Children's home run by Five Rivers Child Care Limited in Wiltshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 1 SC025938 Registered provider: Five Rivers Child Care Limited

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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 privately owned children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to five children. The home specialises in providing short-term crisis or emergency placements initially for 17 days and up to a maximum of 28 days. Placements can be extended beyond 28 days in exceptional circumstances. The home aims to work using a therapeutic crisis intervention model. An education package is available, which includes 13 hours of formal education every week.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a new manager in post who is not yet registered. The new manager started working at the home in May 2018 and Ofsted is currently processing his application to be the registered manager.

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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: sustained effectiveness

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/03/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 21/11/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 02/02/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 20/06/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep safe. In particular, the standard 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 plan and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulations 12 (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the home must ensure that risk assessments contain all identified risks in relation to using doors as ligatures, hugging staff and access to knives. 01/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep safe. In particular, the standard requires the registered person to ensure— that the premises used for the purposes of the home are maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulations 12 (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the home must ensure that the loose wiring at the side wall of the house is secured and that the gas meter cupboard is locked. 01/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and where appropriate revise it. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)) 01/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction. (Regulation 33 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the home must ensure that the staff induction includes the ‘Children’s homes regulations 2015 including the 01/09/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 4 quality standards’ and the ‘Guide to the quality standards’.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) quality of care review must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (5)) 01/09/2018

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the review of premises includes the identification of any risks and the opportunities presented by the home’s location for managing these (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1). In particular, consider the risks from gangs and sexual exploitation.  Staff should receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2). In particular, supervision must be on a regular basis.  All staff must have their performance and fitness to carry out their role formally appraised at least once annually. This appraisal should take into account, where reasonable and practical, the views of other professionals who have worked with

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Recommendations

the staff member over the year and children in the home’s care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)  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 14.5). In particular, the home should ensure that records are meaningful, and that they include a child’s feelings and the impact of the therapeutic intervention.  Ensure that staff are ambitious for every child (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.7). In particular, help children to set short goals for the duration of their placement.  Where children placed in the home are not participating in education, in the interim the child should be engaged in suitable structured activity. (‘Guide to the

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Recommendations

children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28 , paragraph 5.15) Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 5

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improvement to be good

A child stated that it is ‘alright here’. However, it ‘would be nicer if it was longer term’. Shortfalls impact on children’s quality of care. These relate to therapeutic intervention, care planning and structured activities. A social worker remarked that the home has a ‘good vibe’. However, staff ‘need to be proactive’ in keeping children occupied.

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improvement to be good

Staff succeed in establishing trusting relationships with children. Children’s records, however, do not meaningfully evaluate their progress. Records do not consistently detail children’s feelings about their daily lives and the effectiveness of the therapeutic intervention.

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improvement to be good

Children are not supported to set a variety of short-term goals for the duration of their placement, although during key work sessions children are able to reflect on and discuss aspirations for the future. This information is not linked to their individual care plans.

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improvement to be good

The home offers on-site part-time education. The teaching creatively incorporates children’s interests and their learning needs. Evidence was seen of one child successfully obtaining their entry-level mathematics. However, when children are not engaged in education, the home does not consistently provide appropriate structured activity.

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improvement to be good

Children make some progress with their interpersonal and independence skills. They learn to become more patient and focused, and are able to maintain appropriate boundaries. They also become more independent through assisting with tidying up, cooking and food shopping.

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improvement to be good

There are satisfactory health arrangements and staff appropriately store and administer medication.

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improvement to be good

Where appropriate, staff assist with promoting contact with relatives, which enhances children’s emotional well-being. Relatives are welcome to visit. A good example is a child showcasing her hospitality skills and cooking a meal for her mother.

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improvement to be good

Children enjoy a reasonable level of activities, going to an attraction in central London, museums, shopping centres and parks. At the home, they can play football or basketball in the garden, listen to music or play on the games console.

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improvement to be good

Children said that they feel safe in the home and confirmed that staff discuss with them Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 6 the importance of personal safety. The arrangements to safeguard children, however, require more attention. Risk assessments and health and safety practices are not robust.

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk assessments do not detail all risks highlighted in their documentation. An example is the failure to identify the full extent of risks for children who have past experience of self-harm, of attempting suicide or of sexual exploitation. Examples of hazards are using doors as ligatures, hugging staff and having access to knives.

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improvement to be good

The home environment is not always kept safe. Staff complete an adequate range of checks to ensure that children live in a safe environment. This is complemented by engineers verifying the safety of the fire equipment, electrical appliances, and the gas and electrical supplies. However, identified health and safety issues have not been addressed. There is loose electrical wiring at the side wall of the house, and the gas meter cupboard door is not locked.

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improvement to be good

The home has a location risk assessment, which includes consultation with the police. Despite this, the assessment does not contain information on gangs in the area or concerns regarding the risk of child sexual exploitation.

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improvement to be good

Staff learn from incidents. An example is a vulnerable child accessing social media. Leaders and managers promptly addressed practice to ensure that children are effectively safeguarded. Staff subsequently benefited from further training and updated procedures regarding internet access.

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improvement to be good

During their time at the home, children become calmer and respond positively to de- escalation techniques. They learn to self-reflect and regulate their behaviour. Children also learn to take responsibility for their actions. An example is a child writing a letter of apology to a staff member. Children also critically examine the reason for their former placement breaking down, which raises their level of self-awareness.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from staff who understand their needs, moods and triggers. Staff receive expert guidance from the organisation’s clinical psychologist. Staff effectively manage children’s presenting behaviour and aggressions. Staff use their personal skills alongside the therapeutic crisis intervention model.

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

The home has been through a period of instability with the departure of two managers and several staff members. The home has been without a registered manager since February 2018. Appropriate interim management arrangements were in place to cover this period.

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

The recent appointment of a new, highly experienced manager has given the staff team renewed confidence. The new manager aims to empower staff. He has a clear vision for the home and is strongly aware of the home’s strengths and areas of development. Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 7 There is recognition from managers that the home’s statement of purpose requires updating. The current statement of purpose does not reflect the staff changes or the extent of the therapeutic input, and there is an under-representation of the skilled staff team. One of the home’s strengths is its high proportion of male role models, which is of significant value when tackling issues affecting alienated young men.

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

New staff stated that they receive a ‘very detailed induction’. However, the staff induction process does not fully prepare them for their role, as it does not include the regulatory legislation related to children’s homes. A staff member confirmed the need to ‘have a set amount of hours to look at quality standards and how [they tie] into everyday practice’, which is not currently factored into the induction programme.

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

Staff have not benefited from regular supervision and annual appraisals. The new manager has introduced a supervision schedule, and training is in progress for new supervisors. Staff are able to attend team meetings, which enable them to collectively discuss improving their working practice. Vocational training for staff is in progress.

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

The home’s quality assurance system includes constructive independent monthly monitoring from a highly experienced professional. Despite the usefulness of such external scrutiny, the most recent internal quality of care review failed to meet regulatory requirements as the report did not include the opinions of parents, placing authorities and staff.

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

The requirement and recommendation from the last inspection have been met. A new manager has been appointed, and the appointment of female staff provides a more gender-balanced workforce. A social worker described the new manager as ‘competent’, and a staff member confirmed that the manager had brought ‘order and structure’ to the home.

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

A child highlighted that ‘staff care’, and a social worker described staff as ‘attentive’. The appointment of the new manager gives staff clear direction, and the home has a good capacity to further improve. The new manager said that they aim to have an ‘inspirational’ home, which provides ‘holistic’ care, enabling children ‘to turn their lives ‘around’.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 8 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: SC025938 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Five Rivers Child Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Five Rivers Childcare, 47 Bedwin Street, Salisbury SP1 3UT

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Inspector

Sharon Payne, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC025938 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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