Children's Home run by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in Bradford

Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 1 SC059635 Registered provider: City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a local authority children’s home. It provides care and accommodation for up to six children and young people. The registered manager has been in post since 2016.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and the care and experiences of young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/08/2017 Full Good 30/12/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 27/07/2016 Full Good 17/03/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 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

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so. 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; help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment; promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; and 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 of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as

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Requirement Due date

possible. (Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iv)(v)(viii)) 06/07/2018

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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. 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; 06/07/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 4 help each child to develop socially aware behaviour; communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding; and de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(v)(xi)) The protection of children standard is that children are

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Requirement Due date

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; manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; 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)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(b)) 06/07/2018

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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— 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; and 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. (Regulation 13 06/07/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 5 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)(f)) The care planning standard is that children— receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the

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Requirement Due date

home. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)) 06/07/2018

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The young people in this home are not adequately protected from harm or the risk of further harm. Outcomes for young people are mixed. Some young people have made little or no progress in their educational, health or social development since their admission. Managers have failed to put effective measures in place to address this.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The staff have not effectively supported the learning and development of each young person. For those young people who are not in education, staff have not promoted opportunities for them to learn. Young people’s attendance and attainment in education have reduced from their starting points. One young person has received no education for six months, another receives two hours of tuition per week. Given the demanding nature of some young people, staff have not always been available to support them to complete independent study or to engage in meaningful activities, which could support learning.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The young people present complex and challenging behaviours which the staff are not always able to effectively manage. These behaviours place both the individual and others at risk. Professionals working with a young person believe that the care offered at the home is not sufficient to meet their needs. Although the young person’s therapeutic needs have been assessed, they are not receiving any therapeutic services.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One young person is experiencing symptoms of anxiety and has started engaging in self- harming behaviour. The young person said, ‘Who would want to come home to everything being broken and things kicking off all the time?’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The staff and young people are developing some positive relationships. This has led to a young person having increased contact with their siblings, However, the throughput of young people moving into and on from the home is having a negative impact and Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 6 disrupting peer relationships. Consequently, young people are not able to develop an appropriate sense of permanence and belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Efforts have been made by the staff to introduce the young people to constructive leisure activities. However, staff are unable to effectively engage young people in these activities. The number of staff on duty during the day makes it difficult for individualised activities with young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

There is significant and repeated physical damage to the home caused by some young people. Repairs and decoration are under way, but this damage has had a significant impact on the other young people and on their sense of safety and well-being.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

Risk assessments are not always current, detailed or up to date. The risk assessment for a newly admitted young person was transferred from a previous provision and therefore did not assess or mitigate the potential risks posed by other residents. The risk assessment for another young person identifies that daily room searches are required but these have not been carried out. This is in spite of items such as lighters, alcohol and knives being found in the home.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

Staff have not risk assessed visits to the home from an ex-resident who is believed to supply young people with cannabis. This ex-resident was present at the home during the inspection and left unsupervised with a young person who he is believed to provide with cannabis. In order to safeguard a young person and other residents, a young person’s risk assessment states that staffing should be two-to-one around him. This young person was observed unsupervised with other residents on more than one occasion during the inspection.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

The lack of appropriate staff supervision has placed the young people and staff at risk. In January 2018, young people set two separate fires within the home in one night. This involved a towel being set alight and placed outside another young person’s bedroom. One of these young people also set a further fire subsequent to this incident. These incidents could have had very serious conclusions.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: inadequate

The staff are unable to adequately manage the behaviour of some of the young people. The staff have called the police for assistance to regain order within the home on several occasions although this is now reducing. Consequently, they have resorted to locking the doors to all communal areas, including the kitchen, dining room and lounge until 3pm each week day.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have not adequately addressed safeguarding concerns or the poor experiences and progress of the young people. The registered manager has raised with senior managers concerns about inappropriate matching of young people. An example of this involves the manager’s impact risk assessment which states, ‘We have a Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 7 very fragile situation with three other young people, adding xx into the mix would make this extremely dangerous.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Some admissions have been at odds with the home’s statement of purpose which states admissions will only be made if it ‘would clearly not have a detrimental impact on the group’. A number of serious incidents have occurred regularly since this young person’s admission. These include assaults on staff, possession of knives and there have been three attempts to start a fire on the premises. The professionals involved in this young person’s care believe that the placement cannot meet their identified needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The management continues to admit new young people to the home in quick succession. This does not always allow for adequate preparation or introduction and impacts negatively on the existing young people and staff in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The risk management plans associated with individual young people do not sufficiently assess actual risk. Mitigating measures that are identified are not always acted upon by the staff. This leaves young people at risk of harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager has been in post since 2016 and all the staff are appropriately qualified. Some of the staff members’ supervisions have not taken place because of the level of the demands of the young people. Some staff have transferred into the home from another local authority provision that has closed. Others have left the service. The manager says that new staff have received induction but that due to the incidents occurring in the home, it has been difficult to find the time to enhance the collaboration of the team. A staff member described the home as being ‘in turmoil’ in recent months.

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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: SC059635 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: City Hall, Centenary Square, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD1 1HY

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Inspector

Janet Black: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC059635 9 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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