Children's Home run by East Sussex County Council in East Sussex

Inspection report children‟s home: SC031410 1 SC031410 Registered provider: East Sussex County Council Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children‟s home is operated by the local authority. The service is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to seven children who have learning disabilities and/or physical disabilities. The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2018.

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Judgement at last inspection: good

Date of last inspection: 22 October 2018

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Judgement at last inspection: good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection. At the interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has declined in effectiveness.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Progress for children has been hampered by insufficient management arrangements. The registered manager has been covering the manager‟s role at another home in the local authority for the last six months. This has had a negative impact on the day-to-day running of the home.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff spoke of some children making progress. One child was really pleased to have a mobile phone and was managing this well. Another child was trying a wider range of foods and this is progress for him as he previously ate a limited diet. However, records did not reflect the progress that children made and there was no available analysis of behaviours to underpin staff‟s verbal feedback. Inspection report children‟s home: SC031410 2 Risk assessments are weak. One child has continued to go into the room of others during the night. Leaders and managers have failed to ensure the safety of others, and risk assessments and night-time arrangements continue to be insufficient.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

One child is experiencing challenges which impact on her behaviour, as a result staff have been injured. In some instances, staff have required medical attention and time off work. Staff shortages have also had a negative impact on the home and staff morale is low.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Records of restraint are insufficient. They do not provide an accurate and factual record of when restraint measures are used. Some records have been tampered with and altered, although it is not clear by whom. Others are incomplete, and managerial oversight has been insufficient. Comments made by the registered manager have not been addressed and no timescale is set for further information to be obtained.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Records of the children‟s time at the home continue to be inadequate. One child who has lived there for several years has a few pages of a scrapbook with some photos. This fails to capture his journey through the home. As he prepares to move on in the summer, there are scant memory prompts for him to take with him. The lack of value that staff place on keeping memories for the children is a missed opportunity for them to be able to recall their progress and time at the home.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/10/2018 Full Good 13/12/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/02/2017 Interim Declined in effectiveness 06/07/2016 Full Outstanding Inspection report children‟s home: SC031410 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

In order to meet the protection of children standard the registered person must ensure that staff— 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; help each child to understand how to keep safe; have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk from harm; manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; and understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)) 29/03/2019

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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— helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(f)(h)) 12/04/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which— are kept up to date; and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that photographs and memory books of the 12/04/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: SC031410 4 child‟s journey through the home are kept up to date.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— 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— a description of the measure and its duration; details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; 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”)— has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (1)(3)(a)(iv)(v)(b)(ii)) 12/04/2019

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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

This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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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: SC031410 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: East Sussex County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, St Anne‟s Crescent, Lewes, East Sussex BN7 1UE

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Charlotte De Retuerto

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Inspector

Sarah Olliver, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC031410 6 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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