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.

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because:

 Not all admission decisions have been child-focused. This has resulted in placements ending prematurely.  Young people have not been involved in their care plans.  Staff have not always implemented behaviour management plans effectively. Consequently, young people’s behaviour has escalated and placed them and others at risk of harm.  Care and risk-management plans have not been kept up to date to reflect young people’s supervision levels.  The manager does not have sufficient oversight of complaints.  When incidents have taken place, the manager has not acted swiftly to inform all professionals.  The manager has not ensured that the home operates in line with the statement of purpose.  The manager and staff have limited links with other agencies, which means that there is limited partnership working to help young people to be healthy, safe and protected.

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The children’s home’s strengths

 Staff take positive steps to enable a wide range of activities to be offered to young people on admission.  Staff are well trained and receive regular supervision.  Staff value education and take the necessary steps to help young people attend school.  Staff recognise the importance of family contact for young people.

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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 within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

5: Engaging with the wider system standard.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the engaging with the wider system standard, the registered person must: (a) seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; (b) seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs. 31/12/2016

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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 of care standard: (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to: (a) understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose. 31/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard: (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure: (a) that staff: (iii) understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers. 31/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the positive relationships standard, the registered person must ensure: (1) that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on: 31/12/2016 (a) mutual respect and trust; (b) an understanding about acceptable behaviour. (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure: (a) that staff: (i) meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans; (ii) help each child to develop socially aware behaviour.

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard, the registered person must ensure that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure: (a) that staff: (iv) manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; (vi) take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. 31/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the care planning standard, the registered person must ensure: (2)(f) that staff help each child to access and contribute to the records kept by the registered person in relation to the child . 31/12/2016

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child, which are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)) 31/12/2016

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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)) 31/1122016

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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 .

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

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Requires improvement

This is the home’s second inspection following registration in September 2015. At the time of this inspection, there were no young people living in the home.

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Requires improvement

Since the last inspection, two young people have lived at the home. However, admissions have not always been child-focused. This has resulted in placements ending prematurely. The registered manager has not consistently risk-assessed new admissions to take into account the full impact on other young people already placed in the home. For example, one young person struggled with noise levels. Despite this known fact, the manager later admitted another young person who expressed himself through high-levels of vocalisation. Consequently, this caused an escalation in poor behaviour, which led to a young person being assaulted.

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Requires improvement

When young people have lived at the home, staff have not encouraged or supported them to be part of their care plan. As a result, young people did not have the opportunity to participate in their care.

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Requires improvement

Staff have not always implemented young people’s behaviour management plans effectively. Consequently, young people’s behaviour has escalated and assaults have occurred. This has led to an unsafe environment and staff and to young people being left vulnerable during these times.

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Requires improvement

Staff value young people’s education and have given them the practical and emotional support necessary to overcome barriers to learning.

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Requires improvement

Staff have ensured that young people’s health needs are met. This has enabled young people to have their physical well-being promoted.

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Requires improvement

Staff have supported young people to access a range of activities. For example, going to the park, horse-riding and day trips. These have been set up around individual interests. These experiences have helped young people to develop interests and talent.

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Requires improvement

When it was appropriate, young people have been encouraged to develop their levels of responsibility in preparation for their transition to adulthood. These opportunities have enabled them to develop life skills, such as taking a bus journey to school alone, to completing their own washing and cooking basic meals. The manager and staff supported and valued young people’s contact with family members and those important to them.

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Requires improvement

The home is clean and well furnished. It has a large games room and a sensory room to help meet the needs of the young people.

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Requires improvement

Staff have ensured that care and risk-management plans are put in place for each young person. However, staff have not always managed to keep these up to date. For example, when the level of supervision reduced for a young person, this was not promptly reflected in the young person’s plan. This means that staff have not worked with the most up-to-date information.

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Requires improvement

When incidents have occurred, the manager has not always acted swiftly to liaise with all the necessary professionals. For example, after a young person assaulted another young person in the home, the manager did not inform the various agencies for several days. This practice does not prioritise young people’s basic need to feel safe in their environment.

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Requires improvement

Allegations against staff and complaints have been reported to the correct professionals. However, the manager has not ensured that he has an accurate oversight of these complaints. The actions taken and outcomes have not been clearly recorded. This means that the manager is not assessing complaints and looking at what these mean in terms of monitoring the quality of care.

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Requires improvement

Young people’s risk-taking behaviours, such as missing and putting themselves at risk of child sexual exploitation, have decreased from their starting points. When young people did go missing, staff immediately looked for them. Staff remain knowledgeable about the potential risks young people can face and have clear procedures in place to help them keep young people safe in the future. Judgement grade

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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 in residential childcare. He has 20 years’ experience in working with children.

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Requires improvement

Young people’s placements have been brought to an early end due to poor matching and the staff team’s inability to manage young people’s presenting behaviours.

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Requires improvement

The staff team members either hold the appropriate qualification in residential childcare or are working towards the award in the required period.

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Requires improvement

Staff talk positively about the support they receive. A member of staff told the inspector: ‘[The manager] is really supportive and approachable, you can go to him with anything.’ Staff receive regular supervision in line with the home’s supervision policy and there is a robust induction programme. Training programmes for staff cover many aspects of practice, including first aid and basic food hygiene. Many staff have received awareness training in autism, deprivation of liberty and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. This has helped to build up the staff’s knowledge of caring for children with diverse needs.

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Requires improvement

The manager has identified some of the significant practice shortfalls in the home. The service manager and responsible individual are helping to bring about improvement in the home. The manager finds this support, along with the monthly visits from an independent visitor, helpful and he is keen to improve the service. As a result, improvements are beginning to emerge.

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Requires improvement

The manager keeps the statement of purpose up to date. This sets out the vision, values and aims of the service. This in turn helps placing authorities, parents and other interested parties to have a clear understanding of what they can expect from the service. However, not all aspects of the home’s aims and objectives have been secured. For example, it states: ‘A fundamental objective of [the home] is to ensure that we provide ongoing intensive individual attention, stability and support to children who have experienced disrupted development and multiple placement moves. The daily running of the home is based on a structured day with clear routines, firm boundaries and personalised care.’ This shortfall is most noticeable in young people having premature placement endings.

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Requires improvement

The manager has not always secured effective partnership working with social workers. For example, social workers report that the manager and staff have been slow to update them on significate events and in sending through requested information. The manager is aware of the need for better communication and has an action plan to address this. More positively, the manager has challenged a placing authority to enable advocacy support to be promoted. This enabled a young person to have a stronger voice.

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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 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

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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, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for children looked after 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

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

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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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