Children's Home run by Keys Child Care Limited in Halton

Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 1 SC487488 Registered provider: Keys Childcare Limited

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is one of several homes owned and managed by a limited company. The home provides care and support for one young person who has emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 31 January 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Good

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Key findings from this inspection

 Young people are safe and feel safe here. Staff have a good understanding of the risks associated with the young person and are working with her to reduce Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 2 these.  Staff work hard to improve the overall experiences of the young person living in the home. As a result, the young person is making progress in areas of their life, especially with developing emotional well-being and improved behaviour.  Relationships between the young person and staff are positive. Managers and staff offer nurturing, trusting and supportive care, which helps the young person to feel safe, listened to and valued.  Young people are much more emotionally resilient. They are confident enough to talk to staff about how they are feeling and to devise strategies with the support of staff to manage their feelings in a more productive manner.  The registered manager and staff work collaboratively with other professionals,

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Key findings from this inspection

including placing authorities, virtual heads, and police missing from care co- ordinators to ensure that the young person’s needs are met.  Professionals are complimentary about the home’s efforts to secure a school placement for the current young person, and also the work undertaken previously with a former resident to reduce their incidents of missing from care.  Young people are helped and supported to manage complex contact arrangements. This means that they keep in touch with those people who are important to them and that this is done so safely.

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Key findings from this inspection

The children’s home’s areas for development

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Key findings from this inspection

 The appointment of a deputy manager and senior residential social worker to support the registered manager.  The attention paid to monitoring of the home, premises and records by the registered manager and independent person. This is because record keeping is not yet robust.  Enhance further the support provided around young people’s education and their understanding of healthy eating.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/01/2017 Full Good 27/09/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 03/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 3

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet 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

13: The leadership and management standard The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that promotes their welfare— In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and deliver the outcomes, set out in the statement of purpose. (Regulation 13 (1)(b)(2)(a)) In particular, that the provider secures the appointment of a deputy manager and a further senior member of staff. 02/06/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in schedule 4 and ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (2)(a)(b)) In particular, the registered person must ensure that a record of when the registered manager is actually working in the home is maintained. 02/06/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person maintains records (‘case records’) for each child which— include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; are kept up to date; and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) In particular, ensure the removal of conflicting information, that entries are detailed and that they relay what actually happened, and that they reflect the current care practice. 02/06/2017

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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 safeguarded; and the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. (Regulation 44 (4)(a)(b)) In particular, ensure that reports provide a critical analysis of 02/06/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 4 what the home does well and areas for improvements, such as the quality of record keeping.

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the necessary support is given to children to enable them to access their education or training. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.13) In particular, ensure that there is a clear planned and consistent approach to supporting their home tuition.  Ensure that the home meets the children’s day-to-day basic needs and physical necessities. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7) In particular, fit appropriate window dressings in the young person’s bedroom, and ensure that repairs are made to their bedroom wardrobe and the home’s office door.  Ensure that the children are provided with nutritious meals suitable for their needs. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.8) In particular, ensure that children are

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Recommendations

encouraged to make healthy and appropriate meal choices.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The young person enjoys a positive relationship with staff. She said she is settling here and is confident to talk to staff. However, she was reluctant to engage with the inspection. The young person enjoys debating a wide range of topics with staff ranging from discussion on topics such as the second world war, through to discussions about the effects of child sexual exploitation, radicalisation, and respecting different faiths and cultures. She spoke with conviction on the topics, but was able to listen and respond to staff’s counter arguments. Throughout the discussions, she demonstrated a high moral compass; for example, she explained why she felt it would be wrong for a Catholic priest not to disclose a criminal act that was told to him during confessional and linking this to child sexual exploitation. The young person has a thirst for history, which is not yet being fully exploited by being linked to her education. A member of staff wrote, after watching the film, The

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Zookeeper’s Wife, with the young person, ‘She [the young person] was completely enthralled with educating staff about World War Two, what she knows, and her views.’ The young person is concerned that she is not yet in mainstream education. She moved into the home as an emergency placement and, as yet, a suitable school place has not been found. The young person said, ‘I don’t have a school so what’s the point’, concerning her home tutoring arrangements. As a result, her engagement in education has recently become erratic. Staff are encouraging her to attend and engage, but there Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 5 is no formal plan, as yet, as to how this is to be achieved. Consequently, there are some inconsistencies in the staff’s approach, which the young person can exploit. The young person’s social worker is complimentary about the home. She said the registered manager and staff are doing everything they can to help source a school

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

placement. This is echoed by the special educational needs support person for the placing authority. This continues to be an area of concern for the registered manager and placing authority. A number of schools have been approached, but have felt unable to meet the young person’s needs. The virtual headteacher for the placing authority, and virtual headteacher for the area that the home is situated in, are working with the registered manager to resolve this issue. Staff at the home are trying to constantly reassure the young person that the placing authority, her social worker and registered manager are listening to her, but at the moment no schools are able to offer her a place. The young person has a strong say in what happens in the home, for example, the activities, the décor, and mealtime arrangements. However, on a small number of occasions, her meal choices are not the healthiest or most appropriate for the time of

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

day, for example, pizza or fried chicken and rice for breakfast. This does not appear to have been addressed by staff. The young person is a good cook and recently made an apple crumble from scratch, as well as cooking the tea for herself and staff. Her efforts were appreciated and acknowledged with a financial rewarded. The young person plans a range of activities with staff each week, but will often decide not to do these. She is confident to negotiate with staff about planning and saving to go on more costly activities, such as going to themes parks. Staff encourage the young person to save some of her activity monies, which helps her to understand the need to plan and budget for things she likes and needs. The young person is also becoming more familiar with the local area and has made some new friends. The young person is gradually overcoming her initial reluctance to join groups in the area, which means she

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

is less isolated. Staff say she is a talented ‘rapper’ and that she will spend time creating songs and sharing them on social media. The young person has in-depth discussions with staff about what she should and should not upload, and the potential for the inappropriate use of social media. As a result, she is more able to keep herself safe online. Staff effectively support the young person’s complex contact arrangements. The young person recently enjoyed a stay with a friend, who lives near a previous placement. She enjoys visiting her siblings and she is much more settled now that she knows they are happy where they are placed. Staff are encouraging her to bring her new friends home and staff met them briefly. Overall, the young person is pleased with the arrangements as this means she can keep in regular contact with those people who are important to her. The young person has a clear understanding of her own healthcare needs. She is

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

confident to safely self-administer her own medication. She has access to a range of professionals to support her healthcare needs and staff are effectively supporting her to manage these on her own, such as requesting a doctor’s appointment. The young person is being appropriately prepared, given her age, for the next stage in her life. She is encouraged to clean her bedroom and bring down her laundry. She Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 6 enjoys cooking and baking and is increasingly managing her own health needs. The young person is treated with the utmost dignity and respect. She has a strong sense of her personal identify and cultural heritage. Staff are sensitive to her needs. For example, they sourced a suitable hairdresser several miles away. While the young person was pleased to have this done, the result was not as good as she expected, so she is now working with staff to find an alternative salon.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Safeguarding is a priority for the home. Staff are trained in child protection and safeguarding. They are clear on the action to take should they have a concern about the young person, or if an allegation is made against a member of staff or the registered manager. This helps to keep young people safe. The young person is encouraged to take safe risks, for example, developing an understanding of the local community. As a result, she is more confident to go out on her own. Being missing from care is not an issue for this young person. This is in contrast to her former placement. Plans are in place should this occur, but there is some conflicting information in the missing from care risk assessment and the placement plan records about what should happen in the event that the young person is reported as missing. However, this is primarily a recording issue as staff are very clear on what they should do, as evidenced by their response after a recent missing episode. Staff took appropriate

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

action, and the police missing from care co-ordinators are complimentary about the home’s response to any issues of missing from care when they arise. The records in relation to return home interviews are not yet robust. This is because the ‘return home’ report does not detail what the young person said. Although this was recorded in a key worker session, it was not cross-referenced to the report. This is a recording issue and should be picked up through more effective monitoring. There have been no physical interventions or major incidents in the home. This is a massive achievement for this young person given her history and the reason for the move here. She is much more able to manage her frustrations, choosing to go for a walk to compose herself. This is in marked contrast to past behaviours. This is supported by staff’s consistent approach to support her to manage her emotions and frustrations. This

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

includes choosing when to challenge inappropriate behaviour. An example of this is staff not interrupting the flow of a conversation, which may be interspersed with inappropriate language, but rather choosing to raise this later on. This means the young person is able to reflect on what was said and is then more able to understand the impact and inappropriateness of some of her language. The young person lives in a welcoming, homely environment. The home is generally well maintained. However, the office door needs attention as it forcibly slams shut and poses a risk to staff and young people. Immediate action was taken to address this. The young person said her room had not been decorated, but added that she did not want it to be. The room is highly personalised and reflects her interests. However, the curtains in her room are falling off the curtain pole and these are no blinds or window dressings to

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

support her privacy. A door is missing from the top of her wardrobe. This detracts from the homely environment the home is striving to maintain. Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 7

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

A qualified registered manager leads this home. He is also the registered manager of a second home, which is a three-bed home a short distance away. Currently, there is insufficient information to demonstrate that the registered manager has effective daily oversight over both homes. This is because there is no system in place to actually record the time that he spends at each home. The organisation is actively recruiting to the post of deputy and senior residential worker, but has not yet been successful in this task. This is because two offers of employment were revoked following information received from their referees. This demonstrates thorough and effective safer recruitment practice. Further interviews are taking place for these posts in May 2017. In the meantime, managers from other homes are supporting the staff, but this can lead to inconsistencies in what is required within the home’s records. As a result, record

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

keeping is not yet consistently recorded to a good level. There are errors in some records, such as a young people being referred to as ‘she’ and then becoming a ‘he’, conflicting information in the missing from care risk assessment, the sanctions book, and some risk assessments that are not routinely updated to reflect the young person’s current needs. While this is not effective recording, the impact is minimised as staff are able to securely relay what support is provided on a daily basis to the young person. In contrast, the recording in a number of other records, such as key worker reports, has greatly improved and is now telling the story of the discussion and the actions needed to support the young person. Monitoring by the registered manager is improving and his reports are becoming more evaluative. However, he has not identified all of the issues from this inspection. Similarly, monitoring by the independent person has not identified the errors in records, such as

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

the inappropriateness of some breakfast options provided to the young person, even though this was her choice. Consequently, reports by the independent person are not helping the registered manager to drive forward continuous improvements. Staff said that they continue to feel supported by the registered manager. He is in the home on a daily basis and is contactable by phone should they need additional assistance or support. They are aware of the on-call systems and say these work well. Staff have a positive relationship with the young person. They are advocating well on her behalf to secure an educational placement. The registered manager and staff are fully supporting the young person’s desire to be in school and are working collaboratively with the placing authority and virtual headteacher. They are aware of the reasons as to why this has not yet been successful and continue to push ahead with trying to secure a

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: requires improvement to be good

place for her. The registered manager said, ‘We are doing all we can, as we know that her being tutored at home is not good enough.’ The statement of purpose is current and reflects the care and support provided to all young people. This is shared effectively with placing authorities and carers so that they have realistic expectations of what the home can do. The children’s guide is informative and is provided to young people when they arrive. The workforce development plan is currently under review. The registered manager accepts that this is still being finalised, and is clear about the information that should be included to support the development Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 8 plan of the home, such as the appointment of a deputy.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference made to the lives of children and young people. They watched how professional staff work with children and young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children and 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.

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Information about this inspection

Using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, this inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Hurstwood Court, New Hall Hey Road, Rossendale, Lancashire BB4 6HR

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Inspector

Chris Scully, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC487488 10 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, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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