Children's Home run by Searchlight Care Services Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent

Requires improvement

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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because:

 Young people‟s risk assessments are not regularly reviewed. They do not specify how risk taking behaviours will be reduced or detail actions to be taken by staff. This compromises young people‟s safety.

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because:

 Young people are not encouraged to take responsibility for their behaviour or safety. One to one sessions with young people are weak and ineffectual. They do not support young people to recognise the consequences of their actions or consider when their behaviour places them at risk of harm.

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because:

 Young people‟s education is not promoted. Staff do not effectively address barriers to education or encourage young people to recognise the importance of education.

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because:

 Staff do not ensure that young people‟s case files are up to date. Case files do not include all necessary information and documentation. These do not provide young people with a true reflection of their placement.

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because:

 Young people‟s health needs are not consistently promoted. Staff do not encourage young people to access the specialist health services they need or provide suitable health advice and support.

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because:

 The registered manager does not effectively monitor, review or evaluate the quality of care for young people. Systems are weak and do not consider young people‟s progress or development.

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The children's home strengths

 Young people enjoy positive relationships with staff. This creates a welcoming and homely atmosphere in the home.

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The children's home strengths

 Staff work in partnership with placing authorities and young people‟s families to support regular contact visits. They encourage young people to maintain regular contact with their families and further develop these relationships.

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person/s meets the Care Standards Act 2000, Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. The registered person(s) must comply with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

6 The quality and purpose of care standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the quality and purpose of care standard the registered person must ensure that staff— (2)(b)

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Requirement Due date

(iv) provide personalised care that meets each child‟s needs, as recorded in the child‟s relevant plans, taking account of the child‟s background. 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard the registered person must ensure that staff— (2)(a)

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Requirement Due date

(iii) understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers; and

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Requirement Due date

(iv) help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment. 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

(1)(b) children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

(c) children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

11. The positive relationships standard 11/12/2015 In order to meet the positive relationships standard the registered person must ensure that staff— (2)(a)

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Requirement Due date

(iii) encourage each child to take responsibility for the child‟s behaviour, in accordance with the child‟s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

(v) communicate to each child expectations about the child‟s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child‟s age and understanding; and

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Requirement Due date

(vi) help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child‟s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that staff— (2)(a)

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Requirement Due date

(i) assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child‟s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; and

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Requirement Due date

(ii) help each child to understand how to keep safe. 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

13. The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

(2)(h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(4)(b)) 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect. This specifically relates to ensuring that procedures are clear and unambiguous. (Regulation 34(1)(b)) 11/12/2015 The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child. (Regulation 36(1)(a)) 11/12/2015

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the quality of care provided for children; the feedback and opinions of children about the children‟s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. (Regulation 45(2)(a)(b)(c)) 11/12/2015

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s):

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Recommendations

 Ensure where a child runs away persistently or engages in other risky behaviours, the registered person, in consultation with the child‟s placing authority, convene a risk management meeting to develop a strategy for managing risks to the young person. The strategy should be agreed with the child‟s placing authority, the local authority where the home is located and the local police. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 46, paragraph 9.32)

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Information about this children's home

The home provides care and accommodation for up to three young people with emotional and/or behaviours difficulties. The home is owned and operated by a private company.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

25/03/2015 CH - Interim Sustained effectiveness

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requires improvement

Young people do not receive the standard of personalised care they require to make sustainable progress in all aspects of their development. This is because internal care plans and support plans are not reviewed to reflect changes to young people‟s behaviours. Staff do not complete one to one sessions with young people to discuss their progress or consider external influences that may impede this. For example, keywork sessions are reactive to young people‟s unacceptable behaviours and do not reflect the overall aims and objectives of the placement. Staff do not ensure that young people‟s case files include all necessary documentation and information. They do not include statutory care plans or review meetings minutes. This is detrimental to young people‟s progress and means that they do not benefit from an integrated approach to meeting their needs.

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requires improvement

Relationships between young people and staff are generally positive. Young people say they like spending time with staff and appreciate the support they receive. One young person said: „The staff are nice and they care about me. They want me to do well here and get myself back on track.‟ Young people say they understand how decisions are made about their care and who is responsible for these decisions. They say they know how to make a complaint and are confident that any issues they raise will be resolved. One young person said: „If something is wrong we can talk to the staff or the manager and we also have a complaints box we can put a form in. Things get sorted out quickly.‟ Young people participate in regular meetings to discuss the development of the home and weekly activity plans. As a result, young people are involved in the day-to-day running of the home.

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requires improvement

Young people‟s progress in education has declined since their admission to the home. Some young people are unable to access full-time education and this is detrimental to their progress and attainment. Staff have continually raised this shortfall with placing authorities and the virtual school, although actions to address these barriers to education remain undecided. As a result, young people are falling behind their peers in relation to their academic achievements. Furthermore, when young people refuse to engage in education or training opportunities, staff do not support them to recognise the importance of education. This means that young people fail to appreciate the positive impact education has on their personal progress and development.

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requires improvement

Staff work with external agencies to meet young people‟s physical health needs. They access primary health care services, such as dentist and general practitioners in the local community. When necessary, staff work with placing authorities to secure suitable psychological and mental health services for young people, linking resources available within the host authority with those of the placing authority. Nevertheless, when young people refuse to engage with these health services staff do not provide them with suitable advice or support. They do not emphasise the importance of young people maintaining a healthy life-style. When young people use illegal substances, such as cannabis, staff do not undertake one to one sessions to challenge this behaviour or to ascertain how they fund this activity. This significantly compromises young people‟s health, well-being and welfare.

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requires improvement

Staff work with social workers and young people‟s families to facilitate regular contact visits. This is a strength of the home. When young people are placed far away for their home area, staff provide practical and emotional support to ensure that young people are able to maintain suitable relationships with people who are important to them. This means that young people are not isolated from their families and this supports their development.

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requires improvement

Staff are competent in identifying young people‟s risks when they are admitted to the home. They review information and devise risk assessments in partnership with social workers. However, risk assessment processes require improvement to ensure that young people‟s safety is continually promoted. This is because staff do not regularly review initial risk assessments to reflect changes in young people‟s behaviours. Risk assessments lack detail and clear actions for staff follow in order to reduce young people‟s risk taking behaviours. Staff do not undertake one to one sessions with young people to discuss their safety, define acceptable behaviours or to help them to understand how to keep themselves safe. This means that young people do not recognise that their actions or behaviours may compromise their safety and welfare.

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requires improvement

Managers and staff work with specialist police teams to ensure that internal missing from home policies and procedures are compatible with police protocols. Staff complete safeguarding training. This includes identifying possible signs and indications of child sexual exploitation, such as increased missing from home episodes. When young people are potentially at risk of child sexual exploitation, safeguarding referrals are made to relevant agencies. Although this integrated approach helps to protect young people from harm, the registered manager does not look to convene meetings with professionals in a timely manner. This lack of urgency compromises young people‟s safety. Furthermore, staff do not discuss relationships with young people to help them to distinguish between suitable and unsuitable associations with others. For example, when young people socialise with older peers, staff do not challenge or question these relationships. Subsequently,

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requires improvement

young people do not consider the suitability of their friendships and this potentially places them at risk of harm.

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requires improvement

Staff are trained in physical restraint although the use of this measure of control is rare. They use verbal prompts to encourage young people to find alternative ways of managing their frustrations. The effectiveness of this is reduced because incentive programmes are weak. Additionally, staff do not complete one to one sessions with young people to discuss behaviours and young people are not encouraged to take responsibility for their actions. This means that young people do not fully understand the effect their actions have on their progress and welfare; and they are not motivated to change their behaviour.

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requires improvement

Internal safeguarding policies and procedures relating to managing allegations about staff are vague and do not provide clear guidance. They are not wholly compatible with local authority protocols, and are not verified by the Local Safeguarding Children Board. The detrimental impact of this shortfall is lessoned because there have no allegation made against staff since the last inspection.

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requires improvement

The registered manager has a number of years‟ experience of working in and managing residential care services for young people. She has been registered with Ofsted since 2012 and holds suitable higher level qualifications, including the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare. The recommendation raised at the last inspection has been addressed. The registered manager ensures that staff contribute to placement plan reviews for young people.

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requires improvement

Routines in the home focus on offering young people support that reflects their needs. The registered manager understands the complex behaviours that some young people present, and how these impact on their development. The statement of purpose is clear and priorities young people‟s needs, detailing services they can access to further assist their development. This ensure that placing authorities, partnership agencies and young people are clear regarding the aims and objectives of the home.

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requires improvement

The registered manager has established partnership working arrangements with other agencies. These include placing authorities, local police services and health services. External professionals praise the support provided by the home. One social worker said: „I feel that the manager and the staff are very committed to the young people and work hard to make sure they get the care and support they need.‟ The registered manager challenges partner agencies if their actions fall short of acceptable standards and is confident in advocating for young people. Training plans are regularly reviewed. Courses are refreshed to ensure that staff have the skills and experience necessary to meet young people‟s needs. Formal supervision occurs each month for all staff although minutes of these meetings are of poor quality. Staff practice is not appropriately discussed or evaluated within supervision records. This means that staff are not suitably monitored in their role.

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requires improvement

The registered manager has a range of monitoring systems in place. These systems are weak and ineffectual. This is because they do not identify the strengths and weaknesses of the service or specify actions required to drive forward improvements. The registered manager‟s assessment of the quality of care in the home does not effectively monitor, review or evaluate young people‟s progress or service shortfalls. When young people‟s progress stalls, possible reasons for this are not considered. This means that that the service does not continually evolve to meet young people‟s needs and regulatory shortfalls are not highlighted or actioned. This is detrimental to young people‟s progress.

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What the inspection judgements mean

The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against Inspection of children's homes: framework for inspection.

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What the inspection judgements mean

An outstanding children's home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help and protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children's home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and have their welfare safeguarded and promoted. In a children's home that requires improvement , there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of looked after children is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place, however, the children's home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children's home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being

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What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children's home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition the inspectors have tried to understand what the children's home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people who it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the Children's

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Information about this inspection

Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards. the guidance raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

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, workbased learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for looked after children and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

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Information about this inspection

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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