Children's Home run by Resicare Alliance Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 1 Registered provider: Aston Children’s Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for five children and young people who have emotional and social difficulties. The home is privately owned. The home was registered by Ofsted on 20 March 2019. The registered manager left on 15 May 2019. A new manager is in post and has made an application to register.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 18 to 19 September 2019 and 1 to 2 October 2019

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and widespread failures that mean children are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded or the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: not applicable – first inspection since registration

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 2

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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 children’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 keep the children’s guide and the home’s complaints procedure under review and seek children’s comments before revising either document. (Regulation 7 (1)(2)(c)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that— the health and well-being needs of children are met; children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 20/11/2019

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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. 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 relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child; help each child to understand how to keep safe; have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm; understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies; 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;

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Requirement Due date

and that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is 20/11/2019 Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 3 monitored regularly. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(e)) 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— 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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

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 in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(a)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement (“the statement of purpose”) which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1. Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (1)(5)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety. (Regulation 32 (1)(3)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy which— is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)) In particular, ensure that managers and staff understand and follow the safeguarding procedure in the event of an allegation about staff. 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— 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”)— has spoken to the user about the measure. (Regulation 35 (2)(b)(i)) 20/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 20/11/2019

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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. The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (1)(7)(a)) 20/11/2019 Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 4 The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in Regulation 12 (2)(c) (the protection of children standard). When conducting the review, the registered person must consult, and take into account the views of, each relevant person. (Regulation 46 (1)(2)) 20/11/2019

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Recommendations

 The Statement of Purpose is of particular importance to this Standard (Regulation 6 (2)(a) and (b)(i)). Homes are required to develop and keep under review a “Statement of Purpose” (Regulation 16 and schedule 1). The home’s Statement of Purpose should be child-focused, indicating how the home provides individualised care to meet the Quality Standards for the children in their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.5)  The children’s guide should help children to understand: what the day-to-day routines of the home are (‘what happens in the home’); the Statement of Purpose of the home (the care they can expect to receive while living there); how to make a complaint in line with the home’s complaints procedure; how they can access advocacy support or independent advocacy if eligible; and how to contact the Office of the Children’s Commissioner. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality

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Recommendations

standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.22)  Supervision of staff practice should ensure that individual adults in the home are engaged in the safeguarding culture of the home so they understand what they would need to do if they found other staff misusing or abusing their position to the detriment of the safety of a child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.14) This relates to staff supervision, including greater detail about the practice of safeguarding.  The home’s policies and procedures around the protection of children should reflect any requirements of other relevant legislation. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 44, paragraph 9.22)  Ensure that there is a workforce plan in place, which can fulfil the requirements of Regulation 16 schedule 1. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the

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Recommendations

quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2) Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 5

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

This is the first inspection of the home since it was registered.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Since the home was registered in March 2019, seven children and young people have moved into the home and three have moved out. Managers and staff have not ensured that they have been provided with sufficient information about children from placing authorities prior to children moving in. This means that children’s and young people’s needs are not always clear, or planned for, before they come to live at the home. Consequently, when children move into the home, staff are ill-equipped to meet their needs and three children have experienced unplanned placement endings.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Poor matching has had a negative impact on the experiences of other children and young people who were exposed to a child’s challenging behaviours, including self-harm. One child told the inspector, ‘What I saw it was weird. We all had to be wary when he was around.’ For one child who currently lives at the home, managers remain unclear about his primary need and cannot evidence how this is in line with the home’s registration.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Internal care planning for children and young people is poor. Children‘s records do not contain all the information provided by their placing authorities. For example, one child‘s record does not contain a copy of his education, health and care plan. When managers do have information about children‘s specific needs, they do not ensure that the plans for their care are informed by an understanding of these needs. For example, one child is known to have communication difficulties and sensory needs and despite this his internal care plan does not reflect how staff should meet these needs. Another young person has attachment difficulties and staff have not received training to help them understand this condition and develop appropriate responses. Consequently, children and young people do not receive care tailored to meet their individual needs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Staff fail to pay sufficient attention to promoting the good health and well-being of children and young people. For example, staff have not ensured that there are clear arrangements in place for the administration of prescribed medication to treat a child’s asthma when she is away from the home. In addition, staff have not acted to help a young person reduce his tobacco intake and he is allowed to smoke freely in the grounds of the home. This disregard for the good health and well-being of children and young people places them at risk of impaired physical health.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The home is clean, spacious and well maintained. Children and young people have been consulted on the personalisation of their bedrooms but progress in making the requested changes is too slow. This demonstrates that children’s wishes and views are not given sufficient priority.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Despite these shortfalls, children and young people do make some progress. For example, two children have been supported to attend school after significant periods of Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 6 absence and one has increased his attendance. One young person is being helped by staff to prepare for employment. Children and young people say that they like living at the home and that they enjoy good relationships with the staff.

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

Managers have failed to follow safeguarding procedures when a young person raised a concern about the conduct of staff. The inspector identified an occasion when a young person alleged he had been physically injured by a member of staff while being restrained. Managers did not inform the designated officer for the local authority or Ofsted. In addition, managers had not ensured that the young person‘s health and well- being was monitored following the incident as is stipulated in his plans due to an existing and significant health condition. The lack of regard for reporting safeguarding concerns and exercising safe care leaves children and young people vulnerable to harm.

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

Managers do not ensure that children and young people‘s risk assessments are clear about the risks posed to and by children and the strategies to reduce risk. Children and young people who pose a risk of going missing from the home do not have individual risk assessments to help staff understand the actions that they need to take to support the child‘s safe return to the home. In addition, when incidents happen, managers do not act to update children‘s plans. This means that staff do not have access to essential information and guidance to help them protect and safeguard children and young people.

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

Staff receive training to help them understand their overall responsibilities to protect the children and young people in their care. However, staff lack insight in key areas of safeguarding. For example, staff are unable to talk confidently about the indicators that a child may be at risk of sexual or criminal exploitation. In addition, staff have not received training to raise their awareness of the risks the internet and social media can pose to children and young people. Managers were too slow to ensure that staff had essential training to help them respond to self-harm. A lack of understanding compromises the ability of staff to identify and respond to safeguarding issues and to support children and young people in understanding and reducing risk to themselves.

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

Managers have failed to ensure that staff who work at the home are safely recruited and have not ensured that they have verified the reasons why staff have left previous employment with children or vulnerable adults. Two references for every employee are not always sought. Managers cannot evidence that they have satisfied themselves that they have full employment histories for all staff and that gaps in employment are satisfactorily explained. A lack of diligence in the vetting of staff could result in children and young people being exposed to care from unsuitable adults.

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

Managers have failed to assess the suitability of the home‘s location. They have not consulted with relevant partners to help them understand the characteristics of the local area. As a result, it is unclear if there are any factors in the local area that may influence the vulnerability of children and young people. Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 7 Managers have not ensured that the home’s policies and procedures about the protection of children reflect the most current Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 guidance. As a result, managers and staff are referring to and guided by out-of-date information.

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

There have been a number of occasions when staff have needed to restrain children and young people to keep them safe. Staff keep records that the manager oversees. However, staff do not have the opportunity of a debrief as part of this review. This is a missed opportunity for staff and managers to reflect upon the effectiveness of the approach to behaviour management.

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

During the inspection, fire doors to the kitchen and lounge were held open with wooden wedges. This could compromise the safety of everyone in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager left his post in July 2019 and has taken up post as the training manager for the organisation. An interim manager is in place and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not ensured that the home operates in accordance with the statement of purpose. For example, managers have not ensured that staff have the skills and knowledge to offer care to children and young people that is informed by a recognised therapeutic approach.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers do not ensure that key information about the home is child-focused, accurate and up to date. For example, the statement of purpose refers to residents and the details of the staff team are not correct. The children’s guide is not accurate. For example, the location of the home and the name of the manager are incorrect. There is no children’s guide available for primary-aged children. As a result, younger children do not have access to age-appropriate information about the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have recognised that they want to improve the quality of training for staff and are moving away from online learning to the delivery of face-to-face training. Currently, the manager has no workforce development plan in place. This leaves him without an overview or sufficient understanding of the development needs of the team and how he is going to meet these.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff are positive about their work and have access to supervision. There is little evidence in records that supervision helps them to reflect on their safeguarding practice or the detail of their work with children and young people. This leaves staff without the opportunity to explore their professional roles and gaps in their knowledge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

An independent person visits the home regularly. Managers do not ensure that the reports from these visits are made available to Ofsted in a timely manner. This means that the regulator does not receive information to help them monitor the effectiveness of the service. Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 8

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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: 2503598 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aston Children’s Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 181 Penn Road, Wolverhampton WV3 0EQ

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Inspectors

Shazana Jamal: social care inspector Alison Cooper: social care inspector Inspection report children‘s home: 2503598 10 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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