Children's Home run by Children of the Mangrove Limited in Merton

Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 1 Registered provider: Children Of The Mangrove Limited Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned. It is registered for up to four young people aged 11 to 17 who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home’s statement of purpose states that a therapeutic model of care and support is provided.

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Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 23 October 2017

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Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged requires improvement to be good at the last full inspection. At the interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has sustained effectiveness.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home has been without a registered manager for eight months. The interim manager of the home has many years’ experience of residential children’s homes and has applied for Ofsted registration. Staff praise the interim manager and describe her as proactive. She displays a comprehensive appreciation of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. However, not all of the requirements and recommendations made at the last inspection have been met, and are therefore repeated. In addition, a number of new requirements have been made at this inspection.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The introduction of robust pre-admission assessments and improved matching Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 2 procedures, combined with comprehensive staff team consultation, has resulted in young people experiencing more settled placements. A member of staff said, ‘The dynamics between the young people is better.’ Since the last inspection, reports of young people’s episodes of missing and challenging behaviours have significantly reduced.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The interim manager recognises that the home has been through a challenging transition period since the last inspection. Leaders and managers have successfully completed a large staff recruitment drive. New staff undergo a thorough six-month induction. All staff’s mandatory training is comprehensive. However, training that is bespoke to meet all of the young people’s needs is not always in place. This raises the risk that staff are not competent to perform their role sufficiently well.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home continues to offer a therapeutic model of care and support. All permanent staff have completed training in attachment theory and therapeutic childcare practice. However, staff spoken with said, ‘The therapeutic approach still needs to be embedded with the new staff,’ and, ‘It is still a work in progress.’

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager and the staff team have made progress in the administration systems in order to improve accurate record-keeping. However, inconsistent auditing has resulted in a number of incomplete or missing records. Leaders and managers are due to introduce a weekly quality-monitoring tool to address this issue. The manager and the staff team do not have a clear record of the progress young people are making in the home. To address this shortfall, there are plans to implement young people’s individualised independent skills programmes that incorporate the age and ability of each young person.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Not all of the young people attend school or receive formal alternative education provision. The independent visitor’s reports highlight the need for staff to be more proactive to ensure that young people’s educational needs are met. Although home tuition is planned for young people who are not yet receiving full-time education, this does not always take place as scheduled.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The appointment of a new staff ‘education coordinator’ has led to improved staff knowledge, and has enabled staff to have the skills team and enables staff to have the skills to challenge placing authorities when appropriate. This approach has been successful, and recently enabled a young person to use his pupil premium to buy a personal laptop for his own use.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people enjoy living in the home and say they feel safe. During the inspection, one young person said, ‘I love it here,’ and added, ‘I get all the support I need; my key worker comes with me to every meeting.’ Another young person said, ‘It’s cool here. Staff are supportive and I get all the help I need.’ Young people enjoy a wealth of activities. Recent highlights include laser tag, music concerts, day trips to the coast, horse riding and music clubs. Young people’s bedrooms are personalised, and weekly young people’s meetings provide opportunities for meal and activity requests. Staff respond to these requests. This provides young people with a sense of ownership of their home. Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 3 Young people receive the informative home’s guide when they arrive. Bedtimes and other appropriate house rules are clearly laid out in the guide. However, staff’s application of house rules is inconsistent. A young person said, ‘They [the staff] never

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

stick to them.’ Another young person said, ‘Most nights we are downstairs (in the kitchen) until 1 or 2 in the morning.’ Daily logs record young people cooking pizzas, toasties and milkshakes, alongside playing cards with staff, up until 2am. This raises the risk that young people misunderstand the home’s rules.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

A placing authority describes the home as, ‘A small organisation and still in their infancy, so clearly there are areas in which they are still learning. However, they have the right ethos.’

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/10/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/02/2017 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

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)) 30/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for the children (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every 6 months. The registered person must supply to 30/06/2018 Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 4 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 (4) (a)) Independent person: visits and reports

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (‘the independent person’s report’) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether children are effectively safeguarded and the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being. (Regulation 44 (a) (b)) 30/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children received care from staff who – understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for the children. (Regulation 6 (a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to all staff receiving training in and practising the home’s therapeutic care model. 30/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

Engaging with the wider system to ensure children’s needs are met

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff – seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs; if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (b) (c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to young people’s statutory educational provision. 30/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which – are kept up to date and signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1) (b) (c)) 30/06/2018

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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–

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential;

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Requirement Due date

and promotes their welfare 30/06/2018 Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 5 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to – ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1) (2) (c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to staff skills and training that is bespoke to children’s individual needs.

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Recommendations

 Expectations of standards of behaviour should be high for all staff and children in the home. These standards should be clear and unambiguous. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.11). In particular, staff must apply house rules consistently with all young people.

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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’.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Children Of The Mangrove Limited Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 6 Registered provider address: 101 Henchman Street, London W12 0BN

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Inspector

Victoria Jones, social care inspector Interim inspection report children’s home: 1235653 7 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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