1)(b)(i) (2)(c)(i)(ii) (3)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality-of-care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality-of-care review, the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities, and the quality of care they receive in it.

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality-of-care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality-of-care review is completed. 2 September 2025 Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 8 The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should have a system in place so that all serious events are notified, within 24 hours, to the appropriate people. The system should cover the action that should be followed if the event arises at the weekend or on a public holiday. The notification must include details of the action taken by the home’s staff in response to the event. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 62, paragraph 14:13)

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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: SC006014 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 158–160 Birkrig, Digmoor Parade, Skelmersdale, Lancashire WN8 9HP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Michael Fletcher

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Inspector

Renée Sims, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC006014 10 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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