Venue details
Address (not for correspondence):
Emmanuel Church Hall, Compton Avenue, Mannamead,
Plymouth, Devon, PL3 5BZ
Opening hours
Days & Times: 1st & 3rd Saturday of month 2pm to 4pm 2nd and 4th Fridays mornings upon request only
Centre charges
No charge for service
Services available here
Supported contact
Handover
Accredited
Contact
Telephone: 01752 260317
Alternative: 07802 723311 (Centre mobile number)
Notes from this centre
We do not accept self-referrals unless accompanied by a direct court order. If there are cases concerning Child Protection and/or public safety, the Co-ordinator must be informed.
This centre is accredited to provide supported contact
Accreditation is a way of checking that your contact centre is safe and meets our standards.
How is a centre checked?
An assessorSomeone working on our behalf who has experience and an interest in child contact services and must assess if a service meets our standards. looks round the rooms, toys, equipment, and any outside play areas to make sure that they are safe and good for you to use. They talk with the people at the centre to make sure that they are trained and helped to do their job as well as possible. They then check the informationThe assessor checks through the centre’s accreditation portfolio which includes policies, procedures, risk assessments, reports (if the service offers supervised contact) and information for families. on what happens at the centre and how it keeps you safe.
When the assessor is happy that a centre meets our standards then they are awarded their accreditation and you can find them on this website. Accreditation happens every three years with extra checks if needed.
Accreditation Summary
Date: 20/08/2022
Summary:
Emmanuel Child Contact Centre is in the Mannamead suburb of Plymouth in the county of Devon. The centre is close to Mannamead Road with access to local bus and rail services. There is on street parking in front of the centre building, and a car park opposite. The centre is easy to find and is run from Emmanuel church on Compton Avenue.
The centre’s main front entrance is also used as the exit for the centre. A small reception area can be found immediately inside the front door with a small range of literature available and a notice board with information on local community events and groups. Two large contact rooms are available with a smaller area that is used for larger families or babies. The centre has an enclosed Astro-turfed garden space with toys and a decked area for families to use. The premises has a large kitchen – this is not directly accessed from the contact room, however a serving hatch is open and a volunteer is present giving out drinks as and when needed, (families are not allowed to access the kitchen area). The centre has male and female toilets, baby changing facilities and disabled access – these are clean and well maintained. The centre has a toy store but at the time of the report since lockdown they have encouraged families to bring their own toys.
Emmanuel Child Contact Centre accepts self-referrals but mainly receives referrals from solicitors, Cafcass, court, health workers, schools, and mediation. The centre offers staggered arrivals and departures for all families. All families have pre-visits on separate days prior to the first session commencing. A pre-visit checklist is completed which includes information about expected behaviours and parents sign this. The resident parent will usually bring the child/children to the start or end of a session to be shown around the space with the team explaining how and when they will see their other parent. Children are given the opportunity to ask questions.
The co-ordinator has been in post for 9/10 years. Their role is to provide a safe place for children to come and see family members. They manage the referrals that come into, so a big part of the role is communicating and liaising with families and professionals, which allows for a detailed risk assessment to be put in place. They plan the pre-visits and ensure the centre is staffed sufficiently, working with a volunteer who leads the volunteer training and another volunteer who helps in their absence. The volunteer team work on a rota basis and wear a badge for identification for families / children. The centre is also looking at recruiting volunteers from the local university.
The child contact centre is a well-run centre with an experienced coordinator who clearly cares for the children and families that use the facility on offer. The centre is run and managed in a child focused way. During their visit, the assessor observed the co-ordinator and their deputy interacting with the families within the centre, greeting the visiting parent and children alike in a warm and friendly manner. Unfortunately, due to Covid guidelines not many toys were on offer as families were bringing their own, but they do have some toys available. Any recommended actions following the visit are now complete meaning the service meets the standards for supported contact re-accreditation.
Photos from this centre
