Children's Home run by Broadlands Hall Limited in Suffolk

Requires improvement

The children's home is not yet delivering good 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:

 Since the last full inspection, the turnover of staff has been high. This impacts on communication between the staff and continuity of care for the young people.  Not all staff fulfilling caring duties receive supervision from the managers in the home.  The frequency of the supervision provided for residential workers and managers is inconsistent. All but one written record of supervision sampled for this inspection was of poor quality.  The quality of the information held in children’s case files varies. Staff do not yet record all information about progress consistently. The majority of the information sampled was not up to date or signed.  The registered person does not have a workforce plan. There is no written strategy evident in relation to the structure and processes agreed for achieving induction, probation and core training.  The review of the quality of care does not show how managers routinely

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because:

evaluate the impact of the service or consult young people and their families about the quality of the care provided.  The statement of purpose requires revision.

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The children's home strengths

 Feedback from parents and professionals spoken to during this inspection is positive and provided strong evidence to support that the young people receive good help and are safe.  Staff are caring and genuinely interested in making a difference to the lives of the young people they care for.  Young people look well. For many their appearance has improved significantly. Those spoken to say they are happy living in the home.  All young people attend school.  Each young person has a defined daily routine.  Young people have regular contact with their family.

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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

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the feedback and opinions of children about the children's home, its facilities and the quality of the 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) (b) (c)) 01/02/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review, revise it and notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3) (a) (b)) 01/02/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction; that each permanent appointment of an employee is subject to the satisfactory completion of probation and that all employees receive regular practice related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (1) (a) (b) (4) (b)) 01/02/2016

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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 with particular reference to communication within the staff group the registered person must ensure that: (2) (b) staff work as a team where appropriate; (2) (e) the home's workforce provides continuity of care for each child. 01/02/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records for each child which are kept up to date and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1) (b) (c)) 01/02/2016

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation(s): Devise and implement a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should detail the necessary management and staffing structure, (including any staff commissioned to provide health and education), the experience and qualifications of staff currently working within the staffing structure and any further training required for each member of staff, to enable delivery of the homes Statement of Purpose. It should detail the processes and agreed timescale for staff to receive induction, probation and any core training and the process for managing and improving poor performance. It should also detail the process and timescales for supervision of practice for all staff performing care tasks and keep appropriate

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Recommendations

records for staff in the home. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 53 paragraph 10.8)

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Recommendations

Monitor and review the patterns and trends of turnover of staff, whether agency or directly employed, to understand and where possible, address any negative trends. (The Guide to the Quality Standards, page 54 paragraph 10.19) 

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned children's home provides care, accommodation and education for up to 11 young people with learning, emotional and behavioural difficulties. There is a large education building, which is inspected by Ofsted, in the grounds of the home

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Recent inspection history

26/05/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness

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Requires improvement

Since the interim inspection staff turnover has been high. There has been an increase in the use of agency staff. This means that remaining permanent staff have to compensate for frequent change. Each young person living in this home has complex needs. Every individual frequently receives one to one care. Two adults look after some. While young people make good progress in health, appearance and some in improving self-care skills, their experiences vary because of the continual staffing difficulties.

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Requires improvement

Individualised plans, which include information on health and behaviour management, provide the structure for workers to record information and to evidence the influence of the home and the progress made. Staff are not using the available systems to document progress consistently. The content of information recorded on case records sampled for this inspection varied. Many reports were not current and not signed or dated. Records of improvement were not sufficiently or consistently evident, however, staff report that young people are making progress socially and in attending appointments with external health professionals. While poor recording has no direct impact on young people’s care, it does have an impact on their experience because they are acutely reliant upon the adults working as a team to provide continuity. This also represents a failure to meet regulation in maintaining young people’s case records.

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Requires improvement

All of the young people are in a routine. They attend the school, which is adjacent to the home. Some of the young people make progress in school. The headteacher works well with the registered manager to ensure that attendance for each young person continues to be excellent. Some teaching support staff from the school make up shifts in the home, for example, in the morning they help get the young people up and ready to come into school. While this presents as good continuity for the young people, the practice falls short. This is because the teaching support staff do not receive supervision about the caring tasks that they undertake in the home from the managers or leaders working in the children’s home. This leads to inconsistencies in approach.

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Requires improvement

Young people benefit from family contact. The majority go home for overnight stays at different times across each month. Arrangements work well and parents spoken to say that staff are friendly and approachable. They feel included and kept up to date. One parent said: ‘I think the staff have been doing a fantastic job.’

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Requires improvement

Key staff have come to know the young people well . One member of staff said: ‘What we do here is all about the boys.’ They are genuinely interested in their care and work hard to fill gaps and take on extra shifts to support the young people. They often work split or double shifts. As a result, many are weary and morale has been low. Records show that some parents have contacted the manager and have expressed their concern about the impact of changes in staffing on their child’s experiences.

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Good

Parents and professionals gave good feedback about the home. All said that they felt that their children are safe and receive good help. One parent said: ‘I am very happy with the service. My son is not aggressive anymore when he comes home.’ This means that the help that young people receive does make a positive difference.

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Good

Some young people can communicate verbally. For many, their words have increased and they are more readily able to express their needs audibly. Others receive help to communicate. They do best when supported by those remaining skilled staff who know them and how to communicate with ease using signs and symbols.

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Good

All of the young people are in a routine. They receive help to access appointments and to take part in leisure activities such as going to the gym, swimming and shopping. This means that each young person is busy and active. One young person said that the home is ‘brilliant’.

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Good

Young people do not go missing from this home. If a young person was to leave the expansive grounds, staff are aware of the action to take to ensure their expedient return. Leaders and managers in the home do good work in identifying the potential risks. They work well with the young people’s families, which helps them to get alongside the young person to recognise their behavioural triggers. This helps the young people to feel safe.

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Good

Physical interventions remain high. They tend to involve the same young people. De-escalation techniques used are successful for some individuals, resulting in a gradual decline in incidents requiring physical intervention. For others, the frequency of incidents increases, however, staff report that for some, the intensity is reducing. Judgement grade

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Requires improvement

The registered manager has been in post since March 2015. He is appropriately qualified with the required level five diploma in management and leadership. He works hard and spends many hours at the home and on shift. He is developing effective working relationships with other agencies who visit the home, for example, placing local authority social workers and health professionals. This means that his work, for example in introducing small practical solutions to improve communication between staff, is beginning to make a difference. He has an open door policy and those spoken to say that they can approach him. Some staff say that morale is beginning to improve.

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Requires improvement

The managers have met one of the two requirements from the last interim inspection. The amended recording system for physical interventions means that the action taken by staff in relation to restraint is clear. This is an improvement.

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Requires improvement

This inspection identified that staff and the manager’s experience of supervision varies. Records show that for some, there have been months between meetings. For many, supervision notes are sparse and poorly recorded. Probation reviews are not evident and induction plans are incomplete. Team meeting minutes lack continuity. Access to training opportunities is improving but is not consistent. This means that the underpinning structures available to ensure that all staff working in the home routinely have good support and guidance are not used to good effect. This falls short of regulation, leads to inconsistencies in approach and has an impact on staff’s ability to work as a cohesive team.

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Requires improvement

The independent visitor calls into the home unannounced, providing an additional safeguard for the young people. She writes detailed reports and pinpoints areas for improvement. Repeats in some recommendations mean that the managers have not acted promptly upon the advice given.

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Requires improvement

The registered manager completes and makes available to Ofsted the required review of the quality of care. The reports highlight young people’s and staff activities. However, the content falls short because there is no evidence to support evaluation of young people’s feedback or actions that the manager considers necessary to improve the quality of care provided.

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Requires improvement

Recent months of staffing pressures means that the manager and senior staff have understandably prioritised the day to day routine of service delivery. The new post and appointment of a deputy manager represents a potential improvement in the structure. However, in the absence of a workforce strategy and overview of patterns in staff leaving, plans remain fragmented. The current statement of purpose does not accurately reflect the current staffing or resource structure. This does not provide up to date information for parents, staff and external professionals.

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Requires improvement

The registered manager and responsible individual remain committed to helping young people to have good experiences and make progress. They are aware of some of the current shortfalls in the service and say they are determined to continue making improvements, with the support of the independent visitor, to achieve an overall good judgement.

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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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