Children's Home run by Lincolnshire County Council in Lincolnshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 1 SC042967 Registered provider: Lincolnshire County Council

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is run by the local authority and it is registered to provide residential care for up to seven children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 31 January to 1 February 2018

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

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

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

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.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 16 January 2017

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 2

p.1

Key findings from this inspection

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

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 Children said that they are being bullied at home and that they do not feel safe.  Staff are failing to update children’s risk assessments, behaviour and management plans.  The independent visitor’s reports are not sent to the home or to Ofsted in a timely manner.  A quality of care report has not been sent to Ofsted at the required intervals.  Staff supervision and appraisal is not taking place at the frequency specified in the home’s own policies and procedures.  The home is not notifying Ofsted of significant events.  Some areas of the home are in need of re-plastering and redecoration.

p.2

Key findings from this inspection

 Staff are committed to the children. They are working additional hours in order to provide the children with consistency.  Staff are feeling more enthusiastic and more valued under the new management arrangements.  Children are accessing education. This includes children who have previously not attended school for extended periods.  Children and staff have a good rapport. Children are responsive to the care and praise that they receive from staff.

p.2

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/01/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 26/09/2016 Full Good 16/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 25/11/2015 Full Requires improvement Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 3

p.2

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.

p.3

Requirement Due date

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

p.3

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; manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; ensure 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)(i)(iv)(b)) 16/03/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees 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 (4)(b)(c)) 16/03/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 33 (4)(e)) 28/02/2018

p.3

Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (7)(a)(d)(e)) 16/03/2018

p.3

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 6 months. 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)) 16/03/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 4

p.3

Recommendations

 Provide a nurturing and supportive environment that is homely. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) In particular, attend to the damaged walls and repair and/or replace any broken furniture.  Children must be consulted regularly on their views about the home’s care, to inform and support continued improvement in the quality of care provided. Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.11) In particular, ensure that in addition to seeking the children’s views, children consistently see that their opinions and comments are responded to.  Staff should understand what they must do to prevent bullying of children by other children or adults. Staff should be able to recognise and address different

p.4

Recommendations

types of abuse such as peer abuse, cyber-bullying and bullying in day to day relationships in the home. Registered persons must ensure that procedures for dealing with allegations of bullying are in place and staff have the skills required to intervene, protect and address bullying behaviours effectively. (See regulation 34(3) on the policy for the prevention of bullying.) (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.16) In particular, work with children to address any concerns that they raise. Staff should update the bullying logs and behaviour management plans with the agreed approaches to address the concerns and behaviours identified by them or the children.

p.4

improvement to be good

There are six children living at the home. Since the last inspection, the home has been through an unsettled period. The home is being managed by an acting manager. There are staff shortages due to staff illness and vacancies. To prevent further disruption to the children, the existing staff are volunteering to cover additional shifts rather than use agency staff. This means that children have familiar carers and are receiving consistent care. The acting manager recognises that it is unsustainable for staff to continue working additional hours, or to work an extended number of consecutive days. She is currently reviewing the rota to ensure that this is rectified to prevent it affecting the quality of care that staff deliver. Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 5 Staff are child focused and want to ensure that children achieve their potential. A police officer said, ‘The staff here have children close to their heart and try their best.’ This is

p.4

improvement to be good

evident through the children’s interactions and rapport with staff. One child spoke positively about the home and said, ‘I am staying here until I am 18.’ This is particularly positive, as the child previously experienced significant placement instability and this has been her longest placement. Children like the home and are responsive to the warm, nurturing approach of staff. Unfortunately, several of the children, separately, said that they experience bullying in the home. This is negatively affecting their experience and quality of life in the home. There are instances when children have become involved in incidents rather than risk becoming the target of the bullying. A social worker, speaking about the younger children said, ‘At night they [the staff] are dealing with the older ones. They [the younger children] feel that they have to ‘kick off’ to fit in and get attention.’ This reflects how each of the children describes night time. One child

p.5

improvement to be good

mentioned that at night, ‘Things start to go downhill.’ Another child said, ‘The staff are aware but nothing changes.’ This sense of dread each night is unsettling for the children and does not help them to feel safe in their home. A staff member said, ‘The mix of the children’s ages is difficult, and the younger children absorb the negatives and positives. I feel that the younger children may suffer due to the behaviour of the older children but they also benefit from some of the care and thoughtfulness that the older children can show.’

p.5

improvement to be good

A social pedagogy approach underpins the staff team’s work with children. This methodology is used to help the children to begin to reflect on their behaviours. It is concerning that while some of the children’s negative behaviour is reducing at home, it is escalating when they are out in the community. This has recently led to two children having ‘acceptable behaviour contracts’ put in place by the local authority and the local police.

p.5

improvement to be good

Children’s views and opinions are gained in an informal way. One child showed the inspector the designs for a new kitchen that she had chosen for the home. Another child spoke about how he had requested a change of bedroom. His request was discussed at a staff meeting and was agreed. The managers are considering the re-introduction of children’s meetings to enable consultation with the children. Currently, there is no forum to discuss matters that affect the whole group with the children.

p.5

improvement to be good

With the exception of one child, who is having home tuition following a recent exclusion, the children are all attending school. Staff liaise with each child’s school to ensure that they, and the teaching staff, are sharing information about the children, including their emotional state and any events at school. This positive communication enables children to be supported consistently by the home and their schools.

p.5

improvement to be good

Children are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities in the community. These activities include attending army cadets, singing in a choir and horse-riding lessons. Staff have achieved this participation through their positive engagement with children.

p.5

improvement to be good

Family members are positive about the care that children receive. They said that the Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 6 home advocates on behalf of children and one parent said, ‘The team are doing all they can.’ A parent spoke positively about how staff have successfully reintegrated their child back into school, particularly as this child had not attended school for over two years prior to moving in. They also spoke positively about how staff facilitate contact, which, on occasion, takes place at a great distance from the home.

p.5

improvement to be good

The home’s location risk assessment has been updated and appropriately reflects the known and potential risks in the locality. The children’s risk assessments and behaviour management plans have not been kept up to date. Failure to update these documents prevents staff from working with current information. It also reduces the ability of staff to easily identify the progress that children have made in reducing negative and risk- taking behaviour since they moved to live at the home.

p.6

improvement to be good

More recently, staff have started to put clearer boundaries in place for children, and it is evident that the children are testing these. There have been assaults on staff and other significant events. The home has failed to notify Ofsted of any of these events. This omission prevents Ofsted from having an overview of the escalation in behaviours and issues in the home.

p.6

improvement to be good

Children are not currently going missing from the home. However, there are concerns about the potential risks posed to children when they are unsupervised in the community. Risks will be minimised for the two children subject to acceptable behaviour contracts due to the additional restrictions imposed by the police and local authority.

p.6

improvement to be good

Staff said that the mix of children is not working. Children spoke about not feeling safe at the home. One child said, ‘My bedroom should be a calm place but it is a place of retreat.’ Staff are aware of this but believe that they are slowly making improvements with each of the children. They recognise that better matching of needs prior to admission would have prevented certain placements being made. This inconsistent approach to assessing the needs of the children prior to admission fails to safeguard children.

p.6

improvement to be good

Children’s concerns are not always responded to appropriately. A lack of appropriate action to address children’s concerns prevents the wider staff team from being aware of the child’s concerns. This could give children the impression that they are not listened to.

p.6

improvement to be good

The house is homely, but several areas show signs of damage, including some of the children’s bedroom furniture. Some of the children’s bedrooms are in the initial stages of being refurbished. Other areas, including the hallways, are waiting to be professionally refurbished. In the interim, this gives the home an unkempt appearance. Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 7

p.6

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

At this time, it is unclear when the registered manager will be returning to the home. The acting manager has moved from another of the local authority’s homes. She has a clear development plan, which covers an initial period of six months. The focus of this plan is to work closely with staff to improve their recording and to introduce processes that better demonstrate the progress that children are making.

p.7

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

A staff member described feeling as though they had experienced ‘two and a half years of firefighting’. A member of staff said, ‘I don’t feel that the children feel safe. [Child’s name] is anxious.’ This member of staff added that the plan for two children had changed from a three-month stay to over a year. They are now starting to get involved in ‘bad behaviour’. Staff described previously feeling demoralised and undervalued. However, staff described the acting manager and deputy as ‘superb’ and ‘supportive’. Staff said that they feel ‘a bit more cared for’ and that they like the ‘more relaxed attitude’. Staff also said that the working atmosphere feels like ‘a breath of fresh air’.

p.7

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

Managers are working to ensure that supervision sessions and annual appraisals are up to date. Supervision and appraisal processes have not taken place as prescribed in the home’s own policies and procedures. Managers are using a similar approach in auditing the staff training schedule, to ensure that staff undertake all the required training. All eligible staff possess the level 3 qualification in residential care, and newer staff will commence the course when they have successfully completed their probationary period.

p.7

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

Managers have a good understanding of the home’s strengths and weaknesses. Managers are working to address the shortfalls that they have identified. The home has monthly visits from an independent visitor. Although the visits are taking place, the manager does not receive the reports from the visitor in a timely way. An example of this is the acting manager receiving the report for September 2017 during this inspection. This delay prevents the manager from using the information to improve standards in the home. The independent visitor’s reports are not being forwarded to Ofsted. The failure to supply these reports to Ofsted prevents the regulator from maintaining an overview of the functioning of the home.

p.7

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

The acting manager acknowledges that the home has not supplied a quality of care report for some time and that this is not in line with regulation. This failure similarly prevents Ofsted from having an evaluative review of the service. It is unclear how the views of children, parents and professionals are used to shape the service.

p.7

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

The manager challenges decision-making when appropriate and advocates on behalf of children to ensure that their needs are responded to effectively. This includes bringing in specialist services to offer support to children, an example being drug and alcohol services. Staff work with children to promote an understanding and acceptance of difference and diversity.

p.7

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

Professionals are generally positive about the work staff do, and the working relationships that they have with the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 8

p.7

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.

p.8

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: SC042967 9

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lincolnshire County Council, County Offices, Newland, Lincoln LN1 1YL

p.9

Inspector

Sonia Hay, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC042967 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.

p.9

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.10

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.10