Children's Home run by Nurture Childcare Services Ltd in Lancashire

Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 1 Registered provider: Nurture Childcare Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The children’s home is one of a number of homes operated by a small private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since 23 August 2019, has a level 3 qualification and is working towards his level 5 management qualification. This is the home’s first inspection following registration.

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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

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 2

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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

In particular the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that staff 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. (Regulation 8(2)(a)(viii)) 01/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

In order to meet the health and well-being standard, the registered person must ensure that the health and well-being needs of children are met; and

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. (Regulation 10(1)(a)(b)) 01/04/2020

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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 requires the registered person to ensure–

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; and

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Requirement Due date

take effective action when there is serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12(2)(a)(v)(vi)) 01/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard 01/04/2020 Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 3 The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on– mutual respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure–

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful. (Regulation 11(a)(b)(c), (2)(a)(vi)) The registered person must ensure that within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes–

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (‘the user’), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (‘the authorised person’)– 01/04/2020 Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 4 has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii), (b)(i)(ii)(c)(iv)) The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if–

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child–

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40(4)(a–d)(i)(ii)(e)) 01/04/2020 Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 5

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improvement to be good

Since mid-December 2019, the home has been unsettled. One young person who has lived at the home for several months has had a significant increase in risk-taking behaviours, both in the home and local community. Staff are unable to keep him safe, despite their best attempts.

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improvement to be good

A multi-agency meeting has been held following information from and concerns raised by individuals who care for the young person. Swift action has been taken in order to protect him. Another meeting is planned in a few weeks to review the situation.

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improvement to be good

Educational outcomes for the young person have varied. Following his admission, the young person was making excellent progress in his education. He had been selected to attend a school trip to Kenya and was described as an ‘A* student’. However, there was a rapid decline and his attendance became sporadic, following which an assault on a teacher resulted in his exclusion from the school in February 2020. Following this exclusion, the manager has neither put in place a programme of educational activities nor worked with the young person on the schoolwork sent to the home. This has had an impact on the young person’s educational progress.

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improvement to be good

Young people are supported to address their health needs and are registered with all the local health services. However, one young person is a regular user of cannabis and, despite the need to attend addiction appointments, has refused to do so. The staff have tried to encourage the young person to talk about concerns around substance misuse, but their efforts have been unsuccessful.

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improvement to be good

Young people are encouraged and supported to take part in a variety of activities, however these are refused by the young person, who prefers to have free time away from the home, where his whereabouts and his activity are unknown.

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improvement to be good

The local community has made an official complaint to the home, which led to a community meeting in the village hall with the local councillor. It centred on parking issues, in the main, but also on noise and an uncertainty about the appropriateness of this young person living in an suburban street. This was resolved by an action plan, and the points raised by the neighbours have been satisfactorily addressed.

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improvement to be good

Staff support young people to spend quality time with their family. The staff understand the importance of helping young people to maintain these significant relationships.

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improvement to be good

Not all risk assessments identify young people’s known risks or include written guidance for the staff to follow to reduce these risks. When young people are out in the Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 6 community on free time, it can be for up to 10 hours. Staff send text messages and leave voicemails, but they do not receive any reply. Staff have had no further guidance on what to do next, so they wait until the young person calls to be collected from the train station. This is unsatisfactory, as the young person’s safety is in question when they refuse to disclose where they are.

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improvement to be good

The home has not reported the young person missing, because the young person has permission from the social worker for unlimited free time. The home does have ‘missing from home’ procedures to follow, should this permission be revoked.

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improvement to be good

During the inspection, gaps were noted in record-keeping. For an incident involving physical intervention on 24 October 2019, the record describes how the registered manager ‘pushed [name] down, safety, by using his body weight… applied moderate/safe amount of pressure to the upper arms’. There was no debriefing with the young person, and no record of debriefing with the registered manager’s senior, as this took place over the phone. Furthermore, the registered manager reviewed the incident that he had been involved in and wrote, ‘It was seen as a necessary, proportionate and justified use of physicality by [registered manager]’. As a result, there was no independent scrutiny of the event. This does not ensure that young people are appropriately managed.

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improvement to be good

Reactive measures of behaviour management are used frequently in the home. Staff cannot rely on their relationships, as they are intimidated and anxious around the young person. Young people use physical and verbal violence towards staff and items in the home. The inspector observed no dialogue between staff and young people, only a curt announcement that they were ready to be taken to the rail station now. The staff grabbed the car keys and left the home without making any response to the rudeness of the ‘request’.

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improvement to be good

All staff are suitably checked and vetted prior to appointment. This helps to prevent the appointment of adults who may pose a risk to young people’s safety.

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

The manager is experienced and is working towards his NVQ level 5 qualification. He is supported by an experienced and conscientious senior team leader. There is a permanent staff team in place. The staff team members are either suitably qualified or are working towards the diploma level 3 qualification.

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

The manager has ensured that multi-agency meetings have taken place when risks have escalated for young people living in the home. He has also liaised with education to ensure that work is being sent to one young person during his period of exclusion; however, he has not then ensured that staff have undertaken this work with the young person.

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

There have been two incidents when police have been called to the home. Both times they were called by professionals visiting the home who were witnessing a level of Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 7 violence and aggression that they felt compromised their safety. The police attended on both occasions when the young person had calmed, and no police intervention was required. The registered manager did not deem this to meet the requirement for notification when police are called to the home and, as a result, did not notify Ofsted of these events. This fails to ensure that the regulator can monitor the home.

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

Staff report that morale is good and that they feel supported in their roles. They receive regular supervision and training to ensure that they can perform their roles to a high level. They also reported that the manager is readily available to them and is often in the home, undertaking either care or managerial duties.

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

Internal monitoring is of a good standard. The manager is well organised and has systems in place to ensure the smooth running of the home. An independent visitor undertakes external monitoring and has been a valuable source of support for the manager.

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

The statement of purpose is regularly updated and generally reflects the type of care offered by the home. The physical environment of the home is well kept, safe and comfortable. Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 8

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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 difference 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: 2534829 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Nurture Childcare Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 71 Edge End Lane, Great Harwood, Blackburn, Lancashire BB6 7QD

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Children’s home details

Inspector: Elaine Clare, social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2534829 10 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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Children’s home details

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Children’s home details

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Children’s home details

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