Children's Home, Residential special school run by Acorn Norfolk Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 1 SC435322 Registered provider: Acorn Norfolk Limited

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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 home is registered to provide care for up to 40 children who are on 38- and 52- week residential placement options. There is an on-site school that is registered with the Department of Education. There are currently 15 children living at the home. The home specialises in providing care for children who have autistic spectrum conditions, complex needs, moderate to severe learning difficulties, communication difficulties and associated challenging behaviour. The registered manager left on 29 November 2018. A new manager has been appointed and has submitted an application to register with Ofsted.

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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: 21 November 2018

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/11/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 14/08/2018 Full Inadequate 07/03/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 07/06/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 3

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improvement to be good

Children are making some good progress across a range of areas. However, the judgement of requires improvement to be good considers the judgements for how well children are helped and protected and the effectiveness of leaders and managers. The shortfalls identified during the inspection in those areas mean that the home needs to make further improvements to provide consistently good-quality care. The staff support children with their health needs, including providing them with emotional support. This support is underpinned by the positive relationships between staff and children. Staff have worked with one child to reduce her anxieties about health appointments. This will help her to access appropriate health support now and in her adult life. Staff have training in how to give children their medicines. There are regular audits of medication. However, there are still regular errors in medication administration,

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improvement to be good

with five in the last six months. Although medication systems are effective in most cases, they are not working as well as they could to make sure that all children get the right medicines. Children make progress in their education. One child who has consistently refused to take part in education has begun to engage with school staff. For him, this also marks an improvement in his confidence. Furthermore, he is engaging with staff and other children much more than he used to. Another child has gone from having to be educated alone to managing in a class with other children. Children take part in a range of activities with the staff and in the community. These activities include horse riding, going shopping and going on holiday. Importantly, the children’s views are considered for the choice of activity and if they want to stop taking part. One child was very involved in planning her holiday with staff. During the holiday, she

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improvement to be good

went to a restaurant for a meal for the first time and she has since been able to go on holiday with her family. Children’s engagement in activities is helping to increase their self-esteem and enables them to have enjoyable childhood experiences. Some children have moved between the different houses that make up this children’s home. Managers and staff have paid careful attention to matching children and supporting their moves. Children’s day-to-day experiences are more positive as they are living in small groups with children whose needs are similar to their own. The children take part in the daily routines, helping with cooking, shopping and other tasks as appropriate. This participation enables children to develop independence skills in line with their individual abilities. Staff help children to see their families and to get the most from these relationships. In particular, there is good support for children who live a long way from home. The staff

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improvement to be good

take them to see their families. In addition, the home has accommodation that parents can use when they are visiting their children. Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 4

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improvement to be good

The organisation has failed to meet two of the requirements that were raised, in relation to safeguarding, at the last inspection. The manager did not make a prompt referral to the designated officer following an allegation against a member of staff. In addition, the manager did not notify Ofsted at the time of the allegation that a concern had been received. Consequently, Ofsted was unable to ensure that effective action had been taken to safeguard children at the time of the incident. In a further incident, a concern was not reviewed until three days after it was reported. The responsible individual and a senior manager have worked hard to redefine safeguarding responsibilities and implement effective reporting and referral mechanisms to avoid recurrence. In two cases, staff did not make a prompt and full report of safeguarding concerns. However, senior managers identified the delays and took quick and effective action to

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improvement to be good

ensure that all staff are fully aware of reporting processes. This gives assurance that shortfalls in practice are identified and acted on. The frequency of physical intervention has decreased since the last inspection. The organisation has stopped using ground holds in the residential provision. The records of physical intervention have improved significantly. Staff benefit from ‘hot debriefs’, during which their immediate well-being is reviewed, and everyone’s safety is established. Following this, in-depth reflection on the incident enables the staff concerned to look at whether an alternative approach could be used in future and to identify any training needs. Monitoring and review of physical interventions and incidents have improved significantly. A deputy manager coordinates meetings to review incidents. He collates and analyses data that enable him to establish patterns and trends. The analysis leads to

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improvement to be good

identification of training needs, establishes whether dynamics between staff and children are effective, and whether children’s safety is promoted. Staff identify bullying and unwanted behaviours. They take action to understand the issues and plan effective interventions that result in children feeling safe and happy. Children benefit from visits from an independent advocate. These visits give children the option to speak to someone other than the staff or their social worker and enable objective observation of and interaction with vulnerable children. Incidents of children going missing are infrequent. When incidents do occur, staff follow the child’s individual protocol, involve the police as necessary, and ensure that children receive return from missing interviews.

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

Since the last inspection, a new responsible individual and a new manager have been appointed. The new manager is not yet registered with Ofsted. The staff view the changes positively. They are optimistic about the likelihood of further improvement in the way that the home operates and the outcomes for children. In particular, staff have Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 5 found the new responsible individual to be fully involved in the operation of the home. He is developing a thorough understanding of the home, its areas of strength and weakness, and is developing plans for improvement. Although the developments appear to be positive, the home has had several changes of leadership in the last two years and the current arrangements need to embed. The last inspection identified a shortfall in the sufficiency of staffing. The staff rotas have been changed to increase the effectiveness of the home. This change requires additional

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

staff. A strong recruitment drive is ongoing. To date, the recruitment drive has resulted in the appointment and retention of 18 new staff. Managers use consistent agency and bank staff to fill gaps. However, approximately one third of the team has not achieved a relevant level 3 qualification within the required timescale. As a result, the staff team as a whole is not sufficiently qualified. Managers are acting to improve this in liaison with a training provider. In addition, induction processes have improved considerably. Leaders and managers provide regular, planned supervision for the staff. However, in one case, following a significant incident, there is no record of practice concern being discussed promptly. Although this is not a widespread issue, lack of timely discussion means that staff are not helped to develop safe and appropriate practice. Staff and managers work with parents and placing social workers to provide consistent

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

and effective care for children. Staff chase placing authorities for outstanding paperwork and advocate for children. The management structure of the home has been improved to give more responsibility to deputy managers and team leaders, who have responded positively to this. Increased responsibility has led to deputy managers having better oversight of their staff and increased their scope to meet their staff’s training needs. The managers and staff spoken with had a sound understanding of the children’s needs and the progress that they are making. The staff spoke with pride about children’s progress. Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 6

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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. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm; understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)) 21/06/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the safe administration of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1)) In particular, make sure that medicines are given to children as prescribed. 28/06/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the individual has the appropriate qualification for the work that the individual is to perform. An individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained— the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (‘the Level 3 Diploma’); or a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma. The relevant date is, in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1 April 2014, the date 30/11/2019 Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 7 which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1 April 2014, 1 April 2016. The registered person may defer the relevant date if the individual does not work, or has not worked, in a care role in a

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Requirement Due date

home for a prolonged period; or works, or has worked, in a care role in a home on a part-time basis. (Regulation 32 (3)(b)(4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b)(6)(a)(b)) The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there; a child protection enquiry involving a child is instigated; or concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry). A notification made under this regulation— must include details of— the matter; the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter; and must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)(5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(b)) 21/06/2019

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Recommendations

 Staff supervision must enable staff to reflect and act on how their own feelings and behaviour may be affected by the behaviour of the children they care for. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.15) In particular, provide timely supervision to discuss practice concerns.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 8 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: SC435322 9

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Children’s home details

Provision sub-type: Residential special school

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Acorn Norfolk Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1 Merchants Place, River Street, Bolton BL2 1BX

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Inspectors

Clive Lucas: social care inspector Louisa Bayley: regulatory inspection manager Inspection report children’s home: SC435322 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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