Children's Home run by Castle Homes Care Limited in Cheshire West and Chester

Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 1 SC032083 Registered provider: Castle Homes Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately run children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The registered manager’s post is currently vacant.

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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/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded and 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: 12 February 2019

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/02/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 27/06/2018 Full Good 25/07/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good 16/02/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 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

The health and well-being standard is that— the health and well-being needs of children are met; and children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that each child has access to such dental, medical, nursing, psychiatric and psychological advice, treatment and other services as the child may require. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)) Specifically, that provision is sought to support young people’s mental health needs. 20/12/2019

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on— 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— help each child to develop the understanding and skills to recognise or withdraw from a damaging, exploitative or harmful relationship; understand and communicate to children that bullying is unacceptable; and have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(vii)(xii)(xiii)) Young people should consistently be supported to understand when their behaviour is not acceptable and helped to find ways to adhere to boundaries. Direct work should support young people’s understanding of criminally exploitative relationships.

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Requirement Due date

Any incidents of bullying should be clearly addressed and challenged. 20/12/2019

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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. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the 20/12/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 4 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; manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; 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

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Requirement Due date

protection policies; and 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)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)) Specifically, any emerging serious risks, including those of potential radicalisation, should be recognised and appropriately referred to other safeguarding agencies to ensure that all young people living in the home receive appropriate support and protection. Risk management should be clear for staff to follow and respond to young people’s risks and vulnerabilities. The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that— promotes their welfare. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(b)(2)(c))

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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 arrangements are in place to— ensure the effective induction of each child into the home; manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority; and 20/12/2019 Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 5 that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)(2)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)(c)) Specifically, careful and robust consideration of each young person’s needs should be assessed to ensure compatibility prior to admission to the home. Any emerging change in young

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Requirement Due date

people’s behaviour should be monitored and support provided. Arrangements should be made to ensure that young people receive the services required, as set out in local authority plans. A person may only manage a children’s home if— having regard to the size of the home, its statement of purpose, and the number and needs (including any needs arising from any disability) of the children— the person has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills to manage the home effectively and lead the care of children. For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b)(i), a person has the appropriate experience and qualification if the person has— within the last 5 years, worked for at least 2 years in a position relevant to the residential care of children. (Regulation 28 (1)(b)(i)(2)(a)) 20/12/2019

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Requirement Due date

The requirements are that— the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform. 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— the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”). (Regulation 32 (3)(b)(4)(a)) 20/12/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e)) 20/12/2019

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendations

 It is good practice for a note of the content and/or outcomes of supervision sessions to be kept and to ensure that both the person giving the supervision and staff member have a copy of the record. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.4) Specifically, records should be detailed, particularly in relation to meeting young people’s needs. Prompt action should be taken in response to any staff members’ concerns.  Under Regulation 46, the registered person should review the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home at least once a year. The Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 6 review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location and strategies for managing these. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph

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Recommendations

15.1) In particular, the registered person should seek information from external safeguarding professionals when considering referrals to ensure that any risks are identified as part of pre-admission assessments. Where any risks are identified, including outdoor sports equipment, the review should clearly identify any actions taken to mitigate them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Young people’s experiences and progress are affected by poor management decisions on the suitability of admissions and care planning. Three young people have been admitted, and three young people have left the home, since the last inspection. Notice was served by the provider on two young people, one within a month of arriving at the home. This means that young people do not receive effective care that adequately meets their needs and placement stability is affected.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

Young people are supported to reintegrate into mainstream education. However, one young person was excluded due to his challenging behaviour at school, which put other students at risk. This coincided with a significant deterioration in his behaviour within the home, after a period of stability and good progress. Staff were unable to engage with the young person to improve his outcomes.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

More positively, another young person is engaging well in school and has been invited to attend a school trip overseas. Her social worker is pleased with her positive progress. One young person is currently receiving 15 hours of tutor-led education, provided by the virtual school. It is identified that she will return to mainstream provision. Plans for progression have been delayed by the postponement of the statutory review of her care by her placing local authority.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

The staff have supported young people to attend outstanding health appointments. They are encouraging young people to stop smoking. The staff have completed direct work to support young people’s understanding of healthy relationships. Some work is being completed on emotional well-being. The staff have identified that a young person appears to have some sensory needs and are seeking an assessment to support her. However, the staff failed to seek alternative specialist support to meet young people’s emotional and mental health needs. One young person told the inspector that she found it difficult to speak with staff about her feelings. This questions the ability of staff to be able to build meaningful and trusting relationships with young people, to enable them to express themselves. Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 7 Young people currently living in the home are given opportunities to enjoy a range of

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

activities. One young person works on a voluntary basis at a riding school. They see family members and friends. A social worker commented that the home could improve by being more proactive with updates after contact, as well as following any incidents.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

One young person has made a complaint about a member of staff following a restraint. The manager has resolved the complaint and provided additional guidance to staff. He explained to the young person that her views are important, however, there may be times when restraint is necessary to keep her safe and her wishes cannot always be met.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: inadequate

A young person was supported to develop independent living skills prior to making a successful and planned transition, with the support of staff, to his own accommodation.

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

Risk management plans do not always identify risks and vulnerabilities or provide strategies to manage young people’s behaviour. This means that the staff do not have enough guidance to help young people to become safer or improve their behaviour. Plans are lengthy and not always easy to follow. Managers recognise this and are streamlining paperwork to improve clarity and direction for the staff.

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

Plans do not adequately address how staff should manage issues of bullying, after an incident that resulted in a young person self-harming. Minutes of a young people’s meeting include limited reference to a discussion about mutual respect. There are no records of direct work being completed to address the concerns. This means that young people are not supported to understand and modify their unacceptable behaviour.

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

Two young people went missing on a regular basis from the home. One of them became involved in criminal exploitation. Staff followed procedures but were unable to engage with young people to help them understand the increasing risks of going missing. Notice was served on both placements. However, delays in their moves meant that young people remained at risk of harm.

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

Significant safeguarding concerns regarding a young person’s racism were not addressed robustly at the time. The manager did not record an extremely concerning event as a safeguarding incident, escalate it to senior managers or notify HMCI as required under the regulation. The risk management plan records that the manager spoke to the young person’s social worker but that a referral under the ‘Prevent’ duty was not deemed necessary. The manager took no further action to make the referral herself. Direct work was planned but not completed. After the inspection, the current manager again contacted the social worker, who advised that full details had not been shared clearly at the time of the incident, to inform decision-making. As a result, the safety and welfare of the young person, and others, remained compromised.

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

A young person living in the home has a history of self-harming behaviour. She was supported by the child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in her previous home. The staff in her current home were advised by the local CAMHS that she does not Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 8 meet their criteria for support. However, the staff have not challenged the decision and have not sought alternative specialist provision. This means that the young person is not receiving the specialist support she needs, as recorded in her local authority relevant plans, to help keep her safe.

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

A social worker considers that the young people living in the home are not well matched. This is despite the provider’s thorough review to learn lessons from previous poor decisions on the suitability of admissions. There are emerging concerns about the young people not responding to boundaries and guidance from staff. Staff do not demonstrate the skills to consistently manage challenging and disruptive behaviours such as young people refusing to settle at night. This results in young people being restrained and support from the police being required to assist with incidents within the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The registered manager left in June 2019. The acting manager was supported by a manager from another home, a peripatetic manager and the responsible individual until the provider appointed a new manager. The new manager does not fulfil the criteria required by the regulation to be able to apply for registration.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Poor pre-admission assessment and decisions mean that managers admit young people to the home who cannot be safely cared for by the staff. As a result, young people’s progress is hindered, and some placements have ended prematurely. Furthermore, there were delays in some young people leaving the home after the end of notice periods, which were challenged. However, other young people at the home continued to live in an unsettled environment and young people’s welfare was not safeguarded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The former manager did work closely with other safeguarding agencies in response to escalating risks to a young person’s safety. The manager identified significant risks in the locality of the home from attending safeguarding meetings. While these are now included in the review of the suitability of the home’s location, the former manager had failed previously to make effective use of external safeguarding agency resources. The current document is generic rather than individualised for the home. There are some omissions in mitigation of risks, although measures have been taken in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The former manager and deputy manager attended specialist training on child criminal exploitation following the experiences of a young person. The knowledge gained has not been shared with the rest of the staff to ensure that they have up-to-date skills to recognise signs that a young person is being exploited. However, given the known risks within the locality, managers have confirmed that young people known to be at risk of criminal exploitation will not be admitted to the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Since the previous manager’s departure, managers within the organisation have completed a thorough review of management practice and decision-making. As a result, the staff attended additional training. Team members report that they now feel more empowered and have greater input in the day-to-day running of the home. They also have more confidence in challenging managers’ decisions. The support provided by a Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 9 manager from another service has stabilised the team and improved morale after a difficult period in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The staff receive regular supervision in line with the company’s policy. However, some records are limited in reflective discussion about young people and how their needs are being met. They do not always record what action the supervisor will take to resolve issues brought up by individual team members. One member of staff has not completed an appropriate qualification within regulatory timescales. She had shared the challenges causing delay in her supervision. However, it is only more recently that this was addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The team is up to date with mandatory training as well as additional training to meet the needs of young people living in the home. However, the current manager recognises the benefits afforded by more in-person training over online presentations. Managers have also provided more resources to help the staff in working directly with young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home is currently going through an extensive refurbishment to make it a homelier environment. This has been an ongoing issue, identified by internal and external monitoring of the home. The responsible individual is a more visible presence in the home and provides additional monitoring, alongside visits by an independent person, to support the manager’s understanding and drive improvements to the service.

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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: SC032083 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Castle Homes Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fifth Floor, 80 Hammersmith Road, London W14 8UD

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Anthony Armstrong

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Inspector

Karen Willson: social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC032083 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 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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