Children's home run by Aspire Residential Care Home Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 1 SC441591

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Aspire Residential Care Home Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company owns this home. It is registered for up to three young people, aged 10 to 17, who have social and emotional difficulties. There is an acting manager in post who is not yet registered.

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This monitoring visit

This home was judged requires improvement to be good at the last inspection. The home had two compliance notices issued at the last interim inspection on 3 January 2018. These related to:

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This monitoring visit

 The failure of managers to give sufficient attention to the safe recruitment of staff.  The failure of managers to ensure that staff have the opportunity of regular practice-based supervision.

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This monitoring visit

A monitoring visit was completed on 1 March 2018. This visit found that both compliance notices had not been met. As a result, both compliance notices were reissued.

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This monitoring visit

A further monitoring visit was conducted on 27 April 2018. This visit found that the manager had met the compliance notice in relation to staff receiving regular practice-based supervision. However, insufficient action had been taken to address the shortfalls in recruitment. This resulted in the compliance notice being issued for a third time.

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This monitoring visit

To evaluate the progress that managers have taken to meet the remaining compliance notice a further monitoring visit was conducted on 25 June 2018.

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This monitoring visit

This visit shows that managers have made insufficient progress to ensure that the Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 2 recruitment of staff is safe and meets regulation.

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This monitoring visit

Ongoing shortfalls include:  Managers have not ensured that when staff have previously worked in a position involving working with either children or vulnerable adults, verification so far as reasonably practicable has been secured over the reason why the employment or position ended.  Managers have continued to fail to ensure that staff provide a full employment history together with a satisfactory explanation for any gaps in employment in writing.  Managers have not ensured that the documentary evidence of any qualifications considered relevant to a member of staff position in the home are obtained.  Three members of staff do not have a reference from their last employer.  When agency members of staff are used to cover shifts, managers have not ensured that the same level of checks are completed by the agency and that they have a system in place to assure themselves that these checks are completed in line with regulation.

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This monitoring visit

This visit has only looked at the compliance notice issued on 8 May 2018. All other requirements and the one recommendation made at the full inspection on 19 June have not been assessed.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 19/06/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 03/01/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 29/06/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 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 children‟s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children‟s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff help each child to express views, wishes and feelings and help each child to understand how the child‟s views, wishes and feelings have been taken into account and give the child reasons for decisions in relation to the child. (Regulation 7 (1)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)) 27/07/2018

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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. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(i)) 27/07/2018

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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 understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(v)) 27/07/2018

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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 promotes their welfare.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the 27/07/2018 Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 4 registered person to ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child and that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(b)(2)(c)(d))

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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 understand the impact that the quality of care is having on the progress and experiences of each child, use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(2)(f)(h)) 27/07/2018

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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. This is with particular reference to ensuring that the staff structure and staff details are current. (Regulation 16 (1)) 27/07/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only employ an individual to work at the children‟s home if full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (3)(d)) 27/07/2018

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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.

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Requirement Due date

The relevant date is in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may defer the relevant date if the individual does not work, or has not worked, in a care role in 27/07/2018 Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 5 a home for a prolonged period; or works, or has worked, in a care role in a home on a part-time basis. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b)(6)(a)(b))

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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 or neglect.

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Requirement Due date

The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular, provide for liaison and co-operation 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 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. (Regulation 34 (1)(b)(d)(e)) 27/07/2018

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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; are kept up to date; and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)) 27/07/2018

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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)) 27/07/2018

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Requirement Due date

Ensure that the registered person notifies HMCI and each other relevant person without delay when a serious event occurs. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)–(e)) 27/07/2018

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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 6 months. In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the quality of care provided for children; the feedback and opinions of children about the children‟s home, its facilities 27/07/2018 Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 6 and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children. After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”). The registered person must

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Requirement Due date

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; and make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home. The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1)(2)(a)(b)(c)(3)(4)(a)(b)(5))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children‟s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard). When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1)(2)) 27/07/2018

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Recommendations

 Staff should be familiar with the home‟s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children‟s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aspire Residential Care Home Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 311f The Big Peg, 120 Vyse Street, Hockley B18 6NF

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Inspector

Alison Cooper: social care inspector Ms Battersby: social care inspector Inspection report for children‟s home - monitoring visit: SC441591 8 to 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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