Children's home run by Pathways Care Group Limited in Runnymede

Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 1 SC417351 Registered provider: Pathways Care Group 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 a small number of children’s homes run by a private company, and is registered to care for up to three children who may have 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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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: 25 January 2017

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Sustained effectiveness

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

None Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 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

 The building does not currently provide the children with a high-quality and safe living environment.  Staff vetting procedures are not sufficiently robust to ensure that the children are fully safeguarded from unsuitable people gaining employment in the home.  The safeguarding ethos is not fully embedded. Managers have on one occasion not fully investigated a concern raised by a child, and on another occasion did not alert the local authority designated officer to a concern raised by a child about a restraint which took place in the home.  The home is not effectively supporting and promoting each child’s learning and development through formal and informal education and learning opportunities.  The location risk assessment does not include the local duck pond, and therefore potential risks to the children’s safety are not fully understood.  The provider has not ensured that all staff are well supported through effective

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Key findings from this inspection

supervision, induction and training. Staff have not had an annual appraisal of their performance.  Poor record keeping on occasions undermines the manager’s ability to understand key events and investigate potential concerns.  Changes in management over the past year have undermined consistent and effective management and leadership. The statement of purpose does not reflect the current arrangements in the home.

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Key findings from this inspection

 Staff provide individualised, child-focused care. The children feel consulted on all aspects of their life.  The children are positive about their experience of living at the home, and feel well supported and safeguarded.  Professionals and families have confidence that the children’s individual needs are well met by caring and nurturing staff.  Staff work well in partnership with the police to reduce risk.  Staff are individually committed to the children and develop bonds with the children, which makes them feel loved and nurtured. Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

25/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 16/06/2016 Full Good 15/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 17/11/2015 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child and enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6(2)(c)(i)) 04/12/2017

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 6(1)(2)(b)(i)) 04/12/2017

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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 achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study; understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers; help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment; promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period 06/11/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 5

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Requirement Due date

of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii))

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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 understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person and are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies; and 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. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(v)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure all incidents of a potential safeguarding nature are fully investigated and that any concerns raised in respect of staff are shared with the Designated Officer. 30/10/2017

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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. 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 delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 13(2)(a)) 13/11/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (‘statement of purpose’) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it and send Ofsted a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision and ensure that a copy of the statement of purpose is published on the homes website. (Regulation 16(1)(3)(a)(b)(4)) 11/12/2017

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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, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25(2)(b)) 23/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. The registered person must only employ an individual to work at the children’s home when full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the 06/11/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 6 matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32(1)(2)(a)(3)(d))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification, the level 3 diploma in residential childcare (England) (‘the level 3 diploma’), within two years of working in a care role in a children’s home. (Regulation 32 (3)(b)(4)(a)(5)(a)) 08/01/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction, undertakes appropriate continuing professional development and receives practice- related supervision by a person with appropriate experience (Regulation 33(1)(a)(4)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all employees receive appropriate documented induction, sufficiently regular supervision and have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. 11/12/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes all of the information stated in regulation 35. Within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person must add to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(c)) 23/10/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home the records specified in Schedule 4. (Regulation 37 (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, provide a copy of the staff duty roster of persons working at the home, and a record of the actual rosters worked and maintain a record in the form of a register showing in respect of each child all of the information specified in schedule 2 paragraph 1. 20/11/2017

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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)) 06/11/2017

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Recommendations

Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 7  When a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. In particular; establish a system to prompt the arrangement of a return interview after each missing from care event. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45 paragraph 9.30)

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Recommendations

 Ensure that staff understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording and that information regarding the child is recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Recommendations

 When establishing the home, the registered person must ensure that it is suitably located so that children are effectively safeguarded and can access services to meet needs identified in their relevant plans (see regulations 12(2)(c)). Under regulation 46, the registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year. The review should include 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, paragraph 15.1)

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Recommendations

In particular, ensure that the location risk assessment reviews any risks presented by the local duck pond.

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Recommendations

 Undertake a review under regulation 45 that focuses on the quality of the care provided by the home, the experiences of children living there and the impact the care is having on outcomes and improvements for the children. The review should be underpinned by the quality standards as described in regulations 5 to 14. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64 paragraph 15.2)

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Recommendations

In particular, ensure that the system is evaluative and considers the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff.

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improvement to be good

Although aspects of the direct care provided are good, issues in relation to safeguarding and leadership and management undermine the ability of the home as a whole to provide the good quality of support to which the manager and staff aspire. There are no failures which mean that children’s safety or well-being is significantly compromised. Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 8 The home is a detached bungalow with suitable living space. However, staff who are required to sleep on site at night are expected to sleep on a fold-up bed in the communal ‘den’ area, rather than being provided with appropriate accommodation. This limits the children’s ability to access areas of their home freely. The majority of accommodation is homely and welcoming. However, damages caused to a bedroom some weeks ago have yet to be repaired and the room remains half-painted black, the bathroom is not a pleasant and relaxing area, and some of the lounge chairs are torn.

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improvement to be good

This does not ensure that the children are provided with a good living environment throughout the home.

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improvement to be good

Placement planning is effective, and the manager ensures that the home can meet each child’s needs both individually and as part of the group. This has enabled the current group to gel well, make friendships and prevent conflict. There have been a number of children admitted to the home, and the majority of placements during the past ten months have been relatively short term. Consequently, it is difficult to measure all of the children’s individual progress. The children do receive individualised, child-focused care and support. The staff provide the children, some of whom are emotionally fragile and have experienced multiple placement breakdowns, with stability and nurture. Behaviour management strategies make a positive difference for most of the children. However, on occasion some of the children have struggled and as a result one child’s placement broke down.

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improvement to be good

The children, placing authorities and families rate the home as good. The staff promote positive partnerships. The staff effectively support children to move on to independence or foster care, or reunite them with their families in a planned way. The children are supported to maintain friendships and family relationships which are important to them, and have made new friendships with their peers in the home. A child received support to reconnect with previously estranged but valued family members. One parent said, ‘It’s an excellent home, I have a sense of good care being given to him. It’s the best place he’s had in the last four years.’

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improvement to be good

The children are involved in the day-to-day decisions about their daily lives. They develop positive, trusting relationships with staff and have confidence that the staff will respond to any issues of concern which they may raise. The children say they are able to talk to any of the staff about anything which is worrying them and that the staff always make the time to listen. One placing social worker said, ‘All of the staff seem interested in him. They are really relaxed and positive in their relationship with him.’

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improvement to be good

Balanced with discussions about making positive choices and setting boundaries, there is laughter and joking between the children and the staff, which gives the home a warm, nurturing atmosphere. The children’s comments about the home include:

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improvement to be good

 ‘I feel comfortable here, they make it feel like my home.’  ‘I love it here. It’s the best place I’ve been.’  ‘It’s 10 out of 10 from me.’ Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 9 The staff provide the children with appropriate support and guidance in maintaining healthy lifestyles. As a result they are generally healthy, with reductions in unhealthy choices, such as using cannabis. Some children, however, despite the guidance given by staff, continue to engage in unhealthy behaviour, such as smoking tobacco and vaping, which has the potential to undermine their long-term health.

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improvement to be good

Most of the children have been highly resistant to engaging in education prior to placement. The children’s educational opportunities and progress during their time at the home are mixed. Some previously placed children have received good levels of support, which has helped them positively re-engage in their education. However, this is not the case for all of the children. There are mediocre arrangements for the currently placed children, which undermines their future life opportunities. Neither of the two Year 10 children are currently receiving any formal education. One of these children has only recently moved in. However, the other has been living at the home for over four months. The manager has not used partner professionals effectively to press the child’s case in a determined manner. Furthermore, in the interim there is little evidence of the staff promoting formal or informal learning and development opportunities. The chances to

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improvement to be good

engage the child positively are missed, and any aspirations and enthusiasm for learning are not captured and promoted.

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improvement to be good

Neither of the children are currently undertaking formal preparation for independence plans, but they are encouraged to fully integrate into the usual activities of family life, such as shopping and cooking. Both of the children were observed to make a ‘mean bacon sandwich’ and one said that their peer ‘makes the best ever spaghetti bolognaise.’

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improvement to be good

The children feel safe and well supported by the staff. They believe the staff care about them and have their well-being at heart. One child said, ‘I can talk to any of the staff, there is always time for me.’ A parent commented that they had confidence their child was safe and well protected. One social worker said, ‘They [the staff] have good tactics to help try and build trust with the child.’

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improvement to be good

For most of the time, the children get along well together and any issues of emerging conflict are identified and addressed to prevent escalation and bullying. There are robust partnerships with other professionals, such as social workers and the police, which promotes the children’s safety. The local police officer said, ‘They [the staff] are very open and informative and we do not have any concerns around the placement and how they safeguard the children in their care.’

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improvement to be good

The majority of the children have a history of going missing from home and while the frequency and severity for some children reduces, for others there is little demonstrable change. The children and professionals describe the staff as caring people who act effectively when children, including those who have additional identified risks of sexual exploitation, go missing from the home. The staff talk to the children about the risks they may potentially face when going missing, and try to find out why they have gone Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 10 and where they have been. However, there is no system to request that placing authorities conduct a return interview. As a result, few of these interviews occur and opportunities to gain a greater understanding of how to keep the children safe are potentially missed.

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improvement to be good

Behaviour management strategies make some positive differences for most of the children. The staff refer to using restorative justice but are unclear on any research to support its use, nor have staff undertaken any training on how this can best be employed. The staff are trained in de-escalation and breakaway techniques and as a result are clear on the threshold for the use of physical restraint. Consequently, this is infrequently used. However, on one occasion when a child was restrained there were no records pertaining to this in the home. Consequently, the registered manager of the home at the time of the incident was unaware that this restraint had taken place. Furthermore, the child’s comment that the staff had hurt him during this hold was not fully investigated. On another occasion, a child said to the police that he felt undue force was used on him during a restraint. The police advised that in their view no offence had

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improvement to be good

been committed. Consequently, the manager at the time did not share the child’s concern with their senior managers or designated officer, nor was any further investigation undertaken. On neither occasion was the child’s concern that the staff had acted inappropriately viewed as a quality of care complaint or recorded as such. Therefore, appropriate responses were not triggered through effective review of the restraints, safeguarding or complaints processes. This means that on both of these occasions there has not been full and transparent investigation of potential concerns, nor is there any evidence that the child had their concern recognised. Such poor arrangements limit the opportunity to reflect and review practice in the home and do not protect children effectively.

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improvement to be good

Staff vetting procedures are not consistently applied in line with good practice. Staff do not work at the home until checks on their identity are undertaken. However, on one occasion a reference was provided by a close relative. On another occasion the significant difference of employment dates detailed in a reference to those declared on the application form were not identified and explored. There is not a consistent use of a single application form, and some application forms have only years of employment detailed rather than specific dates, potentially allowing gaps in declared employment history to be missed. This limits the ability of the manager to scrutinise applicant’s fitness effectively as information which may potentially have a bearing on suitability may not be identified.

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improvement to be good

The location of the home is relatively quiet, with few risks presented by the location. However, potential risks associated with the local duck pond are not referred to in the location risk assessment. Health and safety arrangements are suitably managed with regards to regular maintenance checks. The fire prevention arrangements, however, are not sufficiently robust. For example, one of the children’s bedroom doors was hanging loose and not closing, and other fire doors have compromised integrity or are missing intumescent strips. Consequently, the children are at a greater risk from fire. The provider took action during the inspection to implement improved interim and long-term arrangements. As a result, although there are a number of areas for improvement the Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 11 children do feel safe and there are no issues which place the children at significant risk of harm.

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

The leadership and management of the home is not yet good. There have been three different mangers with varying levels of qualifications and amounts of experience managing the home in the past twelve months. The previous registered manager formally ceased their role in August 2017 and has remained working in the home as deputy manager, helping to provide consistency of care to the children. However, these management changes have undermined the consistency and effectiveness of the leadership of the home. As a result, the home is not currently delivering the quality of care that it aspires to within its statement of purpose. Quality monitoring systems in place have not been sufficiently robust to identify areas for improvement, and contain inappropriate levels of information in respect of children. Feedback is not sought from the children or partner professionals to provide insight into areas for improvement or

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

recognising the home’s strengths. Therefore, the relatively newly appointed manager, while having aspirations to improve the service, has limited awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the service, and is yet to develop a detailed action plan to address the shortfalls.

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

The staff are individually committed to delivering good, individualised care and building positive relationships with the children. One parent said, ‘The staff are brilliant. I think they’re brilliant people.’ One child described the home as, ‘A brilliant place. I like all of the staff. They’re all really nice.’

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

The children receive individualised care, which, with the exception of education, prioritises their individual needs. The staff help the children develop greater tolerance and understanding of each other, reducing conflict in the home effectively. The manager is aware that some children’s progress has been limited by the lack of educational support. Current and previous managers have engaged with placing authorities in an attempt to move this forward but they are not sufficiently vocal and determined when the responses from other services are not forthcoming.

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

The children feel consulted and listened to by the staff. Consequently they are positive about their experiences of living at the home. The staff are well thought of by the children, their families and external professionals. The staff work in partnership with children and partner agencies effectively. One social worker said, ‘I’ve been really impressed so far.’

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

Recording systems in the home are generally adequate, but on occasion do not meet the most basic requirements. For example, a report of one significant incident was illegible as it had been scribbled over in 23 places with comments added later in different handwriting. The report does not say who it was written by or who made changes. This lack of clarity and accuracy of recording inhibits the ease of establishing the events, the level of care offered and the child’s experience of these events. This furthermore undermines the ability of managers to review incidents effectively, identify patterns and Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 12 trends, identify areas for improvement and ensure that children are safeguarded effectively.

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

The register of children admitted to the home does not always contain all of the information required. The staff duty rota does not detail the manager’s working patterns. No updated copy of the statement of purpose has been sent to Ofsted in the past year despite two changes in manager. While these regulatory shortfalls do not negatively influence the children’s experiences of the home, they do mean that key information is not easily available. Furthermore, the statement of purpose refers to a ‘personally developed’ model of care being used in the home. The manager and staff, however, are unable to identify this model of care and how it influences the care delivered.

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

Staff report they feel well supported and know what their responsibilities are. However, individual supervision arrangements are not sufficiently frequent to support and challenge staff effectively. For example, one new member of staff had only two supervision sessions in their seven months of employment, and another had only three supervisions in their 11 months of employment. No staff members have received an annual appraisal of their performance, and new staff do not consistently receive an effective and documented induction. A variety of basic staff training is provided in areas such as medication, safeguarding, first aid and managing conflict. Most, but not all, staff who have been working with children in a children’s home for over two years have completed their level 3 diploma in residential childcare. Staff professional awareness and competence has the potential to be undermined where staff do not receive good levels

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

Some, but not all, of the requirements and recommendations set at the previous inspection have been met. While a significant number of further requirements and recommendations have been set, partner professionals and children remain positive about the support that the children receive.

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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 differences 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 whom 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: SC417351 13

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pathways Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Minton Place, Victoria Street, Windsor, Berkshire SL4 1EG

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Inspector

Joanna Heller, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC417351 14 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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