Children's home run by PIC Children’s Services in St. Helens

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:

 The young person has a history of going missing from his previous placements. Since his admission he has spent significant periods of time missing from the home. The period of time that he is away from the home has increased, which means that he is not adequately safeguarded.

p.3

The children's home provision requires improvement because:

 Education attendance is poor. The young person does not have access to full-time education and has not engaged with his educational tutor. This significantly limits his potential to achieve and improve life chances.  The young person is registered with a doctor and an optician. Dental appointments remain outstanding due to the young person having been missing from the home on these dates. This shortfall could cause further complications with the young person‟s dental health in the future.  The review of the home‟s quality of care report lacks feedback from social workers, young people and parents. These shortfalls restrict the manager in identifying whether the care that the home provides is effective.  The independent visitor‟s report lacks clarity on whether the home promotes the young person‟s well-being and whether he is suitably safeguarded.  The manager needs to take a firm and robust approach to escalate

p.3

The children's home provision requires improvement because:

concerns with other agencies in relation to the increase in the young person‟s missing episodes.  The home‟s area risk assessment would benefit from evaluation of the risk of child sexual exploitation and radicalisation in the area. This would give staff a clear indication of any potential risks in the area and enable them to better safeguard the young person.

p.3

The children's home strengths

 The home environment is warm and friendly. It is decorated to a high standard and resembles a family home.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 The young person said that he likes living in the home and that he has good relationships with the staff. He has chosen the decor for his room and has been involved in putting up his wallpaper with staff.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 Staff know the young person well and have sourced activities in line with the young person‟s preferences.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 Staff support young people to attend and participate in their review meetings, empowering them to give their views and opinions on their longer-term futures.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 Social workers report that staff keep them regularly updated on young people‟s progress and development.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 The small team is consistent, and staff report that they have good relationships with managers and that they are well supported.

p.4

The children's home strengths

 The home ensures that staff recruitment is robust. This means that the young person is cared for by people who are assessed to be safe.

p.4

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.

p.5

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure:

p.5

Requirement Due date

(2)(b) that the home‟s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. 10/01/2016

p.5

Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person‟s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person‟s opinion as to whether children are effectively safeguarded; and the conduct of the home promotes children‟s well-being. (Regulation 44 (4)(a)(b)) 10/02/2017

p.5

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 and must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (2)(5)) 10/02/2017

p.5

Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard requires the registered person to ensure:

p.5

Requirement Due date

(2)(a)(i) that staff help each child to achieve the health and well- being outcomes that are recorded in the child's relevant plans. 10/02/2017

p.5

Requirement Due date

5. Engaging with the wider system to ensure children‟s needs are met

p.5

Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff:

p.5

Requirement Due date

(c) if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority‟s or relevant person‟s performance or response to be 10/02/2017 inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or relevant person to seek to ensure that each child‟s needs are met in accordance with their relevant plans. 8. The education standard

p.5

Requirement Due date

In order to meet the education standard the registered person is required to ensure that staff:

p.6

Requirement Due date

(2)(a)(i) help each child to achieve the child‟s education and training targets, as recorded in the child's relevant plans

p.6

Requirement Due date

(iv) help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment. 10/02/2017

p.6

Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further the service should take account of the following recommendation:  Ensure that the review of the home's premises includes the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home‟s location and strategies for managing these. („Guide to the children's homes regulations including the quality standards‟, Page 64, 15.1) This is with particular reference to risks of sexual exploitation and radicalisation.

p.6

Information about this children's home

The home is owned and managed by a limited company. It is registered to care for one young person with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

p.7

Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 31/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 21/01/2016 Full Good 27/01/2015 Interim Sustained effectiveness 19/08/2014 Full Good

p.7

Requires improvement

The young person lives in a homely environment in which he is cared for by a small, consistent team. He reports that he gets on with the staff and likes living in the home and enjoys the family atmosphere. He said, „I chose the wallpaper for my bedroom and I helped staff paper the wall. It looks good.‟

p.8

Requires improvement

Staff work together with placing social workers to provide individualised care. These people report that staff keep them regularly updated on young people‟s progress and development. Staff encourage and support young people to attend and participate in their review meetings, enabling them to give their views and preferences on their care and long-term futures. A social worker said, „Staff are brilliant and very supportive. We have ongoing conversations about his plans.‟

p.8

Requires improvement

Young people who have recently moved on from the home have made positive transitions to semi-independent placements. While in the home the young person learned independence skills, such as cooking and budgeting. Staff supported him in his transition, helping him to settle into his adult placement and offering ongoing support and advice.

p.8

Requires improvement

On admission, the young person enjoyed participating in activities such as going to the cinema. He was looking forward to attending Navy Cadets and the local gym, which staff had arranged for him. He has since repeatedly declined the offer of these activities, and staff have respected his wishes. Staff intend to involve local connections to source other activities. T hese i nterests need to be promoted by staff so that the young person can experience new opportunities. This will also assist him to develop new skills, increase self-esteem and self-confidence and keep him away from negative influences in his life, which could help to reduce missing from home episodes.

p.8

Requires improvement

The young person is not engaging in his individual educational provision. This is because he has been missing from the home for significant periods of time. Staff work with education staff to ensure that the right level of learning provision is in place. Staff understand the barriers to learning and have made efforts to support him to engage with his tutor. However, this shortfall means that the young person lacks educational goals and achievements, which severely limits his career opportunities. A social worker said, „Education is a major issue; he‟s never engaged.‟

p.8

Requires improvement

Staff have made efforts to promote good health. The young person is registered with a doctor, a dentist and an optician. Staff have not been successful in supporting him to attend dental appointments because he has been missing from the home at these times. This shortfall could result in the young person having poor dental health, which could lead to difficulties in adult life.

p.8

Requires improvement

The young person came to the home with high levels of risk-taking behaviour, such as going missing. These behaviours have not reduced, and the period of time he is away from the home has increased. Staff follow the established missing from home procedures. They make numerous attempts to locate and encourage the young person to return home as soon as possible. They work with the young person, his placing authority and police to find out where the young person goes. They talk to him about keeping safe and the dangers of going missing. The young person considers himself to be safe and said, „There is nothing staff can do to make me stay. I‟ve always done this. I can look after myself when I‟m out.‟

p.9

Requires improvement

Staff welcome the young person back into the home after each missing episode and they are concerned about his whereabouts. The manager has ensured that the placing authority provides an independent person for the young person to speak to on his return. This arrangement provides a good opportunity for the young person to share any concerns or worries with someone independent of the home.

p.9

Requires improvement

Staff have established good relationships with the young person and follow individualised behaviour management plans that are designed to reduce missing episodes. Staff consult with the young person to plan goals and targets, such as working towards earning money to apply for his provisional moped licence. This strategy has not proved as effective as intended, and staff plan to review this. The young person would like his own television and console, and staff are hopeful that this could be a good strategy to deter him from going missing from the home and help to keep him safe. A staff member said, „[Name] does like his home. We need to keep him busy so that he doesn‟t leave the home and go missing.‟

p.9

Requires improvement

The manager regularly reviews the home‟s area risk assessment and identifies risks within the community and strategies for managing these. The manager is keen to evaluate the risks associated with child sexual exploitation and radicalisation within the home‟s locality. This improvement will provide staff with knowledge and understanding of the potential risks within the area and clear strategies to follow to ensure that young people are safeguarded.

p.9

Requires improvement

Staff employed at the home are subject to organisational vetting procedures and do not start work with young people until all appropriate checks are complete. All fire, gas and electrical equipment is routinely serviced to ensure that it is in good working order. This ensures that the environment is safe and that young people are protected from people who may present a risk to them.

p.9

Good

The manager is relatively new to the role and has completed her application to register with HMCI. She is experienced and suitably qualified to work with young people who are looked after. She is child-focused and keeps up to date with the young person‟s day-to-day care by regularly spending time with him. She has good relationships with the young person and demonstrates a commitment to his individual development, safety and care. The home has recently appointed an experienced and suitably qualified deputy manager. This will ensure that the home maintains management oversight at all times. Staff have a good relationship with the manager and receive regular supervision and appraisal, which focuses on their professional development and the development of the young person. Compulsory training is up to date, and staff have completed training in relation to child sexual exploitation and radicalisation. This helps them to identify and understand the associated risks and the action to

p.10

Good

take to ensure that young people receive the necessary support that they need. A member of staff commented, „I feel well supported by this manager.‟ The manager is developing positive relationships between the home and a range of external agencies. Good links with the young person‟s placing authority and the police help staff to put plans in place to support young people in meeting their individual needs. Despite this, these plans have not been successful in assisting the young person to make good progress in areas of his development and to reduce known risks. A police officer said, „Staff follow the policies and procedures. [Name] won‟t give any information of where he goes or who he is with. There is little more that they can do.‟

p.10

Good

Care planning is specifically developed to include the experiences and needs of young people. Staff make good attempts to follow these plans and make efforts to encourage and support the young person to attend and achieve in education, keep safe and promote his health so that he is prepared for his future. The manager needs to be robust in challenging the placing authority to ensure that the young person‟s plans are met in relation to his safety, education and health needs. The lack of progress means that the outcomes for the young person‟s long-term future are reduced. The manager has ensured that the requirements raised in the last inspection have been met. Regular staff supervision and team meetings afford the manager oversight of staff practice. The staff rota now shows when the manager is in the home. Records of incidents are more detailed and give the reader a clear picture of what has occurred. Information that is held electronically is accessible to all staff

p.10

Good

and is held securely in line with the home‟s data protection policy.

p.11

Good

The home‟s statement of purpose now shows the current staff team and the specific support that the home provides to the young person. This provides agencies and parents with up-to-date information and staffing structures in the home. The manager completes a six-monthly report following a review of the quality of care. This report lacks a process for establishing and reflecting on the views of the young person, his parents, placing authorities and staff. This missed opportunity means that the manager is unable to take action if there are any shortfalls in the care provided by the home.

p.11

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.12

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.12

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.

p.12

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

p.13

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.13

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 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.14

Information about this inspection

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

p.14

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.14

Information about this inspection

T: 0300 123 1231 Text phone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

p.14