Children's Home run by Investing in Children CIC in Sunderland

Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 1 Registered provider: Investing in Children CIC

p.1

Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to five children and/or young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural issues. The home was registered in May 2019 and the manager was registered at that time. The home is operated by a private provider

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

p.1

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.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 2

p.1

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, the 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.

p.2

Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who— understand the children ’s home’s ov s overall aims and the outcomes; use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff— provide personalised care that meets each child’s s needs, as recorded in the child’s s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s s background. (Regulation 6(1)(2)(b)(iv)) 30/09/2019

p.2

Requirement Due date

The children’s s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who— develop positive relationships with them; engage with them; and take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff— ascertain and consider each child’s views, wishes and feelings, and balance these against what they judge to be in the child’s best interests when making decisions about the child’s care and welfare (Regulation 7(1)(2)(a)(i)) In particular, ensure that children and young people are able to add their views in records. 30/09/2019

p.2

Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on— 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 3 mutual respect and trust; an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and positive responses to other children and adults. 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; understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children; have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them. (Regulation 11(1)(2)(a)(i)(ix)(xiii)) The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.2

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s s welfare; that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s s health. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(i)(vi)(d)) 30/09/2019

p.3

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 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— lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose; ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate; ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 4 meet the needs of each child; ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child

p.3

Requirement Due date

and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home; demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on— research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13) The care planning standard is that children— receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out

p.4

Requirement Due date

in the home’s s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14(1)(2)(a)) 30/09/2019

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. The registered person may only— employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at them home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3). The requirements are that— full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 5 individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32(1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(d)) The registered person must— ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction; ensure that each permanent appointment of an employee is subject to the satisfactory completion of a period of probation;

p.4

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees— receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33(1)(4)(b)) 30/09/2019

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which— is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s s home from abuse or neglect; and sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect. The procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect must, in particular— provide for liaison and co-operation with any local authority which are, or may be, making a child protection enquiry in relation to a child accommodated in the home; provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about current or ongoing abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the home is located; provide for the prompt referral of an allegation about past abuse or neglect in relation to a child to the placing authority and, if different, the local authority in whose area the alleged abuse or

p.5

Requirement Due date

neglect occurred; provide for records to be kept of an allegation of abuse or neglect, and the action taken in response; describe the measures which may be necessary to protect children following an allegation of abuse or neglect; and describe how and to whom staff are to report, without delay, any concern about abuse or neglect of a child. The registered person must prepare and implement a policy for the prevention of bullying in the home, which must in particular set out the procedure for dealing with an allegation of bullying. The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the missing child policy”) setting out— the steps taken, and to be taken, to prevent children from being 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 6 absent without permission; and the procedures to be followed, and the roles and responsibilities of persons working at the home, in relation to a child who is, or

p.5

Requirement Due date

has been, so absent. Before implementing, or making an amendment which the registered person considers to be substantive to, the missing child policy, the registered person must— consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person; and have regard to any relevant local authority or police protocols on missing children. The registered person must keep under review and, as necessary, revise the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 34) The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out— how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home. The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it. The registered person must ensure that— within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or

p.6

Requirement Due date

restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes— the name of the child; details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure; the date, time and location of the use of the measure; a description of the measure and its duration; details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used; the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure; within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 7 to do so (“the authorised person”)— has spoken to the user about the measure; and (ii) has signed

p.6

Requirement Due date

the record to confirm it is accurate; and within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. Paragraph (3) does not apply in relation to restraint that is planned or provided for as a matter of routine in the child’s EHC plan or statement of special educational needs. (Regulation 35) The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which— include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child; are kept up to date; and are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36(1)) In particular, ensure that records are written in a way that will be helpful to the child. 30/09/2019

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation; an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious; there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there; a child protection enquiry involving a child — is instigated; or concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. A notification made under this regulation— must include details of— the matter; the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the 30/09/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 8

p.7

Requirement Due date

matter; must be made or confirmed in writing. (Regulation 40(4)(5)) The registered person must notify, without delay, the local authority for the area in which the children’s s home is located of every admission of a child into the home and every discharge of a child from the home. The registered person is not required to notify the local authority in paragraph (1) if that local authority is also the placing authority for the child in question. A notification under this regulation must be in writing and must state— the child’s s name and date of birth; whether the child is provided with accommodation under section 20 or 21 of the Children Act 1989(a); whether the child is subject to a care or supervision order under section 31 of the Children Act 1989(b); the contact details for— the child’s s placing authority; and the independent reviewing officer appointed for the child’s s case; and whether the child has an EHC plan or a statement of special

p.8

Requirement Due date

educational needs and, if so, details of the local authority with responsibility for the EHC plan or for maintaining the statement of special educational needs. (Regulation 41) 30/09/2019

p.8

improvement to be good

The children and young people make some progress from their starting points. They state that they feel happy and are settled in the home. The relationships with staff are warm and nurturing. Transitions into the home are well planned, and supported with good information for children and young people to understand what life will be like living in the home. Prior to admission, there are no assessments of the risks posed by any child on those already resident. This leaves children and young people potentially at risk. The children’s s guide is colourful and easily understood. However, the expectations about behaviour are not detailed in the children’s s guide. The staff have no guidance in policies about managing behaviour. On one occasion, the police had to be called to manage the Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 9 behaviour of children and young people in the home. The result is that incidents are not

p.8

improvement to be good

effectively managed by staff. The staff do not make links between the presenting behaviours and previous trauma and experiences of children and young people. The home is well furnished and comfortable, including the bedrooms which are very personalised. There are areas of the home that have potential ligature risk points, but these are not risk assessed to ensure that children and young people remain safe. Educational achievements of children and young people are mixed. Some children are awaiting education placements, while others have high attendance and are achieving well from their starting points. Staff offer a wide range of activities day to day. However, children and young people do not always engage, preferring to go to visit family or friends. Children’s and young people’s s views are listened to on a day-to-day basis and they are encouraged to share their views during the reviews of their care. However, they do not

p.9

improvement to be good

add their comments or views in the recordings kept in the home. This will affect how children and young people feel about being listened to and engaging in the care offered at the home.

p.9

improvement to be good

Children and young people are safe in the home. However, out in the community their whereabouts are not always known by staff. The number of missing from home episodes is relatively low as children and young people are enabled to go where they want to by staff without robust safeguarding practices in place. Return to home interviews, when incidents of missing from home have taken place, are not regular or carried out by an independent person. The management of presenting behaviour does not result in any physical intervention or consequence. This means that behaviour does not change, and children and young people do not gain an understanding of how their behaviour affects them and others, which can leave them at risk. This was seen to be the case in records where bullying actions were recorded but had not been recognised as such by staff, and had not been linked to the previous experiences of either child involved.

p.9

improvement to be good

Safeguarding practice is reactive rather than proactive. Children and young people are trusted by the staff to do the right thing in any given circumstance. While this is, on occasion, appropriate it does not take account of known factors that would make situations unsafe. Children and young people do keep in contact with staff by phone when they are out. However, there are no proactive strategies in place to ensure that children and young people will be safe when they go to places to meet people.

p.9

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers are nurturing in their approach. However, there were a wide range of shortfalls in practice that have led to this judgement. Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 10 Policies were not robust enough to guide practice. Monitoring by the leaders and managers is not effective in challenging or changing practice. Recruitment does not follow safe-caring guidelines. Supervision of staff was regular, although not always in line with policy, and showed that staff were raising relevant issues but there was a lack of follow-up recorded. This means that good practice is not always recognised by the manager. Training is in place, but not all staff have completed mandatory courses. Staff have not had training to administer medication safely, even though children and young people have been admitted with medication needs. The manager could identify strengths of the home, but failed to recognise clear areas for

p.9

The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

development that have been identified during this inspection.

p.10

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.

p.10

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: 2522240 11

p.10

Children’s home details

Registered provider: Investing in Children CIC

p.11

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Sjovoll Centre, Front Street, Pity Me, Durham DH1 5BZ

p.11

Inspector

Susan Atkinson-Millmoor, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: 2522240 12 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.

p.11

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.12

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.12

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: http://www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.12