Children's home run by Pine Forest Homes Limited in Cannock Chase

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 1 SC373693

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Pine Forest Homes Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three children aged eight to 17 years. The home provides short- and long-term placements for children who may have faced adverse childhood experiences, trauma or family breakdown.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since December 2015. At the time of this inspection, there is no manager appointed for the home.

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This monitoring visit

Ofsted judged this home to be inadequate at the last three full inspections. Ofsted served a notice of decision to cancel the registration of this children’s home on 2 April 2019.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last monitoring inspection conducted on 14 August 2019, one child has lived in the home. The child lived at the home from 9 September until 12 September 2019.

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This monitoring visit

Senior managers have failed to sustain previous improvements identified in the last monitoring inspection in August 2019.

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This monitoring visit

The planning of the child’s care was poor and ineffective. Senior managers agreed to the child coming to live in the home, despite knowing that they were unable to meet her needs. The child’s move out of the home was poorly planned and failed to reflect the trauma and distress this child had experienced. Senior managers failed to challenge the placing authority about how the child’s move out of the home was managed and the impact this had on the child’s well-being. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 2 Senior managers again failed to ensure that the staff who worked at the home had the necessary training and skills to meet the needs of the child. For example, none of the staff had received training to enable them to care for children who have mental health needs. Only one of the three staff working at the home had attended training to enable them to know how to respond to challenging behaviour. These

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This monitoring visit

significant omissions left staff without critical understanding of how to care for the child’s needs.

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This monitoring visit

Senior managers failed to ensure that there were adequate risk assessments in place to safeguard the child. There was inadequate guidance available to the staff about how to keep the child safe on line. This resulted in the child being able to contact people who may pose a risk. When risk assessments were in place, staff failed to follow them. For example, despite being directed to discourage the child from smoking, the staff drove to collect smoking materials for her.

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This monitoring visit

Staff did not ensure that the child had regular opportunities to engage in leisure activities during the time when she lived in the home. As a result, her days were unstructured, and she remained in bed until late afternoon.

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This monitoring visit

Senior managers have failed to ensure that enough attention is paid to the safe recruitment of staff. For example, senior managers have failed to pick up discrepancies in members of staff’s previous employment dates. This means that senior managers are not certain that staff who work at the home are safe to do so.

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This monitoring visit

Six requirements have been raised as a result of this inspection.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 14/01/2019 Full Inadequate 02/10/2018 Full Inadequate 03/07/2018 Full Inadequate 13/03/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that, staff seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5(a)(b)) 08/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children and use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background. (Regulation 6(1)(a)(b)(2)(iv)) 08/11/2019

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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 that staff understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12(1)(2)(a)(v)) 08/11/2019

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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 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 08/11/2019 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 4 registered person to ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(c)) 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.

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Requirement Due date

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 in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14(1)(a)(b)(2)(a)) 08/11/2019

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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, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

The requirements are that full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32(1)(2)(a)(b)(3)(d)) 08/11/2019

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 5

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Pine Forest Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ballance and Lowbridge, Accountants, 65 Market Street, Hednesford, Cannock, Staffordshire WS12 1AD

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Inspectors

Tracey Coglan Greig, social care inspector Debbie Holder, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC373693 6 to 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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