Children's Home run by Lincolnshire County Council in Lincolnshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 1 SC042950 Registered provider: Lincolnshire County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by the local authority, and provides care and accommodation for up to six children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The manager is registered with Ofsted and is suitably qualified and experienced.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 5 December 2018

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/12/2018 Full Outstanding 31/01/2018 Full Outstanding 01/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 12/07/2016 Full Outstanding Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children in the home are making progress, particularly in their education. Staff promote education and they have aspirations for the children and support them to achieve. All the children, except one, have school placements that meet their individual needs well. One child, who is awaiting a suitable school placement, engages in an alternative full educational timetable away from the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have trusted and secure relationships with staff. The staff genuinely care for them and want the best for them. Children are comfortable and confident in discussing their issues and concerns with staff. Additionally, external agencies are accessed to further support children’s emotional health. Staff help children to build emotional resilience and a sense of identity. Children take part in regular sessions of direct work, which are tailored to their individual needs. Children describe the staff as amazing and say that they have people that they can talk to in the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Parents and professionals have given positive feedback on the home. Children are described as thriving and making good progress. Staff are said to be caring and supportive to the children, professionals and parents.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a strong voice in the home and are regularly consulted with. Children’s opinions are valued and listened to. For example, children have decided on the decor in the home and the refurbishment of the kitchen. Children have also had opportunities to contribute to organisational projects within their local authority. This has led to children influencing decisions and shaping projects for other children. Children participate in the recruitment process for new staff. This has consisted of being part of the interview process and preparing their own questions for the candidate. This means that children have a voice in saying who is employed to work with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Family time is supported and promoted, and staff have worked hard to maintain relationships between children and their families. Some children had summer holidays with their siblings, and this was a positive experience for them. One child has taken part in detailed life-story work. This has helped them understand their journey into care and has improved their relationships with family members.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have friends in the community and regularly spend time with them. However, this has not always been positive, and there have been concerns around anti-social behaviour in the local area. Children are encouraged to invite their friends to the home. Children have participated in charity events and have raised money for good causes. This helps them form a sense of belonging to the community. Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 4

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improvement to be good

Incidents have recently started to reduce, particularly in respect of children going missing or being absent from the home. Self-harm incidents have significantly reduced. Some of the relationships between children in the home are not always positive. For example, there have been incidents of physical and verbal aggression between children, and there has been an increase in violence from one child to another. The difficult relationships in the home are having an effect on children, who raised bullying and racism as concerns. Some work has been carried out with children, but this work has not been consistently recorded.

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improvement to be good

Restorative practice is embedded in the home. However, the police have been called on occasion to support staff in managing aggressive behaviour in the home. The police have also been involved in addressing racism in the home and anti-social behaviour in the community. The home does not always have a clear record of what action the police have taken in response to calls.

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improvement to be good

The physical environment is not always maintained to a good standard. Several fire doors are broken and yet to be repaired. This is a concern, as some children have been smoking in their bedrooms. At the time of the inspection, damage to the home had been reported but not yet acted upon. For example, a window in one child’s bedroom had been broken three weeks earlier but not yet repaired. Shortfalls in the physical environment have the potential to cause harm to children, staff and visitors to the home.

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improvement to be good

Floor restraint is regularly used in the home. There is not always a record of other, lower-level, restraint being used prior to a floor restraint. Children’s risk assessments are not always followed regarding the use of restraint. This has the potential to cause harm to children’s physical and emotional health. The children’s risk assessments do not contain enough detail around behaviour management and support for children in crisis. Reports are not always clear about what actions staff have taken prior to and during the restraint. Staff debriefs are not always thorough enough.

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improvement to be good

The manager is not always aware of incidents that have occurred or the risk assessments that are in place. Incidents of restraint in the home have not been reviewed, monitored and evaluated effectively by the manager. This means that patterns, themes and trends have not been identified or responded to. Risk assessments and behaviour support plans are not consistently updated to reflect current concerns and behaviour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The registered manager is child-focused in their approach. Staff describe the manager as supportive and a good role model. Morale in the home is high and children are supported by a stable staff team. Staff have regular reflective supervision and appraisal. Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 5 The social pedagogy model of care is embedded in the team. Positive and nurturing relationships between staff and children underpin the ethos of the home. Children’s achievements are celebrated and recorded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

All mandatory training for staff is kept up to date. Staff have the opportunity to further develop their skills and knowledge with a wide range of additional training courses. These courses cover a range of topics that may affect children’s development, health and well-being. This means that children are cared for by staff who are sufficiently trained to manage their complex needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager attends regular multi-disciplinary risk assessment meetings within the local authority. These meetings provide an opportunity for the adults working with the children to discuss current concerns, risk management and strategies of support. As a result, all professionals working with the children are kept up to date in respect of current issues and concerns and have a consistent approach to support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The deputy manager is involved in a local community group that includes representatives from the police, education and local businesses. This group shares information and issues of concern in the community and looks at ways of improving known areas locally. This is a new local initiative which hopes to improve children’s opportunities in the local area.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is also involved in carrying out visits to children who are placed outside of county. As a result, a new information pack has been developed by the manager to support social workers in effective monitoring of these placements. This initiative will be trialled at the home to support social workers in developing these skills.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s files have not been audited and monitored effectively. Several key documents, such as education, health and care plans, were missing or out of date. Behaviour support plans do not always contain sufficient detail and do not always clearly link to children’s risk assessments. Some documents were difficult to access as there are different systems in place. Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 6

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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

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(iv)) 01/06/2020

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

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Requirement Due date

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;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(b)(d)) 01/06/2020

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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

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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each 01/06/2020 Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 7 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

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)) Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (2)) 01/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(a) applies to the home—

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Requirement Due date

the registered person must ensure that the requirements of that Order and any regulations made under it, except for article 23 (duties of employees), are complied with in respect of the home. (Regulation 25 (2)(b)) 01/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

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

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

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(ii)(v)(vii)) 01/04/2020

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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: SC042950 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Lincolnshire County Council, County Offices, Newland, Lincoln LN1 1YL

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Jeanette Mitchell-Fox

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Inspector

Sarah Orriss, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC042950 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 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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