Children's Home run by Fairport Care Services Ltd in Kent

Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 1 SC066129 Registered provider: Fairport Care Services 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 privately owned children‟s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children. The statement of purpose states that the home accommodates children aged eight to 18 who are deemed to require help in a residential specialist resource.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 2008.

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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: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

Three compliance notices were issued following the inadequate judgement on 14 May 2018. These have now been met. Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/05/2018 Full Inadequate 14/11/2017 Full Good 30/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 07/12/2016 Full Good Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 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

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that the whistleblowing policy is reviewed and that the staff are familiar with the policy and clear about where they can take concerns outside the organisation. 28/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the positive relationships standard, the registered person must ensure that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults. 28/09/2018 Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 4 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

meet each child‟s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child‟s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child‟s behaviour, in accordance with the child‟s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

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;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child‟s respect and trust. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children‟s records are in place, regularly updated and each update and entry are signed and dated. 28/09/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children‟s safety. The requirements are that full and satisfactory information is available in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (7)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that identity documents are current and verify the prospective employee‟s current home address. 28/09/2018 Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 5

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improvement to be good

Significant concerns relating to the protection of children and the effectiveness of leaders and managers were identified at the full inspection in May 2018 and the monitoring visit conducted on 4 July 2018. Consequently, two children experienced disruption and moved out of the home; one child remains in placement.

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improvement to be good

Care planning guidance, in particular behaviour management strategies, is not sufficiently clear. Leaders and managers have been slow to recognise the imbalance of decision-making between the child and some members of the staff team. This is affecting the relationships between the child and different staff members. Some staff are not confident to appropriately challenge inappropriate behaviour, and this undermines their credibility with the child. It is also potentially confusing for the child, as well as unhelpful in terms of learning about socially acceptable behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Staff are sensitive to the impact of the significant recent changes. They understand the disruptive nature of recent events and the anxiety that this has caused for the child. Consequently, their daily care practice is nurturing and respectful, although, on occasion, appropriate boundaries are lacking.

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improvement to be good

All staff have received refresher training in the use of physical restraint. Staff spoke confidently about the emphasis on de-escalation and understand the child‟s potential triggers. There has been no use of physical intervention since the last inspection.

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improvement to be good

During the summer period, staff have enabled the child to undertake appropriate and enjoyable activities. Staff continue to encourage the child‟s development of self-help skills, and have noted a considerable improvement in personal hygiene. Such progress is indicative of growing self-esteem.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide appropriate and agreed levels of support for family contact arrangements. This practice recognises the importance and significance of these relationships for children.

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improvement to be good

Senior leaders have reviewed and updated the home‟s admissions policies and procedures. They have undertaken a learning exercise from previous experiences in their determination to make better decisions about the potential compatibility of children who may be referred for placements in the future.

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improvement to be good

Following the previous inspections, the staff team identified that the children were, in Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 6 effect, running the home; leaders and managers were reacting to children‟s behaviours and appeasing them. However, with only one child currently at the home, this dynamic has yet to change. In the absence of strong and consistent leaders and managers, the service remains fragile, and this undermines the provision of safe and consistent boundaries.

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments have been updated for the child. However, these were not all being followed during the inspection. One particular risk assessment failed to sufficiently address the risks associated with online gaming. The child‟s ability to play an online computer game with insufficient safeguards in place exposed the child to communicating with unknown people.

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improvement to be good

Although improvements have been made to the recording and reporting of safeguarding matters and daily logs, some gaps remain. Not all of the records for the child were available during this inspection, and some events had not been recorded by the time of this inspection. Records sampled had only limited evidence of managerial oversight. Sanctions have been reviewed, and a more restorative approach to sanctioning has more recently begun, although this practice is not fully embedded.

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers have instigated a rigorous approach in tackling the historic poor safeguarding culture. A programme of refreshed staff training is under way. Individual staff members were able to speak knowledgeably about safeguarding topics, including whistleblowing. Leaders and managers understand that there is more to do. Staff described the two directors as being „much more visible and supportive‟.

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improvement to be good

Fire safety arrangements have significantly improved. Major works have been undertaken to ensure that the home has sufficient fire protection. A visit by the fire brigade has been arranged to further assess the fire safety arrangements at the home.

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

Since the previous monitoring inspection, the two directors have met with the existing staff group. They identified that staff and children have been traumatised as a consequence of poor leadership and management at the home over the last year. They attribute this to the responsible individual and the registered manager, but were themselves unable to monitor or prevent the crisis until it was drawn to their attention by the regulator following the monitoring visit. The responsible individual and registered manager are both on sick leave.

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

A detailed action plan has been submitted to Ofsted. This recognises that, currently, the leadership and management arrangements of the home remain uncertain. Directors plan to recruit a quality assurance manager. Currently, the managerial monitoring of the home is not effective. A new independent visitor has undertaken one monitoring visit. This has been detailed and thorough, highlighting a wide range of areas for improvement.

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

New staff have been recruited. However, records sampled did not contain verification of Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 7 the employees‟ home addresses or identification checks. Other staff files sampled also fell short of these same checks. Some documents used for verification had expired, and none showed the current address being verified. This practice fails to comply with safer recruitment guidance.

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

Due to the uncertainty regarding the leadership and management at this home, a further restriction of accommodation notice has been issued.

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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: SC066129 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Fairport Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Bank Chambers, 1 Central Avenue, Sittingbourne ME10 4AE

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Inspector

Sarah Olliver, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC066129 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 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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