Children's home run by SBL CARE SERVICES (UK) Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 1 Registered provider: SBL Care services (UK) 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

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

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2023.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/08/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The two children living in the home are settled and share positive and trusting relationships with the staff who care for them. The children are making excellent progress in all aspects of their life. The children said they are happy living in the home and they feel cared for and listened to by staff. They children have a sense of permanence and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have clear routines and boundaries in place, which are consistently implemented by staff. Staff know the individual needs of the children and this supports children to make sustained progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend education in line with their needs and are all making good progress from their individual starting points. Staff are ambitious for children to reach their academic potential and communicate well with education staff to achieve this. Children are developing a firm foundation on which they can build their future.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to develop their skills and knowledge in relation to independence. For example, the children are learning about budgeting, shopping, using public transport and meal preparation. This helps children to build their confidence and be prepared for independent living.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage the children to spend time with people who are important to them. Staff support with transport arrangements and supervision arrangements as required.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are in good health and have no outstanding health needs. Staff support children to attend regular routine health appointments. The children are supported by staff to develop healthy habits that they will be able to sustain once they leave the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in a range of interests and activities. One child enjoys boxing and staff have supported the child to build his fitness. Children are offered opportunities to go on holidays. One child has been abroad with staff and also with his family. This helps children have positive and lasting memories.

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

Children’s needs are known and understood by staff. Their plans are clear, detailed and have guidance for staff to follow. Plans are updated regularly and after any incidents. The children are encouraged to attend multi-agency meetings about their care to share their views and wishes about the care that they receive.

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

Staff are proactive in their approach to children’s safety and well-being. Incidents are managed well, and multi-agency working is effective in managing children’s needs Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 4 and vulnerabilities. However, some records of incidents do not contain full and accurate information. These shortfalls are not always identified by the registered manager through his monitoring and review systems.

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

Staff support children in learning new ways to manage their emotions and anxieties. Children are encouraged to identify strategies that may help them feel calmer. Behaviour management strategies are effective in de-escalating incidents. Consequences have been used to encourage improved behaviours. However, the manager does not consistently complete a full evaluation to consider whether the measure used is appropriate and whether it has been effective.

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

There has been one occasion when staff have physically held a child to keep them and others safe. The record reflects the actions taken by staff. The child and staff were spoken to about the incident. There is management oversight in relation to the incident.

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

Children understand how to make a complaint. There has been one allegation made by a child in relation to staff practice. This allegation was fully investigated, and relevant professionals were informed. The child was informed of the outcome.

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

When children go missing from the home, staff immediately follow the children’s missing-from-home assessments. Staff are proactive and persistent in their attempts to locate children. Records of the incidents include the actions taken by staff to return the children safely home. Staff talk to the children to understand their experiences of going missing from the home. However, children are not consistently provided with someone independent of the organisation to speak to following their return. This reduces the opportunities for children to raise any concerns.

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

Staff carry out direct work with the children to develop their knowledge of risks they may face and to understand how to keep themselves safe and make positive life choices.

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

Safer recruitment processes are in place to ensure that only suitable people work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is suitably qualified and experienced. He is child centred and knows the children well. The managers ensures that children’s views are sought and acted on. This helps each child to feel valued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager communicates very well with partner agencies. He advocates for the children and escalates concerns when required. Professionals said that the staff are providing excellent care for the children. One social worker said, ‘The staff are very proactive at advocating for [child’s name] needs’. Another social worker said, ‘The care is absolutely fantastic.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 5 The registered manager prioritises staff development. Staff are provided with a wide range of training to meet the individual needs of the children. The registered manager carries out appraisals of staff’s practice annually.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say they enjoy working in the home and feel well supported by the registered manager. There is a consistent staff team who work in the home. One staff member said, ‘We are a strong team and work well together.’ Staff have lots of opportunities to discuss and reflect on their care of the children during regular team meetings and supervision sessions.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A new responsible individual has been appointed. Staff said he visits regularly and he is supportive. The responsible individual supervises the manager and has oversight of the home by completing detailed audits.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There are monitoring systems in place to support managers in reviewing the quality of care provided to the child. However, these systems are not sufficiently robust. Several records lack sufficient detail and contain inaccuracies. This shortfall impairs managers’ oversight of events in the home. Furthermore, there is a lack of manager evaluation following incidents. This is a missed opportunity to review staff practice and consider areas for improvement and development to improve the quality of care of children. Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 6

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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 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

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must have effective oversight of children’s records to ensure that records contain relevant and accurate information.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that incidents are reviewed and evaluated to consider staff practice and identify any areas for improvement and development.

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Requirement Due date

Leaders and managers must ensure that consequences used to manage children’s behaviour are evaluated in relation to whether the consequence has been effective. 23 January Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 7 Leaders and managers must have effective monitoring and review systems in place to have oversight of the quality of care for children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, leaders and managers must ensure that records provide clear and accurate information in relation to incidents involving children, including the action taken by staff. 23 January

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Recommendation

 When a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards,’ page 45, paragraph 9.30)

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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: 2768382 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: SBL Care services (UK) Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 17 St Peters Place, Fleetwood, Lancashire FY7 6EB

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Inspector

Suzanne Birchall, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2768382 9 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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