Children's Home run by SureCare Residential Ltd in Essex

Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 1 Registered provider: Surecare Residential Limited

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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 is run by a private organisation. It offers therapeutic care for up to five children who may have experienced trauma, neglect or abuse, and family or placement breakdowns.

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Information about this children’s home

The new manager has been in post since 5 August 2019 and is not yet registered with Ofsted.

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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: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/08/2018 Full Good 06/12/2017 Full Good 06/09/2017 Full Inadequate Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 3

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improvement to be good

Three children currently live at the home. The four children who were residing at the time of the last inspection have moved on and four other children have been admitted and discharged. Records kept of admissions and discharges are incomplete, and do not include the date on which one of the children was discharged. There is no record of one of the children being admitted. Failure to provide accurate records makes it difficult to maintain accountability and demonstrates poor monitoring.

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improvement to be good

Some of the children have made good progress and benefited greatly from their placements. However, some of these placements have been ended prematurely after the children were discharged directly from police custody. This means that children have not been prepared to move on, and have not been given the opportunity to leave the home in a positive way.

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improvement to be good

When transitions are planned, they are good. A child who recently moved on to semi- independence said, ‘Staff helped me so much. My life is now back on track. To be perfectly honest, I doubt that I would be alive if it wasn’t for the help and support that they gave me from beginning to end. I start college soon and I completed my level 2 (qualification) while at the home. I have no complaints.’

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improvement to be good

Staff recognise the importance of education. Children who previously did not engage in education now have high attendance. Good progress has been achieved in this area. Two of the children attend the provider’s school full-time and another child has just started a college course. The staff consistently encourage the children to visualise a successful future.

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improvement to be good

Children’s meetings are held regularly. Staff encourage children to take an active part by chairing and recording minutes. The staff seek children’s views, and realistic wishes and wants are followed through.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from having access to in-house therapy from the provider’s attending psychologist. Alongside this, key workers undertake good-quality work with the children, and encourage them to participate in activities and find positive hobbies. Consequently, children improve their confidence while learning new skills.

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improvement to be good

Staff are skilled in de-escalating challenging behaviour. This has led to a decrease in the number of physical interventions. There have been nine recorded physical interventions since the last inspection. However, a further intervention occurred that was incorrectly Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 4 recorded. Additionally, records of incidents reveal gaps in management oversight and do not consistently show that debriefs are being undertaken with the staff. Inaccurate and incomplete information fails to ensure that risks are effectively evaluated.

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improvement to be good

Several of the children have a significant history of going missing. The staff are proactive in locating children and follow missing-from-home procedures to ensure their safe return. However, on two occasions, a child who required one-to-one supervision went missing during a lapse in monitoring. Failure to implement risk assessment guidance does not protect children effectively from harm.

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improvement to be good

All staff who were spoken with during the inspection had a good understanding of safeguarding procedures. The designated officer confirmed that they have no concerns regarding practice, and have been contacted appropriately for advice and guidance. However, no notification was sent to Ofsted following an incident that was reported to the designated officer. Failure to notify Ofsted of significant events prevents the regulator from having effective oversight of the management of incidents at the home.

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improvement to be good

Children said that they feel safe living at the home. It is evident that they have formed positive relationships with staff. Appropriate banter is used. Staff consistently challenge any negative behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Some of the children are in the process of undertaking sessions with youth offending services. One of the youth workers who visits weekly said, ‘Staff support and cope very well with [the child’s] challenging behaviour. The staff are very accommodating. They encourage and facilitate a working space. This helps me to do my job effectively and [the child] is doing amazingly.’

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

The registered manager left her position in April 2019, and another manager was appointed in the same month. This manager subsequently left and the home was being overseen by senior managers until the new manager started in August 2019. The numerous changes of managers since the last inspection have resulted in inconsistent managerial oversight of the home.

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

Monitoring and evaluation of incidents have weakened. The new manager and the dedicated staff place the needs of children at the centre of their practice. Good practice is evident in several areas, but record-keeping has not been consistently sustained and is therefore not effective. The provider and the new manager are fully aware of the shortfalls in record-keeping, and have made this a priority in the home’s immediate development plan.

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

Several members of staff have not received regular supervision, and have not had timely yearly appraisals. This means that the staff are not afforded opportunities to regularly reflect on their practice, and their personal development is not being fully overseen. Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 5 All the staff are up to date with the organisation’s mandatory training, including safeguarding and physical intervention training. However, two staff members have not achieved a relevant level 3 qualification within the required timescales.

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

Good relationships with families and professionals have been maintained. All the families spoken with during this inspection were very complimentary about the care provided. Family members commented on the evident commitment of staff and the good care that they provide, which enables the children to make progress.

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

The independent visitor makes recommendations following their monthly visits. The reports are comprehensive and detailed. The reports now contain an independent view on the children’s well-being and an opinion on safeguarding standards at the home. However, the reports do not consistently demonstrate that there is consultation with parents, social workers and staff.

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

The two requirements raised at the last inspection have been restated. Three of the four recommendations have been met effectively. The unmet recommendation relating to record-keeping shortfalls is now a requirement. Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 6

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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 protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(iii)(v)(b)) 11/10/2019

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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—

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(e)(h)) 11/10/2019

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained— 27/12/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 7 the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (‘the Level 3 Diploma’); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1 April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1 April 2014, 1 April 2016. (Regulation 32(4)(a)(b)(5)(a)(b)) The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33(4)(b)(c)) 25/10/2019

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Requirement Due date

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—

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (‘the user’), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 11/10/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 8 a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

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’)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

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. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(iv)) The registered person must maintain records (‘case records’) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36(1)(a)(b)(c)) 11/10/2019

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Requirement Due date

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

A record in the form of a register showing in respect of each child—

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Requirement Due date

the date of the child’s admission to the home;

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Requirement Due date

the date on which the child ceased to be accommodated in the home. (Regulation 37(2)(a), Schedule 4(1)(a)(b)) 11/10/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40(4)(e)) 11/10/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person— 29/11/2019 Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 9 if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires. (Regulation 44(1)(2)(a))

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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: 1256452 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Surecare Residential Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 13a Apton Road, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 3SP

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Inspector

Lynne Drage: social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1256452 11 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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