Children's home run by Marlowe Child & Family Services Limited in Tewkesbury

Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 1 SC067989 Registered provider: Marlowe Child & Family Services Limited Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children or young people who have emotional and/or behavioural needs. It is part of a group of five homes managed by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: Declined in effectiveness

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Information about this children’s home

Date of last inspection: 8 November 2016

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Enforcement action since last inspection

At the interim inspection in November 2016, the home was judged to have declined in effectiveness. Serious safeguarding concerns were identified, resulting in an emergency suspension notice being issued. Two monitoring visits were conducted in January and March 2017.

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Enforcement action since last inspection

In June 2017, a decision was made by Ofsted to issue a notice of proposal to cancel the registration of this children’s home. Following a meeting of a representations panel in August 2017, the decision to continue with the cancellation was agreed.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection and declined in effectiveness at the last interim inspection. At this interim inspection, the home was ‘not judged’.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children have not lived in this home since November 2016 and the home has been closed since the monitoring visit in March 2017. It was therefore not possible to review the 13 requirements and one recommendation set at the interim inspection in November 2016. These requirements will remain until such time when it is possible to judge Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 2 whether they have been met. Two additional requirements have been set at this inspection.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

At this inspection, the premises were not in good decorative order, the home was unclean and not well maintained. The home does not have a manager or staff team. As a result, it is not ready to accommodate children.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Leaders and managers have not continued to monitor the home using quality assurance systems required under Regulations 44 and 45.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered provider has indicated that the home will not be operational and that the timescale for opening the home is dependent on the outcome of the current enforcement action. Should the home decide to accept placements, it is required to inform Ofsted of its intention before it does so.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/11/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness 17/08/2016 Full Good 30/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 03/08/2015 Full Requires improvement

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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

6: The quality and purpose of care standard

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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, use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to understand and apply the home’s 06/01/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 3 statement of purpose, ensure that staff understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose, protect and promote each child’s welfare, treat each child with dignity and respect, provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background, help each child to understand and manage the impact of any experience of abuse or neglect, provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably, provide to children personal items that are appropriate for their age and understanding, and make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice, ensure

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child, and ensure that any care that is arranged or provided for a child that relates to the child’s development (within the meaning of section 17(11) of the Children Act 1989) or health, and is not arranged or provided as part of the health service continued under section 1(1) of the National Health Service Act 2006(a), satisfies the conditions in paragraph (3). (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vii)(viii)(ix)(c)(i) (d)(i)(ii)) 11: The positive relationships standard

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on mutual respect and trust, an understanding about acceptable behaviour, and positive responses to other children and adults.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans, help each child to develop socially aware behaviour, encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding, help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone, understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children, are provided with supervision and support to enable them to understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the behaviour and emotions of children, and to help children to do the same, de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent

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Requirement Due date

behaviour by children, understand and communicate to children 06/01/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 4 that bullying is unacceptable, and have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(ix)(x)(xi)(xii)(xiii)) 12: The protection of children standard

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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 assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child, help each child to understand how to keep safe, have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm, manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other, take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare, 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, that the premises used for the purposes of the home are located so that children are safeguarded effectively, that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to

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Requirement Due date

protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(vi)(b)(c)(d)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that 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 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, ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate, ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child, ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child, ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child, 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, use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. 06/01/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 5

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(h)) 16: Statement of purpose

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

20: Restraint and deprivation of liberty

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

A person may only manage a children’s home if the person is of integrity and good character, having regard to the size of the home, its statement of purpose, and the number and needs (including any needs arising from any disability) of the children, the person has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills to manage the home effectively and lead the care of children, and the person is physically and mentally fit to manage the home, and full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the person in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b)(i), a person has the appropriate experience and qualification if the person has within the last five years, worked for at least two years in a position relevant to the residential care of children, worked for at least one year in a role requiring the supervision and management of staff working in a care role, and by the relevant date, attained the level 5 diploma in leadership and management for residential childcare (England) (‘the level 5 diploma’), or a qualification which the registered provider considers to be equivalent to the level 5 diploma. (Regulation 28 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(2)(a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the employment of any person on a temporary basis at the children’s home does not prevent children from receiving such continuity of care as is reasonable to meet their needs. 06/01/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 6 (Regulation 31 (1)) 32: Fitness of workers

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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 may only employ an individual to work at the children’s home, or if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3). The requirements are that the individual is of integrity and good character, the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform, the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform, and full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained the level 3 diploma for residential childcare (England) (‘the level 3 diploma’), or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the level 3 diploma. (Regulation 32 (1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(a)(b)(c)(d)(4)(a)(b)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction, ensure that each permanent appointment of an employee is subject to the satisfactory completion of a period of probation, and provide each employee with a job description outlining the employee’s responsibilities.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees undertake appropriate continuing professional development, receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience, and have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (1)(a)(b)(c)(4)(a)(b)(c)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

34: Policies for the protection of children

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect, and sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse 06/01/2017 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 7 or neglect. The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular, provide for liaison and cooperation with any local authority which are, or may be, making a child protection enquiry in relation to a child accommodated in the home, provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about current or ongoing abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the home is located, provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about past abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the

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Requirement Due date

local authority in whose area the alleged abuse or neglect occurred, provide for records to be kept of an allegation of abuse or neglect, and the action taken in response, describe the measures which may be necessary to protect children following an allegation of abuse or neglect, and describe how and to whom staff are to report, without delay, any concern about abuse or neglect of a child. The registered person must keep under review and, as necessary, revise the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(6)) 35: Behaviour management policies and records

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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 the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure, and within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’) has spoken to the user about the measure, and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate, within five days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child, records are kept up to date, and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 06/01/2017

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Requirement Due date

44: Independent person: visits and reports

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month. (Regulation 44 (1)) 05/02/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 8 45: Review of quality of care

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every six months.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed. (Regulation 45 (1)(4)(a)) 05/02/2018

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Recommendations

 As set out in regulations 31–33, the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice.

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Recommendations

(‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1) In particular, the record of staff interviews should include an explanation of the scoring system used to decide whether to employ or not.

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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

This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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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: SC067989 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Marlowe Child & Family Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Staverton Court, Staverton, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL51 0UX

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Inspector

Paula Lahey, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC067989 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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