Children's home run by HAVEN CARE GROUP LIMITED

Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 1 Registered provider: Haven Care Group 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

The home provides care for up to three children who have social and/or emotional difficulties. The home is privately owned. The manager was appointed in May 2019 and registered with Ofsted in 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: 17 October 2019

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/10/2019 Full Inadequate 13/08/2018 Full Good 16/01/2018 Interim Improved effectiveness 20/06/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 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 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— ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13(1)(2)(c)(h)) This relates to including the lessons learned from internal investigations in a review of the quality of care and ensuring that all staff complete training and qualifications within timescales. 30/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23(1)) 31/03/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the responsible individual undertakes such continuing professional development as is necessary to ensure that the responsible individual has the skills needed for supervising the management of the home. (Regulation 29(2)) 30/04/2020

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Recommendations

 Support young people to view and contribute to their records in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. Specifically, ensure the presentation of records for young people prioritises their strengths and abilities. (‘Guide to the Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 4 children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)  Support full time attendance at school. Try to plan non-urgent appointments outside of school hours where possible. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 28, paragraph 5.14)

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improvement to be good

There are unresolved issues arising from an internal investigation that began in March 2019 in relation to historical behaviour management, safeguarding practice and management oversight. This affects the overall judgement. Despite this, young people make progress and have a positive experience at the home. Young people are experiencing well-planned, individualised, consistent, supportive care that is in line with the placing authority aims. Key-work sessions about important issues like safe sex, health, relationships, internet safety and behaviour are frequent, relevant and engaging. Young people’s positive daily experience of care helps them learn the emotional, social and practical skills that they will need for adult life. Young people have access to their file and can read entries, some of which emphasise the weaknesses in children’s behaviour and character rather than their strengths. This lack of careful, objective and clear record-keeping is not helpful for young people.

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improvement to be good

Young people make progress educationally. Staff work with young people’s colleges to keep them engaged and learning and provide extra help when they occasionally refuse to attend. Some young people miss education because of the timing of medical appointments. Attendance levels are improving at 59% and 73% but are still significantly below good educational expectations. Staff promote good health and provide plenty of opportunities for community-based healthy activities or exercise. Despite staff’s efforts, they find it hard to get young people to do this regularly. Medication administration systems are not rigorous. Not all staff are familiar with what young people’s medication is for. Recording systems do not help staff to take an overview of the effectiveness of prescribed medication to be taken ‘when required’. Unfinished prescription creams are not disposed of and may be used again. This can result in cross infection for young people.

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improvement to be good

Relationships with permanent staff are affectionate and enabling. One young person described how they have staff who tell them the truth and have boundaries but do not go on about rules in an institutional way. Staff also work hard to maintain positive communication with the friends, family and professional people who are important in young people’s lives. Staff also help young people to negotiate these important relationships. Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 5

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improvement to be good

The recent internal investigation has identified weaknesses in the organisation’s safeguarding policy and its understanding of its safeguarding responsibilities. Further training in safeguarding is recommended for managers at all levels and the policy is under review. The provider is working on these improvements. Staff are helping the current two young people at this home to become safer. Self-harm and anger are reducing. Staff take appropriate action when young people put themselves at risk of unsafe sex. Staff promote safe, positive relationships. Young people do not go missing from the home. Staff keep in touch when young people are late home or go out without telling them. Staff support young people to take age- appropriate risks so that they develop independence. Staff are trained and alert to signs of harm, including exploitation and radicalisation. Bullying is not an issue here. Staff provide close supervision and respect for young

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improvement to be good

people’s privacy. There are daily discussions with both young people about maintaining good relationships. Staff understand risk, including of online bullying. Most staff now understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to child protection, particularly the need to share information with police and ensuring a record of all visitors to the home. A new system has been set up to evidence managerial scrutiny of significant incidents. These improvements will protect young people. Staff manage situations and behaviour without drama or restraint. Young people learn self-control because they have clear and consistent boundaries. This helps them to experience a feeling of well-being and security. The provider now has due regard to legislation for staff vetting designed to protect children. Improved recruitment procedures and regular monitoring of consultants, staff and volunteers now prevent unsuitable people from having the opportunity to harm

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

In November 2019, the provider commissioned a fresh independent investigation into managerial effectiveness in relation to events in early 2019. This report was received by the provider immediately before this inspection. The report has made recommendations for improvement relating to safeguarding policy and practice and managerial skill and communication. Another issue about managerial integrity is still under investigation. The provider has begun to implement action points but has not had sufficient time to complete them. The organisation has yet to complete a cycle of reporting and improvement around the issues identified in March 2019. Both of the two quality of care reports since then omitted the issues that have been so important in the life of the home. The lessons Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 6 learned by the provider are not yet embedded in its own systems for monitoring and improvement.

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

The provider continues to build a staff team that has the depth of skill and experience to meet young people’s needs. However, there will be a significant shortfall in staffing when the three probationary staff transfer to another of the provider’s homes and the registered manager takes planned leave at the end of January 2020 until Autumn 2020. The provider is currently recruiting staff and the deputy will assume managerial responsibility and apply to register. One young person described how much they were affected when staff leave. The provider has limited the number of children living at the home to two. The manager and senior residential care staff give staff support and increasingly effective induction, supervision and appraisal. Staff are now trained to help young people with bullying, extremism and when they go missing from care. The manager is also now trained in the home’s model of care. However, there is some delay in providing this training to new staff, who consequently

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

do not have this benefit sufficiently early in their career. Not all staff have achieved a level 3 qualification in working with children within timescales . Young people are cared for by staff who are enthusiastic but lack formal skills and qualifications in the core functions of the service. The registered provider has made improvements since Ofsted’s compliance action. Information on the organisation’s website and in the statement of purpose is now accurate. It is clear that no therapy is provided by the organisation in the home. The service now negotiates an external counselling service in conjunction with the placing authority for young people who need this. The manager and staff respect young people’s views. Young people know that their complaints are taken seriously. Staff make sure that young people are treated fairly and that their rights are protected. Young people’s advocates make regular visits to the

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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 Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 7 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: 1244350 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Haven Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Haven Care Group, First Floor, Unit 3 Barberry, Burton- on-Trent, Staffordshire DE14 2UE

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Inspector

Christy Wannop, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1244350 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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