Children's home run by Applegreen Children‟s Care Limited in Birmingham

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.

p.2

The children's home provision requires improvement because:

 Young people do not have free access to all areas of their home.  Recording of allegations and complaints is not robust.  Staff training does not reflect the needs of the young people.  Young people‟s and professionals‟ views are not always gained.  Children‟s admissions sometimes fall outside the home‟s statement of purpose.  Agency staff are not appropriately vetted.  Educational needs for young people are not addressed in a timely manner.  Young people do not have access to Advocates.  Medication recordings are not robust.

p.3

The children's home’s strengths

 Mangers have identified a number of weaknesses and have worked hard to address them.  Staff have good relationships with young people and are committed to their care.  Young people are supported to have meaningful contact with important people in their lives.  There is good collaboration with professionals.  Staff receive good regular supervision.  Staffing levels are consistent and meet the needs of the young people that live in the home.

p.3

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.

p.4

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the care planning quality standard the registered person must ensure –

p.4

Requirement Due date

(2)(a) that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home's statement of purpose. 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. (Regulation 39(3)) 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

When recruiting staff, the registered manager must ensure that full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32(3)(d)) 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children's home. (Regulation 23(1)) 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that children can access all appropriate areas of the children's home's premises. (Regulation 21(b)) 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

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 care they receive in it. (Regulation 45 (2)(b)) 15/04/2016

p.4

Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

p.4

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the leadership and management standard the registered person must – 15/04/2016 (2) (c) ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child.

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)) 15/04/2016

p.5

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendations:  Ensure that children can access advocacy support (as described in paragraph 4.4), and should also consider the use of an independent advocate where necessary (Guide to the Quality Standards, 15, Paragraph 4.18).

p.5

Recommendations

 Ensure that where children placed in a home are not participating in education because they have been excluded or are not on a school roll for some other reason, the registered person and staff must work closely with the placing authority so that the child is supported and enabled to resume full-time education as soon as possible. In the interim, the child should be supported to sustain or regain their confidence in education, and be engaged in suitable structured activities (Guide to the Quality Standards, 15, Paragraph 5.15).

p.5

Information about this children's home

This children‟s home is privately operated and provides care and accommodation for up to three young people with learning difficulties .

p.6

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

p.6

Requires improvement

Young people have positive relationships with staff and talk positively about them. One young person talked about her positive relationship with staff and how they shared common interests. She expressed that she liked living in the home. Staff enjoy spending time with the young people and support them to engage in a range of activities. Particular favourites are horse riding and hover boarding. This helps to improve their physical health, and increases opportunities to socialise with other young people and the community. Although staff are making efforts to promote the young people‟s educational needs, this has not been done in a timely manner. This has meant that educational placements have been delayed, and this has an impact on the young people‟s opportunity to access meaningful educational placements. Also, young people do not have access to advocates. This is a matter that the home is beginning to

p.7

Requires improvement

address. Health is supported and promoted. Primary health-care appointments are arranged and attended. Staff support young people to access these appointments and offer appropriate support, depending of the needs and wishes of the young person. This has helped one young person to attend appointments to benefit her health and well-being. Young people have meaningful contact with important people in their lives. This has helped relationships to strengthen and to keep a sense of identity . Young people live in a home that is clean, tidy, well maintained and personalised by them. However, the restricted access to the kitchen detracts from a homely atmosphere. Risk assessments do not identify the need for this to take place or the impact on the young people‟s living in the home. Judgement grade

p.7

Requires improvement

Risks are generally well identified, understood and managed. One professional commented that the home „appears to have a good handle on (the concerns surrounding the young person) and has a risk assessment in place to manage these concerns.‟ Young people are supported to take age-appropriate risks, for example, using public transport to visit family. These risks are considered with the young person and their social worker, and form part of their risk assessment. However, risk assessments for new admissions are variable and do not routinely consider all aspects of the young person needs and how this can impact on other young people already living at the home. This means staff are not always able to ensure a stable environment is secured for all young people. There have been no episodes of missing or physical restraint. Positive relationships with staff, 1 to 1 sessions and discussions have helped to address various aspects

p.8

Requires improvement

of a young person‟s behaviour, thus helping to keep them safer. Staff and managers have a clear understanding of the progress the young people are making, and this is celebrated, thus helping young people‟s self-worth. The risks of young people becoming involved in child sexual exploitation are understood by the manager and staff. Staff complete work about relationships with young people, and use training materials they have gained to help keep young people safe. The process for recruiting core, permanent staff is robust. However, temporary staff employed through an agency are not subject to the same level of scrutiny. Specific shortfalls include incomplete references and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) information. As a result, the recruitment of temporary workers is not thorough to ensure young people are protected. Allegations against staff and complaints are reported to the correct professionals

p.8

Requires improvement

without delay. However, this level of action is not robustly recorded. This leaves the good practice within the home not being formally captured. Medication quantities are not accurately recorded. This leaves staff not clear about what medication has been administered to a young person or what stocks are in the home. Judgement grade

p.8

Requires improvement

The registered manager has been in post since the home was first registered in September 2015. He is currently working towards his level 5 qualification. He has 20 years‟ experience in working with children. Staff talk positively about the level of support that they receive. One staff member commented, „Management is really supportive. If we have any concerns, we can tell them. If we have any issues with the young people, they come up with some good ways of dealing with it.‟ Staff have regular supervisions where practice is discussed. This aids the manager to have an oversight of staff practice and any areas for development. The manager puts the needs of young people first. For example, after the recent admission, the manager re-examined the staff gender balance to ensure it was meeting the needs of the young person, and more female staff were rostered on duty. This helped the new young person settle in and make positive relationships.

p.9

Requires improvement

The home works closely with a number of other agencies including social workers, police, doctors and the local designated officer. One social worker talked positively about the home and their communication. She commented, „The communication is brilliant. The manager emails me and keeps me up to date, and this is my preferred form of communication.‟ The home challenges practice to ensure that the young people are accessing the best possible services to help them. Staff training covers many aspects, such as awareness of child sexual exploitation, first aid and basic food hygiene. However, staff are not afforded training to reflect the home‟s support of young people with learning disabilities. This leaves staff with limited knowledge and skills to best support the young people they are caring for. The registered manager is not ensuring that the young people who are admitted to the home are only those whose needs are within the range of needs of young

p.9

Requires improvement

people for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation. The home‟s statement of purpose is misleading in terms of the range of needs of young people the home can care for.

p.9

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‟.

p.10

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 children looked after 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

p.10

What the inspection judgements mean

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

p.10

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

p.11

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 .

p.11

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,

p.12

Information about this inspection

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

p.12

Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.12

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

p.12