Children's home run by South West Childcare Services

Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 1 Registered provider: South West Childcare Services Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private provider and offers care for up to three children. Care is provided for children with autism, social and emotional difficulties and learning difficulties or a combination of these needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by a suitably qualified manager, who registered with Ofsted on 6 September 2024.

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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: 15 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: 2567039 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/10/2024 Full Good 11/10/2023 Full Good 23/03/2023 Full Good 28/09/2021 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Two children were living at the home at the time of the inspection. The inspector spent time with both children. One child said that they like living in the home and that they like most of the staff. This child also said that staff do fun things with them and that staff support the well. Another child was observed to appear relaxed and comfortable in the presence of staff, who used a variety of strategies to communicate with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive care from staff who are nurturing and know them well, and this has contributed to children making good progress in the home. Children make progress in their confidence, self-care skills and education. One child has been helped to engage with a full-time apprenticeship, and another child attends school full-time, where they are reported to be making excellent progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend time with people who are important to them, and this is in line with their wishes and feelings. Efforts are made to help family members spend time with children when this is in the children’s best interests. Children are also helped and encouraged to spend time with friends both in and outside of the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to engage with activities that are varied and enriching. Children are supported to go on holiday and attend activity camps when this is in line with their interests and wishes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to move into and out of the home well. Impact risk assessments are completed, which are thorough and carefully consider the impact of one child on another and how staff can respond to any difficulties that may arise. Children are consulted about new children moving into the home, which helps resident children to feel considered and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care plans and behaviour support plans are clear and succinct. However, more could be done to ensure that plans include a clearer focus on children’s goals. One child is nearing adulthood, and there is a lack of robust planning around preparing them for moving on, which means that there are aspects of helping the child develop their independence that may be missed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child has complex needs and difficulties with communication. More could be done to ensure that the professional team around this child are working in a cohesive way and ensuring that information is regularly shared across all agencies.

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

Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 4 There is a clear safeguarding culture, which means that safety and protection of children are a priority. Children are cared for by staff who understand their needs and risks well. Staff have a good understanding of safeguarding procedures and how to respond to incidents when children are at risk of harm. Meaningful conversations take place with children to help them learn about the risks that they face.

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

When incidents take place where physical restraint is used, these are brief and proportionate to the behaviour being shown. Following incidents, there is good management oversight, and thought is given to how incidents could have been differently managed. A therapeutic approach is used at times. However, more could be done to ensure that this is consistently used by all staff members.

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

When children raise concerns about professionals, these are taken seriously and investigated. Referrals are made to external safeguarding agencies to ensure that a robust response is provided. Follow-up conversations take place with children, which will help them to feel listened to.

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

Since the last inspection, there have been two incidents where a child has harmed themselves. Staff have responded in a warm and caring way on both occasions. When children seek the reassurance of medical care, staff help them with this, and there is good consultation with relevant professionals, which provides further support to children and staff when they return home. The robust response that children receive will help them to feel valued and cared for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is an established core team that provides stability and consistency to the children in the home. Where concerns have become evident about the practice of one member of staff, this has been recognised by leaders and managers, and some efforts have been made to address practice concerns. There are plans in place to provide further support to this member of staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff who work in the home say that they are supported well. They are proud of the children’s achievements and how they help children to progress. Staff speak positively of the manager and feel that they can raise concerns as needed. Staff engage in training that is relevant to the children’s needs, and this helps them to communicate with and provide support to children to help them learn about their own complex needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings and supervision sessions take place regularly and include some reflection on how staff are working with children and children’s feelings. More could be done to focus on how staff practice can be improved and how children can be helped to make further progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

External professionals feel that the staff team is doing an excellent job of caring for complex children. Professionals consistently comment on the close relationships that Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 5 children share with staff and how proactive and flexible the team members are with their support to children, trying different strategies when needed and adapting to the changing needs of the children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff provide care to children that is in line with their individual care plans and that meets their individual needs. This includes ensuring that children have care plans that set out their goals and that there are clear plans in place to help children prepare for semi-independence. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.2)  The registered person should ensure that they work in partnership with relevant people as appropriate to ensure that each child is provided with the personalised support that they need. This includes forming working relationships with wider external agencies so that there is a cohesive plan across agencies to help children make progress. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.3)

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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: 2567039 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: South West Childcare Services

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Third Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 4AH

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Kelly-Marie Heffernan

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Inspector

Min Sims, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2567039 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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