Children's home run by St Christopher’s Fellowship

Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 1 Registered provider: St Christopher’s Fellowship

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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 provides care for up to nine children who have social, emotional and/or behavioural difficulties and who may have experienced adversity because of abuse, neglect, family dysfunction, loss or other trauma. Staff use concepts and theoretical models drawn from social pedagogy and attachment theory in their work with the children. One of the nine beds available is a training flat to support with the transition to independent living. The home is run by a national charity. It is a commissioned service to meet the needs of the children living in the host authority. This home was registered with Ofsted in 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: A monitoring visit was undertaken on 21 March 2019 Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

N/A Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 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 The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; help a child who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible; help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment. (Regulation 8(1)(2)(a)(v)(viii)(ix)) 01/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard The health and well-being standard is that— the health and well-being needs of children are met; children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; (Regulation 10(1)(a)(b)) In particular, ensure that children attend health appointments and that there is a risk assessment for children who self- medicate. 01/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

Medicines The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. In particular the registered person must ensure that— medicines kept in the home are stored in a secure place so as to 01/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 4 prevent any child from having unsupervised access to them; medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child; and a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23(1)(2)(a)(b)(c)) Behaviour management policies and records 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— the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the

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Requirement Due date

measure; and 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 spoken to the user about the measure; and has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 01/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard 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. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(f)) In particular, this refers to return home interviews, sanctions and key-work sessions. 01/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

Other records Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home. The registered person must— maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4; 01/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 5 ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37(1)(2)(a)(b)) In particular, this refers to the children’s admission register.

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Recommendations

 Staff should continually and actively assess the risks to each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5) In particular, risk assessments must include further details regarding preventative action against knife crime, sexual and criminal exploitation.  The registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.2) In particular, focus on the specific risks in the neighbourhood to include gangs and other youth-related concerns.  All children’s case records must be kept up to date. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.3)

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Recommendations

In particular, ensure that the actions from meetings are recorded.

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improvement to be good

Children respond well to the nurturing family style environment underpinned by the principles of social pedagogy. A child stated that they would ‘recommend it here’. However, staff need to work more proactively with children and to effectively address their educational and health needs. Key-work sessions enable staff to motivate the children. These meetings are recorded through the use of innovative child-centred letters. However, not all children participate in key-work meetings and these meetings are not purposefully linked to their care plans and concerns around their behaviour. The current health arrangements for children are unsatisfactory. Not all children attend their health appointments. There are gaps in the medication records and medication is not always given to the children at the recommended time. Most of the children attend school and one child has successfully completed their exams. However, some children are not in school or college and they are not engaged in any

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improvement to be good

meaningful activity during the day. This is despite the home having a training kitchen Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 6 and a well-equipped learning suite, with computers and books. Children are helped to develop a positive identity. Staff celebrate the children’s achievements and birthdays. Children also learn to appreciate diversity through cultural days. Mealtimes are social occasions where children enjoy nutritious, home-cooked meals from a variety of cultures. Children benefit from good support from the child and adolescent mental health service. The good liaison with the staff team has a positive impact on children’s emotional well- being. The organisation’s participation officer provides significant support to children, including a recent workshop on the police’s ‘stop and search’ powers. Children can enjoy a range of activities linked to their hobbies and interests. Children appreciate that friends can also join them on activities. They can also spend quality time

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improvement to be good

with their family in a dedicated contact room. Children live in a clean and comfortable home, which has a wide range of communal spaces. This includes a games area, a ‘chill out’ room, television lounges and a garden with a basketball net. Children also benefit from having their own bikes and there is strong emphasis on physical activity.

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improvement to be good

Children said that they feel safe in the home and an independent reviewing officer praised the home for providing ‘a safety net’ for a child. Record keeping, however, lacks the required detail. This relates to restraint and sanction records, risk assessments and the actions arising from important meetings. Staff help children understand the importance of personal safety. There are no current issues with bullying, and missing from home episodes have significantly reduced. However, when children do go missing, staff do not consistently collate whether return home interviews are undertaken. Children’s risk assessments are not always updated after significant incidents. Risk assessments also do not effectively detail how risks will be managed. Examples include concerns regarding possessing a knife, and possible sexual and criminal exploitation. The home has an adequate location risk assessment; however, it is very general. This

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improvement to be good

document does not elaborate on the unique risks in the particular neighbourhood. For example, there are no details in relation to the gangs in the area and other local youth- related concerns. Sanctions and restraint records do contain all the required information. Sanction records do not always detail their effectiveness. Restraint records also do not evidence that debriefings have been undertaken with all the involved staff members. Behaviour management focuses on de-escalation and incidents are generally managed well. Children learn how to self-regulate and manage their emotions. They receive encouragement to express their feelings creatively through writing or making music. The links with the host local authority ensure that staff have access to a wide range of Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 7 safeguarding training. Staff are confident in their ability to effectively manage allegations. Staff are very child centred and aware of the need to whistleblow concerns,

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improvement to be good

if necessary. The organisation takes adequate precautions to ensure that the environment is safe and appropriately maintained. Safer recruitment practices are adequately complied with.

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

The registered manager is working hard to provide a stable environment for children and to support the newly forming staff team. Staff are committed to the ethos of the home and there is a strong desire to make a positive difference in children’s lives. Shortfalls relate to record keeping and insufficient management oversight. The home benefits from constructive monthly reports from an independent visitor. However, the recommendations are not addressed promptly. Management oversight is lacking in several areas. The admissions register is not kept up to date and children’s records do not always detail the recommended actions arising from meetings. Children benefit from a caring, culturally diverse and gender-balanced staff team. Staff take pride in their relationships with the children. A child said that the staff are ‘the good thing about the home’. Staff receive regular supervision and performance appraisals. They receive additional

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

support from team meetings and a clinical psychologist. There is an adequate range of training and the required vocational training is also in progress for the necessary staff. The registered manager has completed an adequate quality of care review. Two of the three requirements made at the recent monitoring visit have been addressed. The only outstanding issue is the need to update risk assessments. Leaders and managers are aware of the shortfalls and they have a strong desire to improve. There is a good working relationship with the host authority, providing a firm foundation for improving the outcomes for children. Feedback regarding the home is generally positive, with one social worker commenting on their child’s significant ‘progress’.

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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 Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 8 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: 2495375 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: St. Christopher’s Fellowship, 1 Putney High Street, London SW15 1SZ

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Lucellta Wallace-Esnard

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Inspectors

Sharon Payne, social care inspector Jacqueline Graves, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2495375 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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