Children's Home run by Benjamin UK Ltd in Buckinghamshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 1 SC067757 Registered provider: Benjamin UK Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is owned and managed by a private organisation. It provides care and accommodation for four children aged between 12 and 18 years. There has been no registered manager since September 2017. An application to register the current manager is in progress.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

31/05/2017 Full Good 11/01/2017 Full Good 27/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 12/05/2015 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 3

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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 (2) In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— (b) ensure that staff— (ii) protect and promote each child’s welfare. (Regulation 6 (2)(b)(ii)) 20/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

12: The protection of children standard The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe. 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; have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm and take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12(1)2)(a)(i)(vi)) 20/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard In order to meet the leadership and management standard, the registered person must: (2)(a) 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; (f) 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; (h) use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (2)(a)(f)(h)) 20/06/ 2018

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Requirement Due date

27: Appointment of manager (1) The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if— (a) there is no registered manager in respect of the home; 20/06/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 4 (2) If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of— (a) the name of the person so appointed; and (b) the date on which the appointment takes effect. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

32: Fitness of workers (1) The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. (3) The requirements are that— (d) full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1)(3)(d)) 20/06/2018

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Requirement Due date

40: Notification of a serious event (4) The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— (e) there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e)) 20/06/2018

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Recommendations

 Staff supervision must enable staff to reflect and act upon how their own feelings and behaviour may be affected by the behaviour of the children they care for. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.15)  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 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)  Staff need the knowledge and skills to recognise and be alert for any signs that

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Recommendations

might indicate a child is in any way at risk of harm. The registered person should ensure that skills in safeguarding are gained, refreshed and recorded in the homes workforce plan. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.12)  When considering new placements, the registered manager should fully consider the impact that the placement will have on children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4) Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 5 In particular, the registered manager should evidence their judgement of compatibility between the children.  A record of supervision should be kept for staff, including the manager. The record should provide evidence that supervision is being delivered in line with regulation 33(4)(b). (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the

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Recommendations

quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.3)

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improvement to be good

Key-working meetings are not carried out in accordance with the ethos and values as outlined in the statement of purpose. The lack of effective key-working plans results in a disconnect between the work undertaken with the children and the targets set out in their care plans. This inhibits the progress made by the children in the areas that are important to their development, now and in the future.

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improvement to be good

Some key-working meetings have been conducted insensitively by staff, placing blame upon children for their feelings and subsequent actions. This approach does not demonstrate an understanding of how children communicate their feelings about past traumatic experiences and the effect that their experiences may have on them.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always recognise or consider the effect of intimidating behaviour between the children. Staff have not always acknowledged when bullying is taking place and have not proactively supported children to consider the consequences of their behaviour upon others. One staff member failed to intervene when one child was being bullied and harmed by another, resulting in a loss of confidence by the child in staff’s ability to protect him. This has a negative effect on children’s experiences of the care afforded by managers and staff.

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improvement to be good

Children continue to live in a warm and homely environment. The house is well decorated and furnished and the children generally take pride in their surroundings. Bedrooms are personalised and reflect the tastes and interests of the children.

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improvement to be good

In many areas, children make progress and their successes are celebrated. Small achievements are acknowledged and outcomes are measured in terms of their significance to each child.

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improvement to be good

Staff proactively encourage children to attend education, and provide valued support to their learning. Staff provide fun educational opportunities and experiences, which results in an improvement in children’s aspirations for their future.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to understand the importance of their health and well-being. Children are encouraged to eat healthily and to do regular physical activity. One young person is supported to arrange his own health appointments, in preparation for living Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 6 independently. The young person spoke proudly of his newly acquired skills and demonstrated an understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

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improvement to be good

Staff positively support contact with family members and those who are important to children. Communication between staff and family members is regular. One parent receives regular reports from the staff about the progress being made by her son.

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improvement to be good

Managers do not fully assess and evaluate the effect of known risks prior to children moving into the home. As a result, children are affected by the risk-taking and negative behaviours of other children, compromising their safety and well-being.

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improvement to be good

Staff are not always adequately informed about how to keep children safe. Risk assessments do not contain all of the information about children’s behaviours and the known serious risks to their safety and well-being. Risk assessments do not adequately outline the strategies to be used by staff in order to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

Poor record-keeping has resulted in the failure to adequately address safeguarding issues. Information recorded is confusing and unclear and does not demonstrate fully the actions carried out by staff to address safeguarding issues and protect the children. Threats from others in the community have not been fully assessed and acted upon, resulting in risks to the safety of staff and children.

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improvement to be good

Fire safety in the home is compromised. One child demonstrates an unhealthy interest in the use of fire as a means to harm others and the property. This has not been adequately addressed in risk assessments and work has not been carried out with the child to help him to understand the risks involved in his behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Staff and managers record consequences and the use of physical interventions appropriately. Children are provided with the opportunity to reflect and to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies used. Staff did not provide the opportunity for one child to reflect with the support of an independent staff member or manager, resulting in the lack of objectivity or opportunity to openly discuss his feelings.

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improvement to be good

Staff failed to act appropriately in response to an injury sustained by one child following risk-taking behaviour in the home. Staff failed to call for medical assistance and chose to take the child to hospital by car, thus compromising his well-being. Following this incident, staff carried out work with the children in relation to their behaviour. Subsequently, one child said that this had really helped him to understand the dangers involved, and helped him to understand the importance of his and his peers’ health and safety.

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improvement to be good

Staff recruitment processes do not always ensure that the necessary checks and references are carried out to ascertain that those working with children are fit to do so. Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 7 Staff have undertaken some effective work with the children in relation to the dangers of knife crime and gang related activities. This has resulted in an increased awareness of the dangers of some of the children’s relationships with those in the wider community and has enabled children to make better choices about the people with whom they associate.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff are vigilant in ensuring that the fire, health and safety checks are thorough and up to date. Maintenance and repairs are carried out in a timely manner, ensuring a safe and well-cared-for environment for children.

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

Two requirements from the previous inspection in May 2017 have not been fully met and are repeated. These relate to recruitment processes: in particular, to ensure that the recording of interviews is clear and provides the manager with a detailed understanding of how applicants demonstrate their ability to fulfil the role; and to ensure that checks carried out make sure that those employed to work with children are fit to do so. Recordings of interviews with applicants are poor and not all checks and references have been undertaken thoroughly. Senior managers are failing to demonstrate their ability to meet requirements and remain compliant with regulations.

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

The manager has effected some positive changes. He demonstrates a detailed knowledge of all aspects of the service and knows the children well. Children reported that they value their relationship with the manager and trust him. One child said that the manager is approachable and that he could talk to the manager about anything which is worrying him.

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

Regular staff meetings ensure good communications about the progress being made by the children, and the valued input of the organisation’s therapist ensures a focus upon the approaches by staff to managing children’s behaviour.

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

Supervision of staff is regular but does not provide the opportunity for reflection upon practice or the effect of relationships upon children. Supervision recordings are not carried out in line with regulations.

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

The statement of purpose has been updated. Some of the work carried out with the children is not conducive to the ethos and values outlined in the statement of purpose, and some staff have not demonstrated their understanding of this ethos when undertaking key-working with children.

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

Children’s guides are clear and child focused. They outline the service offered and the ways in which this is to be provided. Children have contributed to the design of the guide and have been involved in the design of welcome packs for new children coming into the home.

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

Not all significant events have been notified to Ofsted. Some notifications have been late Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 8 and the clarity of some of the information provided is lacking. This does not help Ofsted’s monitoring of the service.

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

Independent visitors produce detailed monthly reports on all aspects of the service. These are thorough and clear and provide an excellent monitoring tool for the manager. The manager reports that he values the input of the independent visitors and uses their findings to inform improvements in practice and outcomes for the children.

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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: SC067757 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Church Farm House, Station Road, Aldbury, Tring HP23 5RS

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Claudette Deysel

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Inspectors:

Jacqueline Georghiou, social care regulatory inspector Rosie Dancer, social care regulatory inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC067757 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors:

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Inspectors:

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Inspectors:

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