Children's home run by BREAK

Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 1 SC025720 Registered provider: Break

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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, which is run by a charity, provides care for up to four children who have experienced trauma. The children may have difficulty forming relationships and may display difficult or challenging behaviour. The manager of the home was registered with Ofsted in March 2017.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people 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 children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 26 November 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/11/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 06/07/2017 Full Good 25/01/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness 27/07/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children are happy at this home. They feel safe and listened to by the staff, with whom they have strong relationships. These relationships are based on open and honest communication. Children speak to the staff if they have any concerns or worries. The children have all made progress from their starting points. Two of the children have lived at the home for over two years. One child has just finished their GCSE exams and hopes to attend college. The other children are in full-time education. The staff understand the importance of education. They encourage attendance, help children with homework and attend important school meetings such as parents’ evenings. Communication with children’s schools is good. Children access a diverse range of individualised activities in the community and at the home. These develop the children’s interests and hobbies. The staff enable children to see their friends and families. The children benefit from

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

seeing their families regularly, which helps them to maintain positive relationships. One child’s mother said, ‘The staff are brilliant. They bring my child over and drop him off, but if he is having a difficult day they stay and offer support. They understand when he gets upset and know how to cheer him up.’ The large home has benefited from significant improvements to the interior of the building following flood damage. Further work is required. A damaged carpet, bare light bulbs and dilapidated picnic benches in the garden detract from what is otherwise a welcoming and nurturing home. The children’s computer was repaired following the last inspection but was broken again by a child several weeks ago. Failure to replace the computer is to the detriment of all the children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The staff de-escalate unwanted behaviour to good effect. There have been no physical interventions since the last inspection. The staff use positive reinforcement. Rewards are used more than negative consequences. This approach encourages children to reduce negative behaviours. The staff know their safeguarding responsibilities. They look for the children if they leave the home without permission or go missing. Such incidents are low in number, with just five since the last inspection. The staff work closely with police. A child abduction warning notice was served to a local person to safeguard one of the children. The home has systems for safe recruitment of staff. However, checks on applicants’ aptitude for their position lacks clarity. Failure to assess potential staff members’ mental and physical ability for the role means that there is a risk of unsafe staff being employed to work with children.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

There are processes in place for the handling, storage, administration and recording of Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 4 medication. However, these processes were not followed, which resulted in a medication error. The error was minor, and nobody was hurt, but the mistake was not recorded as such and there was no record of the matter being investigated by the manager. This failure to adhere to medication processes is not transparent practice, could jeopardise the children’s well-being and compromises the staff.

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

The manager registered with Ofsted on 16 March 2017. He is working towards a relevant level 5 qualification. The responsible individual left the organisation and was replaced earlier this year. During this period, there was an unsatisfactory response to the regulatory breaches identified at the last inspection. Consequently, three requirements and two recommendations are restated. The managers have made improvements to the formal supervision process. However, deficits remain with annual appraisals. One part-time member of staff, who has worked at the home for 16 years, had not received an annual appraisal for five years. Monthly reports from the independent visitor are weak. Feedback from families and professionals is not routinely obtained and the reasons for not gaining such feedback are not explained. The reports lack clarity and sometimes it is not clear if the visitor has spoken with children. Failure to ensure robust independent monitoring undermines the

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

additional safeguard that such monitoring should provide and does not give the organisation or Ofsted an accurate view of the quality of care. The most recent internal review of the quality of care was much improved in comparison to the previous report. However, the period reviewed was not clear. Feedback systems for staff and families are not yet embedded and therefore this important feedback was missing. This meant that the report did not have the content required by regulation. The home’s management has some systems in place for monitoring and reviewing the care provided. Important records such as physical intervention logs and sanctions are reviewed and commented on by managers. Other logs such as missing from home and bullying are not reviewed. This means that analysis is lacking and mistakes such as missing dates and times, signatures and grammatical errors are not picked up and rectified. This reduces the accuracy of records.

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

The staff are well trained. All but one member of staff have achieved the necessary level 3 diploma. Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 5

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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 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— use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(h)) 20/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

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 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)(b)(c)) 30/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees— have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33(4)(c)) 30/08/2019

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person, if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, and relatives, as the independent person requires. The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to— HMCI. (Regulation 44(2)(a)(7)(a)) 27/09/2019 Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 6 The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every 6 months. In order to complete a quality of care review, the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating— the quality of care provided for children; the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it. The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for

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Requirement Due date

ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45(1)(2)(a)(b)(5)) 27/09/2019

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Recommendations

 Staff should provide a nurturing and supportive environment that is homely. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  Provide children with access to a computer and the internet to support their education and learning, unless there are specific safeguarding reasons why this would be inappropriate. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 29, paragraph 5.19)  The registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment of staff safeguards children and minimises potential risks to them. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1) In particular, ensure that the mental and physical suitability of staff are assessed.  Staff should be familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. (‘Guide to

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Recommendations

the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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 Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 7 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: SC025720 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Schofield House, 1 Spar Road, Norwich, Norfolk NR6 6BX

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Inspector

Ricky D’Arcy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC025720 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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