Children's home run by PIC Children’s Services in St. Helens

Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 1 SC022440 Registered provider: PIC Children’s Services 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 privately owned home provides care and accommodation for one young person who may have social and/or emotional difficulties. The current manager was registered with Ofsted in June 2019 and is also registered to manage another single-occupancy home in the local area.

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Information about this children’s home

Inspection dates: 27 to 28 November 2019

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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

Date of last inspection: 22 November 2018

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Requires improvement to be good

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Enforcement action since last inspection: None

Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/11/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/08/2017 Full Good 14/02/2017 Full Good 26/05/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 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 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 that they use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential. (Regulation 6(1)(a)(b) Ensure that staff follow the care planning documents held in the home 03/01/2019

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so. In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff— help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers; help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment; promote opportunities for each child to learn informally; help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible; help each child to attend education or training in accordance

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Requirement Due date

with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans; and that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning. (Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)) 03/01/2019

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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, 03/01/2020 Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 4 services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles. (Regulation 10(1)(a)(b)) 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 requires the registered person to— 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; and use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b)(2)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees— undertake appropriate continuing professional development; receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)) 03/01/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation; an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious; there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there; a child protection enquiry involving a child is instigated; or concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40(4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 03/01/2020

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Recommendations

 Ensure that the staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual young people in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about young people should always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to them now or in the future. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 5 the quality standards’, page 62, paragraphs 14.4 and 14.5)  For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Ensure that all repairs are carried out in a timely manner.

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improvement to be good

The young person currently living in the home is making progress in some aspects of his life, for example improved behaviour and a reduction in missing from home episodes. The current arrangements to support the young person to take part in meaningful education are limited and this affects his educational progress. While the home has taken some action through speaking with education professionals and arranging meetings to address the concerns, the daily routine of the home is disorganised and does not actively encourage educational attendance. This affects the young person’s education opportunities and has the potential to impact on his later life chances. The young person who is currently living at the home says that he is happy there. He said that he likes the staff and feels listened to. The young person said, ‘I like it here, it’s okay and so are the staff.’ Careful planning takes place to prepare young people for transitions from the home.

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, one young person has been supported to move from the home to live with his parents. As part of this transition, staff ensured that the young person was fully involved in the planning and moving process. The staff arrange, support and supervise appropriate contact with the young people’s families. The manager and staff have built good relationships with families and keep them updated regarding young people’s progress. The home presents as a lived-in family home. It is warm, welcoming and comfortable. The quality of furniture and decor is very good. However, repairs have not been carried out in a timely manner, for example a damaged kitchen drawer has not been replaced or repaired.

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improvement to be good

The practice in relation to helping and protecting young people needs to improve. This inspection has found failings. While there is nothing to show that these failings have led to the young person suffering harm, unchecked they have the potential to do so. Despite the shortfalls identified at this inspection, the young person living in the home reports Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 6 that he feels safe. The young person spends a good deal of time away from the home unsupervised, and often his whereabouts are unknown to staff. He increasingly returns home late and is reported to the police as missing. While staff usually maintain phone contact with the young person, they often do not know who the young person is with, or where he is. Aspects of the young person’s health needs are either not identified or, if they are, decisive action is not taken to manage these. For example, the records held in the home

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improvement to be good

indicated that the young person had refused to attend planned medical appointments. There was no further information to show what action or strategies were in place to support the young person in addressing his basic health needs. The young person receives praise and rewards for his positive behaviour. This encourages a constructive and nurturing environment and helps to build strong relationships between him and staff. Risk assessments and behaviour management strategies are well planned and are compiled in consultation with the young person. This means that staff know what to do when the young person gets angry and frustrated. Despite the shortfalls identified in this inspection, the current young person, his parent and social worker all agree that the young person is safe living in the home.

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

The manager is experienced in residential care and appropriately qualified for the role. She understands the strengths and areas for improvement identified at this inspection. However, managerial oversight has failed to highlight the inconsistences in record- keeping. For example, some records have not been signed or dated by staff. Situations have occurred where education plans have not been followed by staff and day-to-day care planning documentation has not been adhered to by staff. Opportunities for identifying trends and patterns in young people’s behaviour have been missed. Some staff have not received regular supervision in recent months. The lack of regular supervision does not enable staff to reflect on their practice and identify any further training that they need to support their continued professional development. The registered manager has failed to notify the regulatory body of all serious events.

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

This hinders the regulatory body’s oversight of safeguarding practice. There is evidence of collaborative working with other professionals and family members who are involved in the young person’s care to support positive outcomes for them. Feedback from professionals and family members is positive, praising the management and staff’s commitment to the young person. The registered manager fully acknowledges all shortfalls raised at this inspection. She recognises how those shortfalls impact on the day-to-day running of the home and the outcomes for the young person. She shows capacity and enthusiasm to make all the required improvements, including more robust systems to ensure that the young person’s care planning, safety and well-being are prioritised. Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 7

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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: SC022440 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: PIC Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2 North Street, Haydock, St Helens, Merseyside WA11 0TW

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Inspector

Elaine Allison, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC022440 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 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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