Children's Home run by Derby City Council in Derby

Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 1 SC036019

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Derby City Council

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to five children and young people who are vulnerable and whose behaviours can be challenging.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered since February 2019.

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This monitoring visit

The monitoring visit took place due to the judgement of declined effectiveness at the last interim inspection. The inspection had identified significant shortfalls associated with the protection of children and the leadership and management within this home.

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This monitoring visit

This visit was carried out to follow up on the shortfalls identified. Improvements were noted in the leadership and management of the home, particularly in terms of there being a management presence and better oversight of staff deployment. There were signs that some immediate steps had been taken to make improvements to the day-to-day care provided.

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This monitoring visit

Staff training requires improvement. Many staff do not have suitable qualifications, training, skills or knowledge to work effectively with children who have complex needs and vulnerabilities. Equally, staff do not receive the support they need, making them feel vulnerable and, at times, unsafe. Not all staff receive formal, regular supervision. New and inexperienced staff have not been helped to understand the primary needs of the children. There has not been the opportunity for staff to discuss alternative behaviour management strategies, or to discuss their own support needs. Managers have not used quality assurance systems to identify poor practice. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 2 Monthly independent monitoring visits, and the manager’s internal monitoring systems, have failed to identify the concerns. Management oversight, including daily checks of the home, has not been effective. A review of the premises identified that

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This monitoring visit

the children’s bedrooms were dirty and unsanitary.

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This monitoring visit

Concerns remain about children’s involvement in high-risk behaviours. Staff have struggled to manage these risks due to inconsistent staffing, poor support mechanisms, a lack of training and a lack of leadership in the home. Additional staff have now been deployed to the home, so staffing ratios have improved. However, a recent serious incident highlighted that some staff, particularly agency staff, do not have the appropriate training to manage the situations they encounter.

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This monitoring visit

Senior managers have set out a plan to put improvements in place. However, Ofsted believes that children may be at risk of harm if there are further admissions to the home at a time when there are concerns about the ability to provide good-quality care and manage risks in a safe environment. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

23/01/2020 Interim Declined in effectiveness 02/07/2019 Full Good 19/11/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 04/09/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 4

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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 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 in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

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 protection policies; 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; that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each

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Requirement Due date

child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health; and that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv) (v)(vi)(vii)(b)(d)(e)) 08/03/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (3)(d)) 29/02/2020 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 5 This relates to the need to ensure that references are verified and that a full employment history, together with a satisfactory explanation for any gaps, is sought and placed on staff records.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year. (Regulation 46 (1)) 29/02/2020

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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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to— lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child; 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; use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(b)(2)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f)(h)) 08/03/2020

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— that staff—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans; 29/02/2020 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 6 support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 8 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(b)) The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that an explanation is given to each child as soon as reasonably practicable after the child’s arrival about—

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Requirement Due date

what advocacy support or services are available to the child, how the child may access that support or those services and any entitlement the child may have to independent advocacy provision.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 7 (1)(c)(2)(d)(3)) 29/02/2020

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 7

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Treasurers Department, Council House, Corporation Street, Derby DE1 2FE

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Inspector

Simon Hunter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC036019 9 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 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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