Children's Residential Care

All children are making progress from their individual starting points. Children receive well- planned and individualised care from a nurturing and committed staff team. It was clear from observations that staff know the children well and carefully manage children’s individual daily routines.

Staff speak to children about their care needs. As a result, children are listened to, and this helps staff provide children with individualised daily care. One child said, ‘It’s like living in a normal home but better. They care and talk to me about things.’

Staff support children’s individual educational needs. Staff are ambitious for children and advocate on their behalf to ensure that they have an education placement. One child had been out of education for a significant period. The manager worked with education professionals to address this and the child is now attending school on a regular basis, where she is making progress.

Staff promote children’s individual health needs. Children are supported to attend the necessary health appointments. One child has been supported to significantly improve their health. A professional said, ‘They have been amazing, they invited me in straight away to provide extensive training to staff, to support [name of child]’s health needs. It is the first time I haven’t worried about [name of child]. I am more than happy with the care they are being provided with. Their health has improved as a result.’

Children living in the home are happy and settled. Staff care for children with empathy and warmth and develop strong and trusting relationships with the children to enable them to feel safe and secure. Staff reflect on how they interact with the children. They adapt their practice to meet the children’s needs and use alternative communication styles for each child. This means that children can express themselves in a manner that they feel comfortable with.

Staff develop good working relationships with children’s families and those important to them. Parents and family members are updated on a regular basis and staff work in partnership with them to support children. One parent commented that her relationship with their child has significantly improved since they moved into this home.

Safeguarding is a strength of the home. Professionals say that staff go above and beyond to safeguard children. Staff have a good understanding of children’s risks and needs in respect of exploitation. The manager is a strong and assertive advocate for children who are at risk in the community. She challenges professionals to ensure that support is provided to children to keep them safe. Robust support plans are developed in partnership with external agencies and professionals. This means that there is a strong multi agency approach to keeping children safe, both in the home and the community.