Children's home run by Sherico Care Services Limited in Westminster

Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 1 SC022880 Registered provider: Sherico Care Services Limited Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is one of several homes owned by a private organisation. The home provides care and accommodation for up to six young people as specified within the home’s statement of purpose.

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Information about this children’s home

The last registered manager left her post in August 2017. There has been no registered manager in post since that time.

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Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged requires improvement to be good at the last full inspection. At the interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has declined in effectiveness.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The experience and progress of young people at this home are mixed. Young people do not usually stay at the home for long. The progress that young people make is inconsistent. Most placements end due to crisis situations involving young people and their challenging behaviours. One young person did have a planned transition to live in a placement nearer to his family home.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Incidents of young people going missing from the home and presenting with challenging behaviour, and incidents of police involvement/arrest, are frequent. At the time of this interim inspection, one young person was in police custody after being missing from the home for two weeks. Another young person had been remanded into custody for an Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 2 offence committed prior to arriving at the home.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people struggle to engage in their education or to make meaningful relationships with staff. There are regular instances of young people displaying aggressive behaviour towards staff, making allegations against staff, causing criminal damage to the home and engaging in antisocial behaviour in the community.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home has not had a registered manager since the last one left in August 2017. She had only been registered for two months prior to leaving the service. Since that time the home has had four managers, none of whom have successfully become registered with Ofsted.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Two former staff members and an ex-resident have made complaints to Ofsted about the quality of care at this home. Although these complaints cannot be individually substantiated, they concern similar themes and indicate that the home is not a positive environment to live in or work in.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

In 2017 there were two meetings between Ofsted and the senior leaders and managers from the service. There have also been frequent and repeated requirements and recommendations to help the service to improve. Despite these continued efforts, the service has not improved consistently, and the occasional improvements seen have not been sustained.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The regularity of external monitoring of the home being conducted by an independent visitor has improved. However, the subsequent reports are not regularly sent to Ofsted as required. This makes it difficult for Ofsted to keep track of what is happening at the home. Despite the independent person regularly visiting the home, the reports do not give enough robust challenge to the leaders and managers to make the changes required.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Because the home has not had a consistent manager it has not been possible to complete an internal review of the quality of care provided at the home and no reports have been received by Ofsted for over a year.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The provider has failed to provide staff who are skilled enough to manage the complex needs and behaviours of the young people that the provider chose to admit to the home. The result is that the police are called frequently to the home and there are reports of young people bullying each other, while staff lack understanding and deliver a poor quality of care.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Most staff are doing their best to provide a positive experience for young people. Despite this, the lack of a consistent and experienced manager is negatively impacting on how well the staff team members work together. The needs of the young people are complex, however the staff team’s experience and skills do not meet these needs.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Incidents that take place in the home are extremely concerning. They indicate that there are not enough staff on shift to safely manage the behaviours or challenges presented Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 3 by young people. Incident reports show that not enough investment has gone into ensuring that staff receive the necessary support to understand and work with these young people.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The home environment has been improved in some areas; for example, the kitchen has been refurbished and the flooring has been replaced in the lounge and hall. However, young people’s bedrooms are not personalised and they look stark and uninviting. The glass windows have rotting frames and are loose and dangerous, door and window fittings are broken or smashed, and a downstairs lavatory is unsafe. Furthermore, the shower curtain in the bathroom is falling off its rails and the back door doesn’t fit its frame and cannot be closed properly, so is held closed by a slide bolt.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Outside the house, the gutter is leaking, and the patio area has pooled, dirty water on the surface as a result. The external woodwork is rotten, and the paint is peeling.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Young people cannot access all areas of their home. There is a poster on the kitchen door stating that residents cannot access the kitchen after 11.30pm when it is locked. The education room upstairs is also locked. This fails to provide young people with a positive environment.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Hazardous products are not stored safely. Young people have been able to access cleaning fluids and aerosols, and these have been used against staff and to damage the home during challenging incidents.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

The staff signing-in book does not accurately reflect the staff rotas. This shows that either there are fewer staff on shift than the rotas show, or staff do not remember to sign into and out of the home. It is important for staff to sign into the home and out again when they leave to ensure an accurate record of who was working in the home and when.

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and young people since the most recent full inspection

Leaders and managers have failed to address all of the requirements and recommendations made at the last full inspection. As a consequence, requirements have been repeated, while recommendations have been made into requirements where they have not been met.

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

11/06/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 13/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 19/06/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/10/2017 Full Inadequate Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 4

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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 registered provider must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision.

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home; and the registered provider— is an organisation or a partnership; does not satisfy regulation 28; or is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person so appointed; and the date on which the appointment takes effect.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 27(1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(2)(a)(b)) 30/12/2019

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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

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to—

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Requirement Due date

HMCI; upon request, the local authority for the area in which the home is located; 30/12/2019 Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 5 the placing authorities of children; the registered provider and, if applicable, the registered manager; and the responsible individual (if one is nominated).

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 44(1)(7)(a-e)) The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children; the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 45(1)(2)(a-c)(3)(4)(a)(b)(5)) 30/12/2019

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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— 30/12/2019 Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 6 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 health.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to ensuring that the loose glass in windows and window frames are made safe, door fittings and window fittings are repaired and working, guttering outside the back door is repaired, the downstairs lavatory is made safe, the upstairs bathroom shower curtain is replaced, the back-garden patio is enhanced and the back door is repaired so that it shuts properly. 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 promotes their welfare.

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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

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 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 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

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Requirement Due date

received; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13(1)(a-b)(2)(a-h)) 30/12/2019 Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 7 Specifically, this relates to ensuring that leaders and managers who are invested in and committed to running this home enable young people to thrive and meet their potential. The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

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 individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that the experience and skills of the staff match the complexity of needs and the challenging behaviours of the young people cared for at this home. 30/12/2019

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Requirement Due date

Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children‟s home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4; ensure that the records are kept up to date.

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to ensuring that there is a record of which staff are working, and that they have signed in when they come to work and signed out when they leave the home. 30/12/2019

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure, that as part of reviewing and revising where appropriate the Statement of Purpose (Regulation 16(3)(a)), they should review and update the children’s guide as necessary, and make sure children are given an explanation of any changes. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 24, paragraph 4.23)

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Information about this inspection

Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 8 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

This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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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’.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Sherico Care Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2-4 Balmoral Road, London E10 5ND

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Inspector

Christine Kennet, social care inspector Interim inspection report children’s home: SC022880 9 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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