Children's home run by Carterhatch Homes Ltd

Inspection report for children's home: 2643361 1 Registered provider: Carterhatch Homes 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 privately run home provides care for up to three children with social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The home registered with Ofsted in December 2021. The manager registered in July 2023.

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Information about this children's home

One child was living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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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: 2643361 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/05/2024 Full Good 05/07/2023 Full Good 19/10/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 2643361 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is a warm, welcoming environment where children build positive relationships with staff. The child said that they feel safe and respected. The child said that staff are 'the most understanding people' who 'truly listen'.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Professional agencies praise the genuine care shown by staff. One health professional described the home as having 'heart that you can feel as you enter'.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's voices are central to the practice in the home. Children's care plans are written in the child's voice. They include the child's own strategies for wellbeing and crisis support. Behaviour support plans set out clear steps to manage and reduce risk, and staff use these confidently and effectively. Children's views are taken into account in their daily routines and activities, ensuring that they feel listened to and valued.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to raise concerns, and the registered manager responds quickly. Staff work hard to protect children's rights and dignity, and they advocate for them effectively in formal meetings when needed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children actively contribute to routines and activities. For example, they contribute to regular house meetings and planning their weekly food menus.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's independence skills are promoted effectively. One child has recently moved on from the home with a successful plan of support to help them make their move. The child was spoken to as part of this inspection. They said, 'I appreciated everything that the home has done for me, brought me items for my new placement and helped with my education as much as they could.'

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although the child currently living at the home is not in full-time education yet, staff and managers are prioritising this. They are working closely with the child, their social worker and education professionals to secure the right arrangements as soon as possible.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children's emotional and mental health needs are identified promptly, and therapeutic support is offered to all children. Specialised support services are accessible to children, including referrals to youth mentors, substance misuse services and advocacy support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The physical environment is safe and homely, with positive touches, such as festive decorations and the home's pet gerbil, adding to this.

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

Safeguarding practice is strong. Staff receive thorough training in safeguarding, fire safety, medication management and specialist areas, such as child sexual exploitation, radicalisation and trauma-informed care. Inspection report for children's home: 2643361 4 Clear safeguarding reporting systems and protocols are in place. Staff work closely with safeguarding partners and share information quickly and effectively. When the child went missing from the home, staff followed the child's missing protocols, maintained contact with the child and their family members, and held conversations on their return. These actions help staff, family members and the child's professional network to better understand the child's vulnerabilities. Management oversight of these incidents is thorough and well recorded.

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

Incident records are written in child-friendly language. They are linked to follow-up actions, such as targeted key-work sessions, to explore and seek to reduce risk-taking behaviour.

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

Children's risk assessments are detailed and updated alongside their behaviour support plans. Weekly safety planning meetings and targeted interventions protect children at risk of exploitation or going missing.

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

While safer recruitment processes are in place, risk assessments completed by the manager prior to employment, where necessary, are not consistently documented in staff files.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager knows the children well. They lead with empathy and compassion, making decisions that put children first.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have a clear and ambitious vision for the home. Strategic planning is evident through clear improvement plans and regulatory reports. However, the current design of the staff training tracker does not consistently provide an accurate record of completed training, which may reduce the managers' ability to maintain effective oversight of the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff report feeling listened to and valued by the registered manager. Team meetings take place regularly and demonstrate trauma-informed, child-focused discussions take place in line with the home's statement of purpose. The home's statement of purpose needs to be updated to outline the therapeutic offer more clearly.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff supervision occurs monthly and is reflective, supporting staff wellbeing and practice. The registered manager has regular supervision. However, it is currently task- focused and lacks the reflective depth needed to strengthen professional development. Staff appraisals are thorough, with clear targets and effective performance management processes in place.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Systems for tracking children's progress are effective. They link to children's care plans and the home's quality assurance processes. Inspection report for children's home: 2643361 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that the registered manager receives supervision that allows them to reflect on their practice. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they maintain good employment practice, as set out in regulations 31 to 33. They must ensure that the recruitment of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. This is in relation to ensuring that any risk assessments relating to staff are undertaken and retained. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Recommendations

 The registered person must ensure that they retain a record that details the agreed timescales for staff to achieve any core training, such as safeguarding, health and safety and mandatory qualifications. This is in relation to the staff training tracker. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 53, paragraph 10.8)

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Recommendations

 The registered person must review and update the home's statement of purpose. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 14, paragraph 3.5)

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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: 2643361 6

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Carterhatch Homes Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 66b Cazenove Road, London, United Kingdom N16 6AA

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Inspector

Amanda Burrows, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2643361 7 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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