Children's Home run by Deborah Pacquette in Waltham Forest

Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 1 SC007290 Registered provider: Adeza Care Homes Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run children‟s home provides care for up to four young people. The provider‟s statement of purpose states that the home provides care for young people who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties or mild mental health concerns.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been registered since 2007.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children‟s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 5 September 2017

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/09/2017 Full Good 04/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 26/04/2016 Full Good 30/12/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 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 registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children‟s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person‟s report”) which sets out, in particular the independent person‟s opinion as to whether–

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children‟s well-being. (Regulation 44(1), (4)(a)(b)) 31/10/2018

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating–

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children‟s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

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”).

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must– 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 31/10/2018 Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 4 completed; and

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Requirement Due date

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.

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Requirement Due date

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)) 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).

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Requirement Due date

When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46(1), (2)) 31/10/208

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Recommendations

 The children‟s guide should help children to understand: what the day to day routines of the home are („what happens in the home‟)  the Statement of Purpose of the home (the care they can expect to receive while living there);  how to make a complaint in line with the home‟s complaints procedure;  how they can access advocacy support or independent advocacy if eligible; and  how to contact the Office of the Children‟s Commissioner. („Guide to the children‟s homes regulations including the quality standards‟, page 24, paragraph 4.22)

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Recommendations

 Children should be encouraged by staff to see the home‟s records as „living documents‟ supporting them to view and contribute to the records in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. („Guide to the children‟s home‟s regulations including the quality standards‟, page 58, paragraph 11.9) In particular, ensure that children are supported to contribute and have in say in their support plans.

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Inspection judgements

Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 5

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, all of the young people had moved on to alternative placements. The last placement ended on 3 August 2018.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff have good relationships with young people, which are based on good communication, warmth and trust. Staff treat young people with dignity and respect. Managers and staff take note of what young people want and act on these wishes. For example, young people expressed a wish for a walk-in shower. After discussions with the staff team, a shower was installed.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff build good professional relationships with young people‟s families and professionals. A positive outcome of this means that some young people maintain safe and effective relationships with their families. A parent commented: „The staff team is amazing and l am grateful for the help and support staff have given to my son. They have consistently gone that extra mile to help me to keep him safe.‟ Social workers spoke of good levels of communication and reporting by the staff, together with their commitment to improving outcomes for the young people.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Care plans are robust and identify the individual support needs of young people effectively. The plans inform reliable decision-making and identify the resources necessary to support young people. However, consultation with young people is not evidenced in these plans.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff provide good opportunities for young people to give their views on their care. Young people choose their activities and what they like to eat. Young people can share with staff any concerns that they have. They know who to contact if they need to raise concerns with someone who is independent of the home. However, this information is in leaflets scattered around the home. Young people would benefit from a more informative children‟s guide in which this information is consolidated.

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

The home has a calm and peaceful atmosphere. The staff ethos is one of support and encouragement. A social worker commented, „The local authority has serious concerns for the safety of X (child) due to high levels of gang activity. The staff team provided him with a safe and calm home, away from the street. They are proactive; the placement can do no more to keep my young person safeguarded and engaged.‟ Managers and staff focus on the emotional well-being of young people. Staff are skilled in behaviour management and confidently redirect young people‟s behaviour when they become anxious or distressed.

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

The staff team works with young people who are in crisis and display significant levels of challenging behaviours. Many of the young people placed in the home are involved in gang activity, youth crime and drug misuse, and have ongoing involvement with the criminal justice system. The staff are able to make good assessments of risks and put appropriate controls in place to minimise these risks. Assessments are routinely updated Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 6 following incidents, and there is good management oversight.

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

There had been significant safeguarding concerns with two of the recent placements. Both young people had concerns about living in the home, started a pattern of going missing and would often return to their home areas, putting themselves at immediate risk of harm. Staff worked closely with the police to minimise these incidents and spent time trying to locate and return the young people, as well as spending time discussing these issues and the dangers that young people placed themselves in. However, the staff were unable to reduce these incidents. One young person moved to semi- independent accommodation, which was not particularly positive, and another had their placement terminated as staff felt unable to keep them safe.

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

Another young person was placed at the home following considerable concerns about his drug and alcohol activity in his home area. The staff team ensured that the young person had continued, regular access to drug misuse workers. The staff team, working in partnership with drug and alcohol misuse professionals, provided a good deal of education, advice and guidance to try to reduce future harm. This was a good piece of work and enabled the young person to continue in education, sit his GCSE exams and gain greater insight into the damage to his mental health. The young person eventually returned to live with his family.

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

The registered manager continues to consolidate staff practice and to train and support new members of staff. The staff team receives good training, which is comprehensive and up to date. The staff team is particularly experienced and skilled in the risks of criminal exploitation and youth violence.

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

The location risk assessment does not provide an accurate reflection of the current situation. The impact of gang activity and associated anti-social behaviour is not properly assessed in relation either to risks to young people or risks to the local community. As a result, local authorities are unable to make informed decisions on placements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager has managed this children‟s home since it opened in 2007. She has appropriate qualifications, experience, leadership attributes and management skills. She ensures that the home meets the aims and objectives outlined in the statement of purpose.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager and the staff team are ambitious for young people, and clearly prioritise the care of young people. The placement plans reflect the in-depth work carried out by the staff team. However, placements are often unstable due to the significant levels of risk-taking behaviour of the young people referred to the home. When managers identify that young people cannot be kept safe or pose a significant risk to staff and other young people in the home, they work with other professionals to look at alternatives, trying to ensure a positive placement move that is in the best interest of the young person. Staff receive regular supervision, which gives them the opportunity to reflect on and improve their practice. They reported feeling well supported in their roles, particularly by Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 7 the manager. Management monitoring of the service is of good quality. The registered

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

manager has good oversight of all aspects of the home and services provided. She understands the strengths of the home and is responsive to the recommendations of the independent visitor and other professionals to inform and address any issues. However, monitoring of the service fails to give an opinion on the safety and promotion of young people‟s welfare. The views of young people, their parents and stakeholders is not evident in reports.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The requirements and recommendations made at the last inspection have been fully addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has experienced some instability in recent months due to the concerning behaviours of some young people. The manager understands the need to consider the impact of new placements. Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 8

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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 difference 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: SC007290 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd floor, Kestrel House, Falconry Court, Bakers Lane, Epping, Essex, England CM16 5BD

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Inspector

Juanita Mayers, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC007290 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 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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