Clinical Partners

Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners Clinical Partners Clinical Partners Limited Clinical Partners, Unit 6, Chaldicott Barns, Semley, Shaftesbury, Wiltshire SP7 9AW Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this adoption support agency

This independent adoption support agency is operated by a private psychiatric healthcare company. The registered office is in the South West area of England. The office is a referral and triage centre for a wide range of psychological and psychiatric services. The adoption support work is currently a relatively small part of the company’s remit. The company arranges multi-agency clinical assessments of need to support parents’ applications to the adoption support fund. Once funding has been agreed, the agency offers appointments in consulting rooms as close to the family’s home area as possible. There are consulting rooms and therapists in an increasing number of locations across London, the South of England and the Midlands. At the time of the inspection, the agency was working with three adoptive families and children. Some children have received multi-agency clinical assessments but are awaiting adoption support funding before they can commence therapy. The agency is

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Information about this adoption support agency

also working with two adopted young adults. The agency commissions therapy through 13 consultant psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and psychotherapists who work on a self-employed basis. The agency and the manager were registered on 26 November 2018. This is the agency’s first inspection.

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good

How well children, young people and adults are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

The adoption support agency provides effective services that meet the requirements Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners for good.

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners

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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, the Adoption Support Agencies (England) and Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2005 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall not employ a person to work for the purposes of the agency unless that person is fit to work for the purposes of the agency; or allow a person who is employed by a person other than the registered provider to work for the purposes of the agency unless that person is fit to work for the purposes of the agency.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1), a person is not fit to work for the purposes of an agency unless he is of integrity and good character; he has the qualifications, skills and experience necessary for the work he is to perform; he is physically and mentally fit for the work he is to perform; and full and satisfactory information is available in relation to him in respect of each of the matters specified in Schedule 2. (Regulation 19 (1)(2)(a) to (d) and Schedule 2)

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all gaps in employment history are followed up prior to appointment. Ensure that the reasons for applicants leaving posts where they worked with children are recorded and that training certificates are kept on staff files. 31/07/2019

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Recommendations

 Ensure that there are clear and effective procedures for monitoring and controlling the activities of the agency. This includes the financial viability of the service, any serious incidents, or allegations, or complaints about the service and ensuring quality of the agency. (NMS 25.1) In particular, monitor the suitability and child-friendliness of premises used in clinical work with children and families and ensure that the quality of reports Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners supplied to commissioners and parents is of a consistently high standard.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

This recently registered adoption support agency is well established as a private mental healthcare provider, but it is at an early stage in developing services for adopted children and their families. The adoption support work done so far shows that the agency’s managers and staff are deeply committed to providing a good service to children, adopted young adults and families.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

The agency has a well-managed system for receiving and responding to enquiries. Adoption support calls receive a professional and prompt response.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

Feedback from service users is very positive. The young adults and parents spoken to during the inspection were pleased with their progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

One young adult said that their therapist was helpful and very easy to talk to. The young adult said, ‘Everything went pretty well. It was a very positive experience.’ This has helped her to make sense of some challenging aspects of her life.

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

A parent who responded to the Ofsted survey commented, ‘I have always found that the staff are quick to respond to requests, understanding towards our circumstances and always do what they can to help… both (the clinicians) we saw were very good. We found their report helpful and their approach both positive and professional.’

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Overall experiences and progress of service users: good

Parents and children are consulted well. The child’s wishes and feelings form part of the multi-disciplinary assessment process. Adoption support clients receive an annual survey to seek their views for improvement. Survey responses sent to Ofsted were largely positive.

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good

The agency has effective safeguarding policies and procedures. The responsible individual is the designated safeguarding lead. He ensures that all staff are trained to respond appropriately if they are concerned about an adult or child.

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good

There have been no child protection concerns since the agency was registered. The staff have a good understanding of mental health and are clear that they would act to protect a person who presents as being particularly vulnerable to serious self- harm.

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good

Both children and adults are aware of their rights. An informative statement of Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners purpose explains the type of service provided. The child-friendly children’s guide contains a particularly good explanation of the rights of the child. Both documents are regularly updated.

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good

The complaints procedure is rigorous and is fully accessible to children and adults. There has only been one complaint in relation to adoption. This was managed sensitively and has been well recorded.

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good

The agency has recently further improved its complaints practice by commissioning an independent arbitration service for healthcare providers. This will provide another level of objectivity in relation to complaints management.

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good

The agency’s leadership and management require improvement because the managers have not had sufficiently rigorous oversight of staff recruitment processes. Staff recruitment is generally well organised and the person responsible for checking information has been trained in safer recruitment. However, some records showed unexplained gaps in employment history. Also, prospective employees are not asked why previous employment with children ended. This was remedied during the inspection. A requirement has been made.

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good

The company relies on Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks obtained by the clinicians’ main employer, for example the National Health Service. These are not always updated on a regular basis.

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good

The agency already has new measures planned to improve this area of practice. For example, they intend to use the DBS update service and have improved the application process for future applicants.

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good

The quality of assessment reports prepared for parents and commissioners over the past year has varied considerably. Some reports relating to adopted children and young adults contained typing and grammatical errors in the sensory assessment section. In one case, a young adult was inappropriately referred to as a child. This shows that quality assurance checks failed to identify these shortfalls before the inspection. As a result, reports do not reach a consistently high professional standard. The responsible individual undertook to act on this immediately.

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good

There is some inconsistency in the quality of the consulting rooms used to carry out assessments and therapy with children and families. Because there are 21 different premises involved over a wide geographical area, it was not possible to visit them during this inspection.

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good

A parent commented that one consulting room in Bristol was not particularly child- friendly. However, this was an isolated example. The responsible individual explained that this is not typical of the high standard of the consulting rooms used. Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners Staff and managers agree that they would like to recruit more clinicians to provide a service across an even wider area of the country. In view of the service’s early stage of development, this is not a shortfall but something to aim for in the future.

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good

Leaders and managers have many other ambitions for the service and are constantly striving to improve business and administrative systems. They understand the importance of growing at a sustainable rate and consolidating practice in this relatively new area of their work.

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good

After an economically challenging year in 2018–2019, leaders and managers have taken assertive steps to ensure that the service is financially secure. The responsible individual and his fellow director have complementary qualifications and skills, which between them ensure effective business administration. They are enthusiastic about adoption support work and committed to further improvement.

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good

Staff and the registered manager are well qualified and specifically trained for their roles. The two assistant psychologists who manage enquiries have a very good understanding of the task. They show great enthusiasm and strong empathy for the people who approach them for help. This makes children and families feel welcomed and valued.

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good

Staff and managers receive regular, effective clinical supervision and support from an external, qualified clinical psychologist. She visits the team once a month and spends time with the staff. She also leads bi-monthly management meetings to provide professional consultation to leaders and managers. This helps to inform management decisions and ensures consistency in practice.

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good

The agency organised professional training for clinicians in 2018. Feedback from the training shows that this was very favourably received. The responsible individual has set up a series of webinars with a nationally known speaker, to help parents understand children who have autism spectrum conditions.

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good

The head office premises provide bright, spacious office accommodation in a peaceful rural environment. There is safe and secure storage for confidential documents and appropriate insurance arrangements to safeguard the business. Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners

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Information about this inspection

During this inspection, inspectors looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, young people and adults. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the differences made to the lives of children, young people and adults. They watched how professional staff work with children, young people, adults and each other and discussed the effectiveness of the help provided. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people, adults and their families. In addition, inspectors have tried to understand what the adoption support agency knows about how well it is performing and what difference it is making for the children, young people and adults whom it is trying to help.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000, using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’, to assess the effectiveness of the adoption support agency, how it meets the core functions as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Adoption Support Agencies (England) and Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2005 and the national minimum standards. Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners

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Adoption support agency details

Registered provider: Clinical Partners Limited

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Adoption support agency details

Registered provider address: Hilltop Business Park, Devizes Road, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP3 4UF

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Adoption support agency details

Responsible individual: Mr Barnaby Guthrie

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Adoption support agency details

Email address: Caroline@clinical-partners.co.uk

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Inspector(s)

Heather Chaplin: social care inspector Inspection report for adoption support agency: Clinical Partners to 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(s)

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Inspector(s)

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Inspector(s)

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