Children's home run by Ar Curam Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 1 Registered provider: Ar Curam Limited

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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 operated by a private provider. It provides short- and long-term care for up to five children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, five children were living in the home. Three of them were spoken with.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in September 2021.

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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 outstanding

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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: 2483718 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/10/2024 Full Good 05/12/2023 Full Good 14/02/2023 Full Outstanding 19/01/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children said that they like living in the home and have staff that they can talk to. This has helped children to develop trust with staff and share past experiences with those caring for them. One family member said, ‘[Name of child] can manage their emotions better through the relationships they have with staff.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to have relationships with people who are important to them. Staff are proactive in advocating for children to spend time with their families. One child has been supported to develop a positive relationship with a family member through direct staff support and oversight. Furthermore, families are regularly invited to the home to spend time with their children. Feedback was positive around the communication and support families receive. One parent said, ‘I am really grateful to the staff, they are brilliant and go over and above for my child.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children know how to make a complaint. When children have an issue, the manager works quickly to resolve this and provides a written response to the child of what actions have been taken. Children said that they feel listened to and are satisfied with the response when they have raised something as an issue.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work well with other professional services to promote children’s health. For one child who required hospital admissions, staff responded quickly and effectively to ensure the child received the right care to meet their needs. The manager then sought out further training for staff from specialist services for staff to further meet the child’s needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of supporting children with their learning. Some children struggle with school, and not all children are currently attending a suitable education provision. Staff develop effective working relationships with other agencies and advocate tirelessly for appropriate school placements for all children. When children are not accessing formal learning staff provide alternative activities to promote learning and development.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to develop independence skills relevant to their age and understanding. One child has recently been supported to move on from the home into independent living, and another child is working towards this. One child said that they feel that staff help them develop the skills with things such as budgeting, cleaning and important jobs such as changing a light bulb. This helps children learn important skills, so they manage the move into adult life better.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The manager carefully considers all new children who move to the home to ensure that all children’s needs can be met. Children visit the home and get to know staff and the other children before they move in. When children move out of the home, they are supported throughout the move. Staff continue to keep in touch with children after they Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 4 have moved on. However, one child’s move has not been supported in a planned and sensitive way. This has led to the child feeling that their move was rushed and did not provide other children or staff enough time to process the change before it happened.

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

Children’s care plans and risk assessments are regularly reviewed and updated. In addition, any incidents or concerns in relation to children, are discussed during individual staff supervision sessions and team meetings. This ensures that all staff are aware of any changes to children’s risk assessments and the actions expected of them to provide a consistent response to children.

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

There has been a reduction in the frequency and duration of incidents where children go missing from the home. Staff’s prompt response and their engagement with the child’s friends and families helps them to locate children. When children return home, they are provided with emotional support and educational work to help reinforce boundaries. This helps keep children safer.

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

Staff use effective deescalation strategies by using a therapeutic approach to support children when they become upset. This approach is embedded throughout the staff team. When staff need to hold children, this is to keep everyone safe. When children are held there is a thorough follow up with staff and children to help them reflect on events. This helps children and staff learn from incidents to prevent any recurrences.

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

The manager completes a full investigation when allegations are made. This is followed up with children through direct discussions and conversations. Children can also speak with someone independent or an advocate. Feedback is given to the child, and restorative work is completed between staff and children. This helps children feel listened to, and mends damaged relationships.

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

There have been some issues with peer relationships in the home. Staff have responded appropriately when there have been concerns around bullying and address this through educational work and effective interventions. However, further work has not been carried out to help the children develop positive relationships with one another.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager is ambitious about the care children receive and has high expectations for his staff team to improve the lives of children. There is a culture of high aspiration and positivity. Feedback from the staff is overwhelmingly positive. Staff have said that the leadership team are very supportive and approachable and this helps provide a caring and compassionate environment for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager effectively uses the information from internal monitoring and through monthly independent visits to continuously drive improvements in the home. These improvements contribute towards better experiences for children. The manager has Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 5 elevated this further by completing research into children’s individual needs and how staff are responding to them. This helps staff to continue to develop their skills and understanding of children and provide better quality care to meet children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

The manager and staff have developed strong working relationships with children’s families and multi-agency professionals. The staff communicate regularly with families, social workers and education professionals to make sure children receive consistent experiences of care. All professionals and family members said that they have an excellent understanding of what is happening for the children. One educational professional said, ‘We get an update early, which helps us pre-empt what support the child needs.’ This helps children get the right support at the right time.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are strong advocates for the children in their care. Feedback from one education provision is that the child would not have received a provision as quickly without the advocacy from the home. Furthermore, feedback from families and professionals have consistently highlighted how well children are listened to and their wishes advocated for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Staff receive regular, reflective supervision sessions. Training is provided to the staff, which goes beyond the provider’s core learning. The manager has sought additional training to meet children’s specific needs through external agencies. Additionally, a psychologist has recently been appointed in the home to provide staff with therapeutic advice and support, which helps staff understand and respond effectively to children’s changing needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Team meetings are held regularly. The findings from audits that leaders and managers carry out are fed through to the staff team at these meetings, and clear actions are set. These actions provide staff with clear and consistent messages on expectations of their practice. This helps children receive consistent care. Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff help each child to develop skills to have positive relationships with others. In particular, staff should support children that live together to build positive relationships with one another. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 38, paragraph 8.6).  The registered person should work with the placing authority to ensure that each child’s transition is planned, and to help each child to prepare for leaving both practically and emotionally. ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 57, paragraph 11.9).

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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: 2483718 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Richard House, Sorbonne Close, Thornaby, Stockton-On-Tees TS17 6DA

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Inspector

Natalie Clark, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2483718 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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