Children's Home run by London Paramount Care Limited in Hertfordshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 1 Registered provider: London Paramount Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to 4 children with learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/05/2024 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

There were 4 children living at the home at the time of this inspection. Since the last inspection, 4 children have moved in and 2 children have moved out. Three of the children spoke to the inspectors.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care. They have a say in how their bedrooms are designed and decorated. When children’s bedrooms are decorated, staff take the children’s needs into consideration to ensure their preferences are respected.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Positive, warm and nurturing interactions were observed between the children and staff. Laughter is abundant. The staff are responsive to the individual needs of the children. The children are very comfortable in the company of the staff team and have built trusting relationships with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in activities that they enjoy, including days out and holidays. Children have access to a range of activities and equipment, including a trampoline, football goals, bicycles, a barbeque and a relaxing area for the summer. This has helped children who have experienced significant trauma to regain a sense of childhood. Staff support children to develop age-appropriate independence skills. Positive relationships with the staff have contributed to the progress that the children have made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff understand the importance of education and encourage children to persevere with their education. When children have faced challenges or setbacks in education, the home proactively advocates for them. This helps children access education with support tailored to their needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work hard to ensure that when children see their families, this time is meaningful. This helps children maintain links with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Feedback from professionals is positive. One social worker said they were happy with the care provided to children and that their child had made significant progress since living at the home. Another professional said communication was good, and they felt their child was happy living at the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One professional said that communication is not consistently good. Staff did not always challenge external professionals to ensure that a child received the support they needed. As a result, for that child, there were significant delays in arranging a check-up appointment recommended by a medical professional. At the time of this inspection, the appointment was yet to be made. Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 4

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

Staff have undertaken the organisation’s mandatory safeguarding training. They are confident in their roles of reporting and escalating any child protection concerns. They understand the whistleblowing policy.

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

Professionals are positive about the safeguarding practice at the home. They have said they had no concerns with how their children are cared for and safeguarded. The children spoken to said that they feel safe living at the home.

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

Physical interventions, missing-from-home incidents and allegations against staff are managed well. There have been no complaints from children since the last inspection.

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

The children’s guide is child-friendly and gives children a sense of what it is like living at the home. The guide also contains information to help children understand who to speak to if they are worried or if they need support outside of the home.

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

Leaders and managers ensure that safe recruitment practices are followed. Staff are assessed as suitable before any appointment is confirmed. These procedures help promote the safety of the children by reducing the potential of unsuitable adults working with them.

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

Leaders and managers have reviewed the location and premises of the home. However, they have failed to consult with relevant external agencies. This limits the scope for assessing risks to children in the wider community.

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

The home’s fire doors are fitted with a self-closing mechanism. However, at the time of this inspection, a fire door was being propped open. This could pose a risk to staff, children and visitors in the event of a fire.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is suitably experienced. He holds a relevant qualification. Staff are positive about the manager and the support that he provides. Staff said that management are always available and approachable. The manager was present during this inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is committed to his own learning and development. He is a good role model to staff and has good oversight of staff development and support needs. As a result, some staff have completed their relevant qualification, and those working towards their qualification are making good progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff have regular supervision sessions and annual appraisals of their performance, which are helpful and meaningful. These provide staff with opportunities to discuss their development and any concerns they have. Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 5 Staff engage in regular team meetings. The manager uses team meetings to support the learning and development of the staff. Staff can request additional training to support their learning and development, which has helped them to grow in confidence. The manager has recognised the importance of team building, support and a strong relationship between staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have created staff champion roles to develop staff expertise in particular areas. This empowers the staff team to take ownership and responsibility for the development of the home. The manager and staff team work creatively to ensure that the children make good progress. Children’s progress is tracked innovatively through memory books, reward charts and certificates.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have effective management systems. Records are of a good standard and provide information about the care provided to children. Leaders and managers have good oversight of the home. They undertake regular audits of staff practice and the operation of the home, with actions and learning identified to help address shortfalls.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Overall, feedback from a range of external agencies is good. This includes responses from social workers and former foster carers.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have reviewed the workforce development plan. However, they have not ensured that the plan contains all relevant information. This is of particular significance, given that on some occasions leaders and managers have addressed and managed staff performance. Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account, the views of each relevant person. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1)  The registered person should ensure that the children’s home complies with relevant health and safety legislation. In particular, they should ensure that fire doors are not propped open. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that they have a workforce plan that can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20).

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Recommendations

The plan should:  detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding, health and safety and mandatory qualifications)  detail the process for managing and improving poor performance  detail the process and timescales for supervision of practice (see regulation 33 (4) (b)) and keep appropriate records for staff in the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person should ensure that they ‘seek to involve’ the placing authority that places a looked-after child in the home, which in practice means working primarily with their statutory social worker. In particular, if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, they should challenge the placing authority or

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Recommendations

the relevant person to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans.’ ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 11, paragraph 2.5)

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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: 2737242 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: London Paramount Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Mardoc House, Spinney Gardens, Breachwood Green, Hitchin SG4 8BW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Christopher Pearce

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Inspectors

Anver Rose, Social Care Inspector Abby Lynch, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2737242 8 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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