Children's home in Charnwood

Inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and/or their care and experiences are poor and they are not making progress.

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The children's home provision is inadequate because:

 This home has significant safeguarding concerns, and ineffective leadership and management arrangements.  The responsible individual has admitted a young person whose identified needs cannot be met by the home.  Restraints have been unsafe. The use of restraint is not always necessary or proportionate to the behaviours displayed.  Arrangements to prevent and respond to incidents of young people missing from the home are poor.  Poor care planning means that young people do not access the education and health resources necessary to meet their needs.  Ineffective partnership work with external agencies fails to promote the welfare of 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 with the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

5: Engaging with the wider system to ensure children's needs are met

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff: (d) seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation. 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard, with particular reference to the protection of young people that may go missing from the home, the registered person must ensure that staff: (2)(a)(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. 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that: (1)(a) helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and (b) promotes their welfare. 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the care planning standard, the registered person must: (1)(a) ensure that all children receive effectively planned care in and through the children’s home. This is specifically with regard 06/01/2017 to ensuring comprehensive care and planning information and implementing plans upon admission. (2)(a) ensure 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.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children's home a statement (‘the statement of purpose’) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (1) (5)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, 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)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing injury to any person (including the child), or serious damage to the property of any person (including the child). Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b) (2)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if: there is no registered manager in respect of the home; or the registered provider is an organisation or a partnership; or the registered provider does not satisfy regulation 28; or the registered provider is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)) 06/01/2017

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Information about this children's home

This is a privately run children’s home which is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children and young people with learning disabilities.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 21/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 30/06/2015 Full Good 09/10/2014 Full Adequate 20/08/2014 Full Inadequate

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Inadequate

This inspection identified that the experience and progress of young people is inadequate because of inconsistent leadership and unsafe care practice.

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Inadequate

Decisions about the admission of young people to the home have been poor. The responsible individual and manager admitted a young person to the home without sufficient consideration of whether their needs could be met, or whether their range of needs were compatible with the needs of existing residents. The registration of this provider permits the home to provide care for young people whose primary needs relate to their learning disabilities. The home has most recently admitted a young person whose primary need relates to sexually harmful and criminal behaviours.

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Inadequate

Care planning processes do not ensure that the needs of young people are addressed. For example, referral information states that one young person ‘requires a therapeutic residential placement with education attached’. Additionally, a professional assessment of the young person recommends ‘a residential therapeutic placement that would be able to mimic the support that has been available to the young person within the secure setting’. This home is not a therapeutic children’s home, it does not have on-site education and it does not mimic the structure or support of a secure setting. The young person has not had any therapy since his admission. He has not attended school and still does not have a school placement or education plan. This home has not provided the individualised care necessary to meet the young person’s needs. At the time of this inspection, there were two young people in placement. Since the

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Inadequate

last inspection, two local authorities have ended the placements of other young people. This is due to their concerns relating to the quality of care and safeguarding of young people. Although the provider continues to contest the concerns raised by local authorities, the progress and experience of young people are hindered by placement disruption.

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Inadequate

Managers have endeavoured to improve the physical environment. The interior and exterior of the home have a smart and domestic feel.

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people are helped and protected

This inspection has identified a range of significant safeguarding failures.

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people are helped and protected

One concern relates to the use of restraint. Staff have undertaken unsafe restraints on young people who were exhibiting challenging behaviour. Some restraints continued over a significant period of time, and involved several staff. Records of restraints show that interventions have been disproportionate. The current manager has identified that staff did not use effective de-escalation strategies. Therefore, incidents were longer in duration than necessary.

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people are helped and protected

Restraint practice has been so poor that in one instance a member of staff physically assaulted a young person during a restraint. The assault was of such significance that it led to the conviction of the staff member. However, the home’s response to this assault was appropriate. Staff who witnessed the incident reported their concerns appropriately, and managers took immediate action to safeguard young people. The local authority safeguarding officer confirms that managers do report all allegations in line with procedure and guidance.

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people are helped and protected

Since the last inspection, a vulnerable young person, who presents a high risk to themselves and others in the community, has been missing from the home. Strategies to manage risks during this period were not robust. Managers have failed to engage multi-agency partners in contributing to risk assessments and risk- management strategies. Additionally, strategies designed to prevent the young person from going missing were not sufficient to reduce the risk of future incidents. These shortfalls mean that significant risks are not minimised.

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Inadequate

The responsible individual has not ensured effective leadership and management of this home. There has been no registered manager in post since December 2015. During this period, the provider has employed a series of temporary managers. This lack of consistency fails to ensure that care provision safeguards or promotes the welfare of young people. A new manager is now in post, and she has submitted an application for registration with Ofsted. The home is operating outside of its statement of purpose. The statement of purpose outlines that, ‘The current admission criteria is for complex and multiple needs that come under the definition of learning disability.’ Admissions to the home have not met this criteria. Managers made a decision to accommodate a young person with sexually harmful and criminal behaviours. He has a mild learning disability, but this is not his primary care need. Staff do not have the training, skills

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Inadequate

or experience to provide care for such complex needs. Consequently, care provision has failed to meet the individual welfare and safeguarding needs of this young person.

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Inadequate

Partnership work with social care professionals has not been positive. One social worker said, ‘It has been difficult to work with staff. There has been miscommunication and misleading information.’ An independent reviewing officer said, ‘The home did not communicate well about the changes in the young person’s behaviours.’ Poor communication with partner agencies does not promote the welfare and safeguarding needs of young people.

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Inadequate

The statement of purpose provides a guide to parents, placing authorities and the regulator about the aims, objectives and operation of the home and care provided. Managers have failed to send up-to-date versions of the statement of purpose to Ofsted. This does not enable the regulator to have oversight of the leadership, management and staffing arrangements within the home. At the last inspection, the inspector recommended that managers needed to improve systems to monitor and review the patterns and trends of turnover of staff. Since this time, the home has had a big reduction in the reliance on agency staff. Although several members of staff have left the home since the last inspection, the manager has recruited sufficient staff to provide care for the current young people. Staff say they feel supported and enabled to develop their own professional skills and knowledge. Records show that they receive consistent and regular supervision.

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Inadequate

Arrangements for the professional development of staff are organised through the provision of a mandatory training programme. Only three staff hold a recognised qualification. However, the remaining staff members are working towards one.

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Inadequate

The registered individual and manager understand the areas of concern identified in this inspection. They have agreed to ensure that shortfalls receive their full and immediate attention, and that no further young people will be admitted to the home until such time. Ofsted will continue to monitor the progress of this home.

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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 that 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 that 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

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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