Children's Home run by Surrey County Council in Surrey

Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 1 SC040638 Registered provider: Surrey County Council

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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 owned and run by a local authority. It provides care and accommodation for up to six children.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in April 2019.

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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: declined in effectiveness

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

02/10/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 15/05/2018 Full Good 24/01/2018 Full Inadequate 15/03/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 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 education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff— help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(x)) 12/07/2019

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on— mutual respect and trust; an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans; help each child to develop socially aware behaviour; help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful; help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(vi)(vii)) 12/07/2019

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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 — that staff— 12/07/2019 Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 4 help each child to understand how to keep safe; 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 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)(a)(ii)(vi)(b))

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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.

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Requirement Due date

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; use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(c)(f)(h)) 12/07/2019

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Recommendations

 There may be circumstances where a child can be prevented from leaving a home – for example a child who is putting themselves at risk of injury by leaving the home to carry out gang related activities, use drugs or to meet someone who is sexually exploiting them or intends to do so. Any such measure of restraint must be proportionate and in place for no longer than is necessary to manage the immediate risk. (‘Guide to children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 48, paragraph 9.52) Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 5

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improvement to be good

Children are not consistently receiving the care and support that they require. The inspector observed that not all staff are readily present and available to the children. Some remain in the office rather than seeking contact with the children, when the children are in communal areas or their bedrooms. This creates an atmosphere of it being a place of work rather than the children’s home.

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improvement to be good

Children’s progress with their education is hindered by the inconsistent support they receive from the staff. There are occasions when children are not encouraged or motivated to be up and ready for learning. Staff do not consistently wake children or prompt them to get out of bed. Some staff do recognise barriers to children’s learning and provide appropriate support for those who require it. Some good working relationships with the local authority’s education service underpin this support.

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improvement to be good

Some staff have formed positive relationships with the children. As a result, children have made measurable progress while living here, including the ability to form relationships and recognise that they need help and support to make good choices and decisions. Staff actively listen and respond to children’s views. Children wanted to know who was working each day, so a chalkboard in the dining room now shows who is working in the home. Staff are seeking to reduce the institutional language they have used, in response to children’s comments. For example, key-work sessions have been renamed as ‘you and me time’.

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improvement to be good

Staff make good use of available services to enhance the care that they provide in respect of children’s health. This includes liaison with other professionals, including the child looked after nurse and specialist emotional well-being services through the child looked after team. Staff provide freshly cooked meals, and plenty of fruit is available for snacks. Children are encouraged to try new foods, with one child going out with the responsible individual for sushi during the inspection. Consequently, children are starting to make sensible choices regarding their diet and health.

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improvement to be good

The inconsistent knowledge and practice of the staff team sometimes compromise the safety and welfare of some of the children. Examples include the failure of some staff to recognise indicators of risk, while other staff members can and do take appropriate safeguarding action that protects children.

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improvement to be good

The inspector observed minimal challenge to children leaving the home from some staff, despite these staff knowing that those particular children would be at potential risk of exploitation. There is a lack of professional curiosity from some staff, or a desire to try to Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 6 engage children in safe activities, by way of positively distracting them away from risky situations.

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improvement to be good

The management team has responded promptly to current safeguarding and child protection concerns, sharing these with professionals within the local authority. A unified response to these concerns has resulted in a marked reduction in some children going missing since living in this home. Key staff attend multi-agency risk reduction meetings for those children who are deemed at most risk. Joint working with specialist police and exploitation professionals has provided invaluable intelligence and support for staff when protecting the children. A thorough assessment of the local area has been conducted in collaboration with the police to highlight areas of potential risk, and sharing intelligence has led to the disruption of an exploitative gang. Children have been offered support with drug support services and through child and adolescent mental health services.

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improvement to be good

Physical intervention is very rarely used. Staff spend time with children considering how they can repair relationships or make amends instead of using formal sanctions. Where it is deemed a child cannot have their money to spend independently, staff have considered the further risk this may put them at in the community through children seeking money from strangers.

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

During this inspection period, children have been unsettled and their progress hindered. Senior leaders understand the reasons for this and are taking responsive action. Recent improvements include several new staff members joining the team. Changes to staff shift patterns increase the amount and range of activities provided for children to enjoy. The change to the length and timings of staff shift patterns now provides improved continuity of care for children. The registered manager is driving a cultural change that recognises the home as belonging to the children.

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

Records of individual sessions with children are weak. Concerns such as substance misuse or children being missing are referred to as occurrences, but no clear detail of the discussion or individual work is described. Consequently, it is difficult to assess the impact of these sessions and whether they are achieving their desired effect. Staff have received relevant training and support about exploitation and drugs misuse, as well as training in how best to motivate and engage children to make positive changes. However, their application of this training is not evident.

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

The registered manager has identified gaps and weaknesses in the quality of the care provided, including the impact of poor team dynamics. There is an improving culture of appropriate challenge and scrutiny of all staff’s practice, which places the welfare, safety and progress of the children at the centre of the team’s focus.

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

The management team is working with partner agencies to seek the right support for the children in its care. This has included strong challenges being made in children’s best interests. The responsible individual continues to challenge senior leaders within the Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 7 local authority when inappropriate referrals are made. This has resulted in more specialist placements being sought for those children whose needs cannot be met in this home.

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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: SC040638 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Surrey County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Quadrant Court, 35 Guildford Road, Woking, Surrey GU22 7QQ

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Inspector

Jennie Christopher, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC040638 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 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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