Children's home run by Dame Hannah Roger‟s School

Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 1 SC065443 Registered provider: Dame Hannah Rogers Trust

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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 provides long-term care and accommodation, extended stays and short-break care for up to 15 children and young people. The provision is operated by a charitable trust.

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Information about this children’s home

The current manager was registered with Ofsted on 20 January 2016.

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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

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 2 12/07/2017 Full Good 28/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 19/05/2016 Full Good 24/02/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 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 themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(v)(vi)(vii)) 31/08/2018

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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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; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b) and (2)(h)) 31/08/2018 Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 4 This specifically relates to ensuring the registered manager completes any review of serious incidents.

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Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. (‘Guide to the children’s home regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) This in relation to staff using the appropriate language and terminology while in children’s company, in keeping with providing a homely environment.

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improvement to be good

Children have fun and enjoy their time at the home. They make long-term friendships with their peers and have good relationships with the staff who care for them.

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improvement to be good

Children make good progress and benefit from attending and/or living at this home. They have good access to education, have opportunities to develop their communication skills in a sociable environment, take part in independence training and increase their mobility.

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improvement to be good

Children are helped, when required, to make choices about all aspects of their lives. Children’s views are important to the staff, who ensure that children are involved in the running of the home. For example, children personalise their bedrooms, contribute their thoughts on the decoration of the communal areas and put forward their ideas for leisure time activities.

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improvement to be good

On too many occasions, when children have presented with injuries, safeguarding procedures have not been followed. Failure to follow safeguarding procedures leaves children at risk of potential harm.

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improvement to be good

Largely, staff work hard to provide a homely environment for the children and have positive relationships with them. The inspector heard the use of such words as ‘meds’ and ‘feed’, rather than everyday language.

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improvement to be good

On too many occasions, senior staff have failed to follow safeguarding procedures. The Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 5 procedure for dealing with unexplained injuries to children is weak. There is a failure to escalate concerns to the relevant safeguarding agencies. As a result, children are not fully protected from harm.

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improvement to be good

When children are involved in serious incidents, or serious illness occurs, staff react effectively by following written protocols closely. These protocols protect children from significant harm. However, there is a lack of rigour in the review of one serious incident. This means that opportunities to learn from the incidents and create vital protective strategies for the future.

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improvement to be good

The manager takes effective action to reduce medication errors and seeks appropriate healthcare advice when errors do occur. The lead nurse and the manager conducted a review of the errors that occurred within the previous 12 months. These decreased from the preceding 12-month monitoring period. Further measures are in place to help ensure that this pattern continues. The nursing team ensures that all medication is stored securely.

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improvement to be good

The manager ensures that all new staff are carefully vetted as part of the home’s recruitment processes. The manager samples staff files to assure herself that agency staff are safely recruited before coming to the home to work for the first time.

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improvement to be good

Staff engage children in fun activities that they enjoy; as a result, children are fully engaged and sanctions are not required. Children have not been reported as missing from this home, due to suitable staffing levels, the staff’s attentive care and constant supervision.

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improvement to be good

The health and safety of the premises and the physical environment are regularly monitored. Children have personal evacuation and emergency plans. They take part in frequent fire drills to ensure their safety in the event of an emergency.

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

Although the manager undertakes monthly monitoring of health events, reviews medication audits and supervises the lead nurse, oversight of the healthcare services that operate in the home requires improvement. There is a lack of rigour and a lack of professional curiosity in the monitoring and review of some serious incidents.

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

The manager does not have oversight of all safeguarding records and does not review the practice of other senior staff to ensure that the correct procedures have been followed. As a result, practice does not ensure that children are always responded to in a way that keeps them free from potential harm.

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

The manager has fully met the two of the requirements made at the previous inspection. Recruitment checks on agency staff are now good and all staff who have been employed for longer than two years now have the necessary residential care qualification. The third requirement has been addressed with regard to the specifics that were raised at the last Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 6 inspection, but is repeated in part due to the new shortfalls identified at this inspection.

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

The manager works well with families and local authority representatives. The inspector received feedback from families and outside agencies that was largely positive about working with the home and children’s progress. The manager proactively addresses any complaints raised by social workers and others.

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

The manager leads her team effectively. Staff morale is very good. The staff are provided with good training and supervision opportunities to help them to support the children’s needs. Staffing levels are sufficient to provide good-quality care. There has been a recent reduction in the use of agency staff due to an ongoing recruitment drive and several new staff joining the team.

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

The manager ensures that the team develops positive, supportive relationships with families. Families feel confident about leaving their children for short-break stays and they understand what the home provides. Staff communicate well with families, who feel well informed about every aspect of their child’s care. Staff are accessible and keep parents informed about their children’s time and/or stays at the home.

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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: SC065443 7

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Children’s home details

Provision sub-type: Residential special school

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Dame Hannah Rogers Trust

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Inspector

Guy Mammatt: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC065443 8 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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