SC 2514259

Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 1 Registered provider: Solent Child Care Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a small private company. It is registered to care for two children who have complex behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in March 2019.

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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: this is the home’s first inspection

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

This is the home’s first inspection Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 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 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— 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)) 06/09/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises— is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home; is necessary and proportionate; is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 06/09/2019

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by staff while working at the home, and used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of staff-including the home’s manager (‘Guide to children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  As set out in regulations 31−33, the registered person is responsible for maintaining good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment, Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 4 supervision and performance management of staff safeguard children and minimise potential risks to them (‘Guide to children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1). In particular, they should test staff’s safeguarding knowledge and explore at

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Recommendations

interview how applicants would respond to physical aggression.  Electronic records should be held at the individual home in accordance with data protection principles. IT systems should ensure the safe storage of these records and business continuity planning should be in place to prevent loss or damage to them (‘Guide to children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 14.2). In particular, there should be a policy in relation to the use of personal mobile phones to access the organisation’s database.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Since the home was registered, one child has been placed. Staff have formed positive relationships with the child who told the inspector that she likes all the staff. She said that she is able to have an input into the decoration of the home and expressed pride in the way it looks. The staff gain her views through feedback forms, key work sessions and daily conversations.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Decisions about when another child will be placed are child centred. The child’s welfare is the focus. Leaders and managers are committed to ensuring that she is settled and stable prior to any more children living here.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Detailed care plans, behaviour plans and risk assessments equip staff with the knowledge they need to look after the child. These records are updated following any new circumstances or any changes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

An education setting has been identified for September 2019. Prior to the child starting school, a daily routine involving activities with staff and an equine course with other children is increasing the child’s social skills in preparation for school.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are trained in therapeutic methods, which are carried out in practice. The staff have monthly consultations with a therapist prior to the service being offered to the child when she is ready. This enables the staff to help her to understand her complex feelings. Consequently, she no longer engages in risky behaviours, and incidents have significantly reduced.

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

Staff’s relationships, supervision and vigilance prevent the child from attempting to put herself at risk. Staff follow her if she leaves the home without permission and return with Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 5 her safely to the home.

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

One-to-one meetings are effective and enable the child to explore her feelings. Staff use these opportunities to teach her how to safeguard herself. This has been effective; she alerted staff to an inappropriate contact on social media.

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

Physical interventions are used as a last resort. When incidents do occur, staffing levels are increased to support the staff and child. The on-call system is used during difficult incidents to gain immediate support from experienced managers.

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

An ethos of restorative justice and appropriate consequences helps the child to manage her behaviours. The consequences teach her to take responsibility for her actions and make amends. Rewards are used as a positive behavioural approach, to recognise the child’s achievements.

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

In recent months, staffing has presented challenges. The two staff members who worked at the home when it first opened are not presently working there. One of them is absent temporarily. The managers have recruited new staff who have had intensive inductions to ensure that they are able to care for the child prior to working on their own with her. This has had an impact on the monitoring and development of the service.

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

The workforce development plan was completed prior to registration. This now needs to be updated to include the new staff. It does not reflect the skills and experience of the current staff team. This will inform managers about any gaps in staff’s knowledge and identify any specific training needs.

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

The manager has good insight and a strong sense of the aims and ethos of the home. She is able to evidence progress and analysis of records, through records such as weekly reports to the social worker. However, this information has not been collated to evidence trends and the impact of interventions.

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

The child’s behaviour plan identifies a strategy for managing risky situations that involves locking a lobby door to restrict access to the kitchen and lounge as a last resort and for a short period. This has not been discussed and agreed with the placing authority. In addition, an incident during which this measure was used was not recorded accurately. The locking of the door was not included in the report. This compromises external oversight of the use of this restrictive intervention.

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

Staff are able to access information relating to children from their personal mobile phones. Although this access is secure, there are no policies that guide staff in the company’s rules and expectations.

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

Staff are expected to work for long periods on their own with children. They have all been trained in safeguarding. However, they have not been tested to ensure that they Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 6 are fully aware of safeguarding procedures. Furthermore, although recruitment methods are thorough, the interview process does not cover scenarios in which children are aggressive to staff when they are on their own with them. This does not adequately assess the resilience of staff to manage these circumstances.

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

The manager and staff maintain positive relationships with stakeholders. A social worker was positive about the child’s move to the home and the standard of care she receives.

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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: 2514259 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Solent Child Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 9 St. Georges Yard, Farnham, Surrey GU9 7LW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Charlotte Tanner

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Inspector

Suzy Lemmy, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2514259 8 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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