New Park Project (The)

Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 1 SC065046 Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered for up to four children. It provides care for children who have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is operated by a private provider which has three other homes in the area.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is new in post and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 2

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged good at the last full inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

At the interim inspection, Ofsted judges that it has declined in effectiveness.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Ineffective management has led to children not consistently receiving good-quality care. Monitoring has failed to identify all the areas noted in this inspection. However, senior leaders did identify concerns with the management of the home just prior to this inspection and are taking appropriate actions to address the concerns.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

When children’s behaviour has been challenging, staff have not always managed it effectively. One child is currently living in holiday accommodation, due to the safeguarding concerns when living alongside the other children. On four occasions, the police have been called to the home to assist staff to manage children’s behaviour. This is not good practice and can potentially lead to the criminalisation of children.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Restraint is used as a last resort and is in proportion to the behaviours, risk to children and staff. The records of restraints detail each hold used and the duration of the hold. However, the records lack any evidence of conversations routinely being held with the children and the staff who have been involved in a restraint. This prevents those involved from being given an opportunity to reflect on what happened.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff are not maintaining good-quality safeguarding records. Safeguarding information is not centralised, making it hard to monitor effectively and to review staff practice. When significant events and incidents occur, it is not always possible to see from the records what discussions have taken place with the children about what happened and how, together with staff, they can develop strategies which may prevent them from placing themselves at risk.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff do not ensure that all complaints made by children are reported and investigated. Since the pervious inspection, there have been two complaints. The investigation of one complaint was of a good quality and addressed to the complainant’s s satisfaction. The other was not addressed despite the child stating they wanted to make a complaint.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager had not obtained all appropriate information on a new child prior to their admission. In addition, the manager has not effectively or consistently challenged placing authorities, in a timely manner, where it was felt that the authority’s response was insufficient. This includes arranging return-home interviews, a lack of education, health and care plans and not providing a child with education. This failure to challenge to ensure that the home has the right information and provision hampers not only the development of effective care Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 3 planning but children’s development.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Managers do not formally evaluate placements that have broken down. This does not enable them to reflect and use this information to improve future admission decisions. The records of staff supervision sessions are not of a consistently good standard. Where concerns have been raised about staff, some records evidence good-quality discussions that are reflective and assist staff in developing their practice. Others do not. Senior managers have identified that agency staff are not consistently receiving regular supervision.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The register of children moving into and leaving the home does not contain all the information required. For one child who had left the home, there was no record of either the address that they moved to or their legal status.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The independent person’s reports are not being consistently sent to Ofsted. The independent visitor does not make a clear statement in their report as to whether children are effectively safeguarded. In addition, they do not regularly gather feedback from social workers and parents about the quality of children’s care.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Senior managers have developed a risk assessment tool to mitigate the risks presented by leaving in charge of the home members of staff who are on their probation period. This looks at matching team members’ qualifications, skills and experience to the current needs of the children in the home.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The monitoring of staff training has improved. The training record now includes dates for updates and refresher training. Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/08/2019 Full Good 11/02/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 19/06/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/02/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 5

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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

5: Engaging with the wider system to ensure children’s needs are met

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff–

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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(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that challenges are made in a timely manner and are followed up where needed. 31/01/2020

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints made by or on behalf of children.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that a record is made of any complaint, the action taken in response, and the outcome of any investigation. (Regulation 39(1), (3)) 31/01/2020

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Requirement Due date

13: The leadership and management standard

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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–

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Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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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 28/02/2020 Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 6 the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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Requirement Due date

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;

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Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on–

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Requirement Due date

feedback on the experiences of children, including complaints received; and

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(a)(b), (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(g)(i)(ii)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In addition, formally evaluate the placements of children who have left the home especially when that placement has broken down. Use the learning from this review to develop future practice. 36: Children’s case records

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which–

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Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 36(1)(a)(b)(c)) In particular, records need to: be available to inspectors at the point of inspection; demonstrate the practice undertaken by staff to meet children’s known and emerging needs; and be of a consistently good quality. 28/02/2020 Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 7 37: Other records

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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

maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

and ensure that the records are kept up to date.

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Requirement Due date

1. A record in the form of a register showing in respect of each child–

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Requirement Due date

the date of the child’s admission to the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

the date on which the child ceased to be accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s address immediately before being accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s address on leaving the home;

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Requirement Due date

the statutory provision (if any) under which the child is accommodated. (Regulation 37(1), (2)(a)(b), Schedule 4(1)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)) 28/02/2020

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Requirement Due date

44: Independent person: visits and reports

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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

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person–

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the 28/02/2020 Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 8 independent person’s report to–

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Requirement Due date

HMCI. (Regulation 44(1), (2)(a), (4)(a), (7)(a))

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Recommendations

 The capacity and competence of staff to build constructive, warm relationships with children that actively promote positive behaviour, provides the foundations for managing any negative behaviour. Staff should have the skills to respond to each child’s individual behaviour. Where necessary they should manage conflict, maintain constructive dialogues and react appropriately if challenged by a child in their care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.14) In particular, ensure that the police are not used to manage young people’s behaviours.  Any child who has been restrained should be given the opportunity express their feelings about their experience of the restraint as soon as is practicable, ideally within 24 hours of the restraint incident, taking the age of the child and the circumstances of the restraint into account. (‘Guide to the children’s homes

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Recommendations

regulations including the quality standards’, page 50, paragraph 9.60)  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) In particular, ensure that the agency staff working at the home receive regular supervision of their practice. Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 9

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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

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, 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: SC065046 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 42 Lytton Road, New Barnet, Barnet EN5 5BY

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jennifer Kendall

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Inspector

Wendy Anderson, social care inspector Inspection report children‟s home: SC065046 11 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 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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