Children's home run by New Forest Care Limited in Southampton

Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 1 SC402135 Registered provider: New Forest Care 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

The home provides care and accommodation for up to four children. The home‘s statement of purpose states that it specialises in the treatment of challenging children who pose a specific risk to themselves and/or the community, whose placements elsewhere have broken down, or who are at risk of permanent exclusion.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since February 2018.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 13 to 14 November 2018

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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

Date of last inspection: 24 January 2018

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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 Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

24/01/2018 Full Good 15/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 01/06/2016 Full Outstanding 14/01/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 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

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;

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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)(i)(v)(vi)(vii)) 21/12/2018

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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—

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Requirement Due date

that the home‘s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure individual behaviour plans detail all physical interventions used, so staff are aware of how to keep children safe. 21/12/2018

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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. 21/12/2018 Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 4 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child‘s health. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(d)) 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

ensures that the home‘s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13(1)(e)) 21/12/2018

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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—

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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)(2)(h)) 21/12/2018

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children‘s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home‘s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14(1)(a)(b)(2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, carry out comprehensive impact risk assessments to determine the suitability of placements. 21/12/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 5 keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16(3)(a)(b)) The registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child‘s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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a description of the measure and its duration;

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details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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the name of the person who used the measure (―the user‖), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (―the authorised person‖)—

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has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(iv)) 21/12/2018

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person 21/12/2018 Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 6 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.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person‘s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44(4)(a)(b))

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Recommendations

 Children should be able to see the results of their views being listened to and acted upon. (‗Guide to the children‘s homes regulations including the quality standards‘, page 22, paragraph 4.11) In particular, ensure care planning information is shared with children.  As set out in regulations 31–33, the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. (‗Guide to the children‘s homes regulations including the quality standards‘, page 61, paragraph 13.1) In particular, ensure that when verbal verification of references are obtained, questions are asked to ensure the new staff have the necessary skills.  Staff need to demonstrate they fully understand the risks associated with any restraint technique. (‗Guide to the children‘s homes regulations including the quality standards‘, page 49, paragraph 9.56) In particular, when high risk holds have taken place, the records must detail that

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Recommendations

vital signs have been regularly checked and that the child is safe.  Ensure that staff engage proactively to contribute fully to the relevant plans for the child‘s care on an ongoing basis. (‗Guide to the children‘s homes regulations including the quality standards‘, page 56, paragraph 11.3) In particular, ensure that information from the therapy team is included in relevant plans. Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 7

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improvement to be good

Staff have provided young people with individualised care and support, and have been focusing on building positive relationships with young people. In recent months senior managers, have made decisions to move some of the staff to other children‘s homes in the organisation. This has meant attachments for young people have been disrupted. Staff reported that the moves have had an impact on the young people. The manager has had to start again on building up the workforce to ensure good continuity of care for the young people.

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improvement to be good

The staff have been using key-work sessions to build on these attachments and young people are positive about the staff team, although they also reported that a number of staff members have ‗disappeared‘.

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improvement to be good

Young people have made progress from their starting points and staff were able to describe this. The manager understood why, at times, progress has been limited and is working with the necessary professionals, including the therapy team, and young people to constantly review individual targets.

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improvement to be good

There has been a significant improvement in the education attendance of the young people. The staff team recognises that for some young people who have not accessed education for a length of time, attendance is particularly challenging. There are clear transition plans to address this, which have been very successful.

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improvement to be good

Young people are able to make decisions which contribute to how the home is run and staff fully support them and advocate for them. This enables young people to achieve a level of independence.

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improvement to be good

There have been two admissions to the home and three discharges during this inspection period. Two of the discharges were positive moves, while the other move was decided in order to minimise the negative impact on other young people in placement. A family member stated during the young person‘s placement that she ‗couldn‘t fault‘ the staff and ‗they were just great‘. A young person has recently moved into the home, but, although the manager carefully considered this move, an impact risk assessment wasn‘t completed to evidence the decision making and to assess whether the staff have the necessary skills to support the young person.

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improvement to be good

A range of activities are available to young people. These are adapted in order to motivate young people to try new activities. Some young people now access activities they wouldn‘t have engaged in previously, including a local youth club and a ‗cat cafe‘.

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improvement to be good

There are a range of care planning documents available to give staff clear direction on how to support young people. Placement plans do not detail the multidisciplinary approach in operation; the therapy information is disjointed. The manager has started to Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 8 ensure that individual targets, as outlined in placement plans, are discussed with young people. However, the sharing of relevant information in placement planning with young people is still to be embedded into practice.

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improvement to be good

Generally, safeguarding concerns are dealt with effectively. The registered manager does not, however, have full oversight of all areas of safeguarding in the home. She has not had the level of training to lead in this area and a senior manager in the organisation takes responsibility for this role.

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improvement to be good

An allegation was made, but the registered manager and the independent visitor did not recognise it as an allegation. At a later date it was reported by the young person and initially treated as a complaint. This was only later reported to the necessary professionals. The internal investigation failed to recognise some weaknesses in the processes or the assumptions that were made at the time. The safeguarding policies and procedures had not been followed. The safeguarding lead acted during the inspection to rectify this. In other cases when allegations have been made, there has been clear reporting and internal investigations have been carried out when required.

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improvement to be good

Young people were observed to be open with staff and there appeared to be a level of trust and understanding. Incidents of missing are low in number, but appropriate action is taken when such incidents occur. Staff understand and manage risk well and young people‘s safety is paramount.

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improvement to be good

Young people appear to feel safe and relaxed in the home. There has been a high number of physical interventions; there is now a better awareness of patterns and trends. When floor restraints have been used, records have not been kept of the vital signs that need to be undertaken during a hold, although the manager and staff stated that these take place. Individual behaviour plans do not always detail when a floor hold may take place and how then to keep the young people safe, despite it being a hold that is used in the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff reported that they are using more restorative practices to enable young people to learn from their behaviours and to develop relationships with the staff and each other. Young people are beginning to learn to take ownership and responsibility. When mobile phones or free time are taken away from young people due to safeguarding concerns, these actions are not considered a sanction and therefore not recorded as such.

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improvement to be good

There has been ongoing work around the home to ensure that the physical environment is safe and regular health and safety checks are undertaken. However, some maintenance requests have taken a considerable amount of time to be responded to.

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improvement to be good

There are thorough recruitment processes followed for new staff. When only limited references are obtained from previous employers the details asked for when verifying Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 9 them is not documented, and it appears that no additional questions are asked to determine if these staff members have the necessary skills for the role.

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

The managerial structure has prevented the registered manager from running all aspects of the home effectively. She has not been enabled to have full oversight and control in many areas; this has led to frustration for her and has caused her to lack a full awareness of all the concerns raised during this inspection. She has recently taken the decision to step down from the post; the organisation is currently recruiting to her role.

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

The manager and team are very child centred in their approach, and they are trying to review and be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. Managers are beginning to utilise the staff‘s skills to develop the team further.

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

Several requirements have been made which question the effectiveness of the internal monitoring currently being undertaken.

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

The statement of purpose has been reviewed to ensure it is individualised to the home, and has been updated a number of times since the last inspection; these updates have not been notified to Ofsted.

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

The independent visitor‘s reports lack professional curiosity and do not fully identify safeguarding concerns. It appears that the independent visitor is providing sufficient challenge to the management team.

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

The home is staffed and resourced to meet the young people‘s needs. There is a mix of new staff and longer-standing staff within the team and they are beginning to work together to support the young people Staff described morale as low at present, due to the numerous staff changes.

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

The team has developed good links with families and outside agencies and it‘s clear that the staff want the best for the young people, and want them to achieve to their full potential.

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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: SC402135 10 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: SC402135 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Forest Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: New Forest Care Ltd, West Shore House, West Street, Hythe, Southampton SO45 6AA

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Inspector

Emeline Evans: social care inspector Inspection report children‘s home: SC402135 12 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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