Children's home run by helping care LTD

Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 1 Registered provider: Helping Care 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 owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for one child who may experience social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, one child was living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2025.

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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: not previously inspected

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 2

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There is one child living in the home. The child spoke positively about their experiences of living in the home. The child said they are listened to, and staff respond to the child’s worries with empathy and compassion, which helps the child to feel valued. The child said, ‘I love it here; it’s the best home I have lived in.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has received education based on their individual needs. The child has recently achieved a good examination result, which has helped them consider their further studies at college and talk positively about their future aspirations. The manager is proactive at representing the child’s voice to ensure that they receive education support specifically tailored to their needs and abilities.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff liaise with healthcare professionals effectively to ensure that the child is receiving appropriate care and support without delay in line with their specific medical needs. Staff are supportive and nurturing and provide appropriate advice and guidance when the child has worries about routine appointments and treatment. One health professional visited the child during the inspection. This visit was to complete general health checks for the child and discuss the child’s dental plan with the staff team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child’s culture through food, music and literature and are supportive of maintaining positive links and connections with the child’s friends and family. Staff are flexible in planning family time activities to ensure that the child has quality time with the people who matter most to them and help to maintain these vital support networks for the future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support and encourage the child to develop their independence skills to prepare them for adulthood and independent living. The child enjoys cooking a range of foods and had recently prepared a roast dinner for herself and the staff team.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is encouraged to take part in activities. Recently, the child has been to a music concert as well as go karting, days out to the beach, having her hair and nails done and going out for meals with staff.

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

Staff carry out risk assessments that are updated regularly and reviewed as children’s needs change. Staff remain alert to any emerging risks due to effective communication provided by leaders and managers.

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

Staff follow protocols effectively when the child has been missing from home. The manager attends strategy meetings with police and other safeguarding professionals. Return home interviews take place to ensure that children can speak to someone Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 3 independent from the home. Agreed actions from these meetings, as well as debriefs taking place following serious incidents, reassure the child that staff prioritise their safety and well-being.

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

On one occasion, a room search was not conducted when there was reason to believe the child may have been in possession of substances. A requirement has been raised to this effect.

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

When the child is feeling frustrated about decisions, staff use de-escalation strategies effectively to help the child’s decision-making processes. Staff are open and transparent with the child, which enables the child to trust adults who are providing them with daily care and support.

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

Staff complete regular direct-work sessions with the child. These sessions are meaningful and provide the child with education and guidance from which they can learn and make informed decisions about keeping safe and understand the consequences of behaviour to help them take ownership of their lives.

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

Children live in a physically safe environment. There are measures in place to ensure that the home is free of hazards. Regular fire drills are carried out to ensure that children know what they need to do in the event of an emergency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by an experienced manager who ensures that the voice of the child is represented. They escalate concerns to the child’s placing authority to ensure that the child receives fair access to services.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are happy working at the home. They are supported by leaders and managers who they say are available for guidance and support at any time. Despite the staff team being relatively new, it has a shared sense of commitment to the child, and staff value one another’s strengths. This provides the child with consistent care and support from a range of adults.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff receive regular supervision. These sessions provide staff with the opportunity to share their thoughts on the progress of the child as well as developments to the home. A record of these sessions is accurately kept.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings and handovers take place regularly. However, on one occasion, a significant incident that had taken place was not recorded in a handover to staff. This discrepancy was not identified in the manager’s monitoring processes. No detriment was caused to the child because of this, but there is a missed opportunity for staff to discuss and debrief about the incident. Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 4

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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 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that staff consider a room search to determine if a child is at risk of harm in relation to the use of drugs or other harmful substances. 11 September

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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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate; 11 September Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 5 use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(b)(h))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person should ensure that staff communicate with one another all important information relating to the child, including any serious incidents that may have taken place. This includes the effective use of handover time when staff are starting and ending their shift.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the staff are suitably trained to meet the needs of the child. In particular, the registered manager should ensure that staff are up to date with all training, including recording and reporting, to ensure that there is a consistent approach to meeting the needs of the child living in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)  The registered person should lead and manage the home in a way that delivers the ethos, outcomes and approach set out in the home’s statement of purpose. In particular, daily records should include how staff are using the PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy) model of care effectively as a means of communicating with the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.4)

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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: 2823770 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: V & R Accountancy Services, Cropton House, Three Tuns Lane, Liverpool L37 4AQ

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Inspector

Michelle Greenhalgh, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2823770 7 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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