Children's home run by Pine Forest Homes Limited in Cannock Chase

Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 1 SC373693 Registered provider: Pine Forest Homes 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 provides care and accommodation for up to three children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. A private company owns and operates the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

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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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 8 November 2016

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Declined in effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 2

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Key findings from this inspection

This children’s home requires improvement to be good because:

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Key findings from this inspection

 Managers and staff have missed opportunities to challenge partner agencies and champion the needs of young people.  Initial compatibility risk assessments, completed by managers, do not consider the impact upon young people who are already resident.  Managers do not effectively review or evaluate records and the events that occur at the home, to understand how staff can better support young people’s progress and experiences.  The manager’s evaluation of the home’s performance does not take account of the views of young people, their parents and placing authorities.  Not all staff are suitably vetted prior to commencing employment.  The manager does not consistently record complaints.  Medication administration arrangements are not robust. Staff have left the home with the only key to the medication records and staff have not been able to access them.  Fire safety requires improvement.  Some areas of the home are in need of repair to maintain a homely

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff support and encourage young people to maintain contact with their families.  Staff support young people to access health services that help to promote their physical and emotional well-being.  Young people have independent advocates. As a result, they have the opportunity to speak to people who are independent of the home about any worries or concerns that they may have.  Staff teach young people independent skills. This helps them to prepare for their next steps.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/11/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 04/07/2016 Full Requires improvement 08/03/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 11/11/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 4

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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

The registered person must, and must ensure that staff— if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5(c)) 16/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard requires the registered person to ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6(2)(c)(ii)) 16/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff help each child to understand how to keep safe. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(ii)) 16/10/2017

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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— helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff work as a team; ensure that staff understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(b)(f)(h)) 16/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children receive effectively planned care in and through the children’s home. (Regulation 14(1)(a)) 16/10/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 5 In particular, ensure that the manager completes thorough impact risk assessments, which take account of the needs of young people already living in the home. The registered person must arrange for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23(1)) 16/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and any regulations made under it are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25(2)(b)) 16/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only employ an individual to work at the children’s home if 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)) 16/10/2017

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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)) 16/10/2017

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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 the quality of care provided for children; and the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it. The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45(2)(a)(b)(5)) 16/10/2017

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improvement to be good

The quality of individualised care and young people’s progress and experiences vary. Some young people are making progress, while others do not fully engage in the daily routines of the home. There has been a period of unsettled and challenging behaviour. This has now settled down and most young people are developing reasonable relationships with each other and staff. Some young people are happy in the home whereas others would like to live closer to their own families.

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improvement to be good

Staff are committed to improving the experiences and well-being of the young people in their care. One young person who was resident at the last inspection told the inspector that staffing has improved, ‘When we plan an activity now, it always happens and I know which staff will be there.’

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, two new young people have been come to live at the home. Managers do not complete comprehensive impact risk assessments. As a result, they do not Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 6 take into account the ability of staff to meet young people’s needs and young people’s compatibility with those already living at the home. For some young people this means that their needs are not appropriately met and for others it means that their progress is limited.

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improvement to be good

Young people’s attendance and engagement in education are variable. Staff have supported some young people who previously did not access education regularly to attend alternative provisions. As a result, they are making progress. Other young people’s engagement in school is consistently poor. Although staff positively engage with education professionals, they have been ineffective in challenging the timeliness of services. This has had a detrimental impact upon some young people’s attitude to learning and their progress.

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improvement to be good

Staff meet young people’s health needs well. Staff support and encourage young people to access and engage with a range of specialist services. When young people refuse appointments, staff persist in their approach. For example, staff supported one young person who had refused to attend six dental appointments, to meet the dentist and complete treatment. Good staff support promotes young people’s physical and emotional health.

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improvement to be good

This inspection identified a shortfall in the handling of medication records. Staff have access to one key. Because a staff member had taken the key on an activity, the inspector and other staff were unable to access young people’s medication records. Although this did not affect young people’s well-being on this occasion, the current arrangements for accessing medication records require improvement.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, managers and staff have made improvements to the communal areas of the home. The home is clean and bright. However, two of the young people’s bedrooms have significant damage to their walls and door frames. This means that managers and staff do not maintain the home to a good standard throughout. The damage detracts from the comfortable homeliness the home promotes. Furthermore, not repairing damage quickly does not help young people to feel valued.

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improvement to be good

Staff encourage young people to engage in activities and hobbies, for example boxing and rugby. However, young people show great reluctance to sustain their participation in these activities despite staff persistence. Most young people engage in day trips with staff; these provide them with positive experiences.

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improvement to be good

Staff consult with young people regarding the day-to-day running of the home. Young people say that they are involved in decisions about the home. Staff hold weekly young people’s meetings, but young people’s engagement in these meetings is variable. The manager has acknowledged that approaches that are more imaginative need to be trialled.

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improvement to be good

Young people know how to make a complaint, including the use of external professionals and advocacy services. This helps them to feel confident that any complaints they make will be addressed quickly. Managers and staff do not record complaints consistently. As a result, they do not specify the actions taken to resolve these. This lack of transparency compromises young people’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Young people maintain links with their families in accordance with their care plans. Staff Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 7 facilitate and supervise young people’s time with their families even if they live a considerable distance away. This ensures that young people are not isolated from their families and regular contact gives them a sense of identity.

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improvement to be good

Staff support young people’s preparation for semi-independent living. For example, one young person has been encouraged to take responsibility for aspects of his daily routine. This includes making appointments, cleaning, budgeting, shopping, cooking and laundry. Staff have spent time with him investigating local amenities, health services and transport. As a result, staff help young people to develop the skills and knowledge they need for their next steps.

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improvement to be good

Staff regularly complete and update risk management strategies. Staff identify changing circumstances and ensure that strategies are reviewed. This makes sure that staff have up-to- date guidance, and that young people know how to access specialist support and information to help them make the right choices to keep themselves safe.

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improvement to be good

Some young people regularly go missing from the home. Staff follow agreed working practices to ensure that incidents are responded to immediately. All young people receive independent return interviews. All young people have specific trigger plans agreed. Managers and staff review these plans regularly, but the manager has not effectively challenged the placing authority about concerns relating to one young person’s missing incidents, which have increased. Staff do not take opportunities to address missing incidents with young people. For example, one young person has been reported missing on 48 occasions, but only three key work sessions are recorded where going missing was discussed. This shows that staff do not sufficiently support young people to try to reduce the number of missing incidents.

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improvement to be good

Some young people living at this home are involved in criminal and anti-social behaviour. The local police officer has visited the home to raise the young people’s awareness of the dangers of gangs. Staff also work with young people individually to help them to understand the impact of alcohol misuse on their health, safety and well-being. Staff support young people’s work with the youth offending teams, but young people’s engagement is limited. This limits young people’s progress and increases the chances of them becoming criminalised.

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improvement to be good

Staff use rewards and incentives to promote socially acceptable behaviour. Staff do not implement sanctions consistently and their effectiveness is not evaluated. This means that staff repeat those sanctions which have limited success. This does not help children to learn socially acceptable behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Staff focus on verbal de-escalation and distraction techniques and these reduce the need for restraint. No incidents of physical intervention have taken place since the last inspection. Staff are appropriately trained should they need to restrain a young person to keep them safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff regularly refresh their safeguarding training. This training includes modules on child Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 8 protection, safeguarding legislation, the management of allegations, child sexual exploitation, bullying, e-safety and radicalisation. Consequently, staff keep their knowledge up to date and this helps to promote young people’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Managers fail to ensure that young people are effectively protected by safe recruitment practices. Not all staff are appropriately vetted and assessed before an appointment. Managers do not seek explanations for gaps in employment histories. This practice does not promote the safety of the young people by preventing unsuitable adults from working with them. This requirement was made at the last inspection and will be repeated.

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improvement to be good

A location risk assessment highlights risk factors in the surrounding area and indicates how these will be managed. Staff complete regular fire and health and safety checks in the home. However, a recent fire service audit has identified deficiencies in fire protection. These have yet to be addressed. Delays in acting on recommendations to improve fire safety mean that managers and staff do not maintain a safe environment for young people to live in.

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

The home does not have a registered manager. An appropriately qualified person currently manages the home. She has submitted her application to Ofsted for registration.

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

The manager does not effectively use internal monitoring systems to ensure that the quality of care young people receive is regularly evaluated. The managers and staff do not learn from incidents that occur. As a result, the experiences and progress for some young people do not improve.

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

Team meetings and supervision take place on a regular basis. Staff report that the manager is ‘supportive’ and ‘committed’. Staff members say that the manager is willing to listen and support the team. They report that they are gradually working better together as a team. However, they recognise that this is work in progress and some inconsistent practice remains. The manager is aware of this and speaks to staff individually in supervision and in team meetings.

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

Staff recruitment has improved since the last inspection. Although agency staff are still employed, they are all familiar with the young people. All staff have achieved, or will complete within the statutory timescales, a level 3 diploma in residential childcare. This ensures that staff are suitably qualified.

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

The internal and external monitoring of the home is completed regularly and the manager forwards reports to Ofsted. Internal monitoring systems are weak because they do not routinely include formal feedback from professionals, staff or young people.

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

The manager has updated the statement of purpose to reflect staffing changes. The statement of purpose sets out the vision, values and aims of the service. In turn, this helps placing authorities, parents and other interested parties to have a clear understanding of what they can expect from the service. Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 9 Managers and staff have developed good links with key stakeholders, including the police and local authorities. However, at times, they have missed opportunities to challenge stakeholders when they have not provided a sufficient service for young people. The manager has been ineffective in escalating her concerns in a timely way.

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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: SC373693 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pine Forest Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 11 Churchill House, Hyssop Close, Cannock WS11 7FU

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Inspector

Anne Daly: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC373693 11 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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