Children's home run by Right-Trak Limited in Newcastle upon Tyne

Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 1 SC465475 Registered provider: Right-Trak Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It provides care for up to five children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered on 3 March 2025.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Four children live in the home. The inspector spoke with all the children.

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 outstanding

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/08/2024 Full Good 12/09/2023 Full Good 03/10/2022 Full Good 11/05/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 3

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children move into the home in a planned way. Before they move in, they go on activities with staff and children who are already living in the home. They also have visits to the home, which helps them develop relationships and feel comfortable in their new environment. Furthermore, robust assessments are conducted when children move to the home. The children get along well living together.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff are supported by an external therapy team that offers advice on how to deliver therapeutic care that provides children with routine and stability. This approach supports children to make progress. As a result, children feel safe and develop secure and healthy attachments with staff.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff communicate with the children well. Staff use pictures and Makaton to help nonverbal children make choices. In addition to this, staff use social stories that support children to understand changes to their routine, such as attending appointments. This has helped children to understand and have a say in the care they receive.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children attend school and are making good progress with their learning. Staff share information with education staff to help improve children’s behaviour at school. Furthermore, when a strategy works well at school, the staff adopt this approach at home. This supports consistency for children. Leaders and managers advocate to ensure that children’s education needs are kept under review, and they challenge professionals when education does not meet the expected standards. Furthermore, the manager challenges schools when she feels they are not addressing concerns of bullying. One professional said, ‘[Name of manager] and the staff helped us get the school he needs.’ As a result, children receive education provision that meets their needs, and they make progress in their learning.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff care for children in ways that respect their culture. Children’s diversity is celebrated, and staff help children to understand each other’s cultural backgrounds. As a result, children develop a sense of belonging and respect for others.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff help children to be healthy and make sure they get the care they need. Staff support children to attend health appointments. When it is suspected that children have additional needs, the correct diagnosis is obtained. Children are in good health.

p.3

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home offers ample space for the children, and bedrooms are personalised. There is a play and sensory room for children to enjoy. However, some areas of the home look tired and in need of updating. Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 4

p.3

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

Children’s risk assessments and care plans include all known risks. Strategies to reduce risks are updated regularly and provide staff with effective guidance on how to keep children safe. Children receive consistent care in line with their individual needs.

p.4

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

Staff evaluate and review incidents of restraint to understand why children have needed to be held. As a result, the use of restraint is reducing. Children are also provided with the space and support to understand the impact their behaviour has on others. Staff help children to apologise to one another. As a result, children’s behavioural incidents reduce, and children learn to reflect.

p.4

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

Staff use creative strategies to support children to express their feelings. For example, staff have supported one child to express their feelings through play. Consequently, children feel listened to and are able to express feelings in a safe way, and therefore, they cope better.

p.4

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

Leaders and managers thoroughly investigate allegations of harm made by children. The relevant professionals are informed, and effective action is taken to safeguard children. This demonstrates that the children’s safety and well-being is central to multi-agency practice.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is dedicated and committed to the children. The manager leads by example and goes above and beyond to ensure that children receive an exceptional level of care. As a result, the children are making good progress from their starting points.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager’s strong leadership helps staff to have a deep understanding of children’s needs and how to meet those needs. Staff are skilled at looking beyond the children’s behaviours and can recognise the influencing factors. The manager identifies specialist training as children’s individual needs emerge. This upskills the staff, which enhances the overall development and well-being of children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager cultivates an environment of high aspirations for what children can achieve and for the standards of care provided to them. Staff say that they feel supported and listened to by their manager. They enjoy working in the home, and this results in a stable staff team. One staff member said, ‘She values all of our input.’ This means that staff feel a sense of ownership in relation to the work they do and the outcomes they achieve for children.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has an excellent grip on the strengths of the home and its areas for development. She uses monitoring systems to maintain oversight of the quality of care and the standard of staff practice. The manager ensure that staff demonstrate professional curiosity when dealing with and recording incidents involving children. Information is accurate and well evidenced. This helps to ensure that the manager is Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 5 able to better understand the children’s experiences and progress. In addition to this, the manager ensures that all staff record information about children in a sensitive way.

p.4

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Professionals and family members praise the quality of communication from the manager and staff. They say the manager is available when needed and provides regular updates about the progress of the children. One family member said, ‘I cannot stress how lovely it is; [name of child] is in the best place.’ Information sharing with others is a strong theme in the home, and this helps to fill in the gaps in children’s history. This effective multi-agency working improves safeguarding practice in the home.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager embeds up-to-date research to inform practice, which provides a broader understanding of children’s needs and behaviour. The manager and staff are creative in identifying ways to help children address their worries. One child is now sleeping better at night because of the work completed around the child’s fears at bedtime.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is skilled at balancing her managerial duties with spending time with the children. She acts as a role model for staff to ensure that they are spending meaningful time with children. As a result, children feel comfortable in approaching her for practical and emotional support and trust that they will have a consistent response from staff.

p.5

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager has significantly reduced the number of agency staff used. The same agency staff are used to provide continuity of care to the children when this is necessary. All agency staff are provided with supervision, which assures the manager that all staff have a shared understanding of how to meet the children’s needs effectively. One agency staff member has successfully applied to work at the home as a permanent member of the team. This is due to the support provided by the management team. Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 6

p.5

Recommendation

 The registered provider should ensure that the home is a nurturing and homely environment that is maintained to a good standard. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

p.6

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: SC465475 7

p.6

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Winovation, Houghtons Yard, Shields Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE6 2YP

p.7

Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Melanie Spriddell

p.7

Inspector

Laura Roberts, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC465475 8 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.

p.7

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.8

Inspector

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

p.8

Inspector

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

p.8