Children's Home run by Care Haven (UK) Limited in Stockport

Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 1 SC065374 Registered provider: Care Haven (UK) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately-run children’s home provides care and accommodation for up to five children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The manager has been registered since October 2015.

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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: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/07/2018 Full Good 06/12/2017 Full Good 25/01/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness 11/05/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 3

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improvement to be good

Since the last inspection, several placements have been ended by the registered manager or plans are in place to end the placement in the near future. The manager admits that there has been a recent unsettled period in the home. This is attributable to an increase in concerning and risk-taking behaviours, including a significant increase in the number of missing from care incidents.

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improvement to be good

Staff continue to provide nurturing and supportive care to those children still living in the home. Adults clearly understand each child’s individual complex needs, and they support children to develop new interests and hobbies. This leads to an increased sense of confidence and self-worth for the children. Children get to spend time with family members and significant others on a regular basis.

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improvement to be good

One social worker praised the staff team for not being risk-averse. They reported that the staff enable children to take age-appropriate risks and to develop independence skills.

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improvement to be good

A recommendation was set at the last inspection in relation to records of education, health and care plans (EHC plans) not being in place for some children. Such plans are now in place. There has been a significant delay in undertaking the annual review for one child’s EHC plan. This has now been resolved and a review meeting is scheduled to take place soon.

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improvement to be good

Education provision is not in place for one child. While there is a daily plan in place for educational activities, this is not sufficiently detailed or specific. It does not set out exactly what staff will do to support the child during the school day. The child has not been in education since coming into placement last year. This undermines the ability of children to learn or to understand the importance of education.

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improvement to be good

There has been a significant and concerning increase in the number of incidents of missing from care in recent months. This has included some children going missing together at the same time. The manager has failed to ensure that independent return home interviews have taken place for relevant children. These would assist the staff team to better understand the reasons why children go missing.

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improvement to be good

The use of restraint is minimal. There have been only seven restraints used since the last inspection. Five of those included the use of ground or floor holds. The recording is unclear. It does not provide a clear sense of why such restrictive holds have been used. A recommendation was set at the last inspection about this issue. The manager has failed to scrutinise restraint practices to ensure that there is no risk to children from such restraint practices. The recommendation has not been Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 4 met. Following this inspection, a requirement has been set to address this.

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improvement to be good

The home has alarms fitted to each of the five bedroom doors. These are set and in operation for all five bedrooms every night. The relevant risk assessments for each child are not specific or sufficiently detailed, and it could be the case that not all children need to have their door alarm activated each night. The current system does not allow for the alarms to be turned off for individual bedrooms. This is potentially intrusive and could undermine a child’s need for privacy.

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improvement to be good

A senior manager failed to notify Ofsted or the designated officer of an allegation made by a child. The senior manager shared their internal investigation findings with the placing social worker. This undermines Ofsted’s ability to monitor relevant incidents and events. It also potentially undermines any wider investigations which the designated officer may have felt necessary.

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good

The registered manager is held in positive regard by the staff team. He is seen as very supportive of both staff and children. He has worked for the same organisation for many years and has been the registered manager for nearly five years.

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good

Staff receive regular formal supervision. They attend regular team meetings. Staff feel happy in their roles and take pride in supporting children to make progress. Feedback from involved agencies is mostly positive. Staff commitment and their dedication to the children are seen as key strengths of the home.

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good

A recommendation around training was made at the last inspection. A number of staff have left the home since the last inspection. Several new members of staff have not completed training around physical restraint, and most have not completed training around ligature and self-harm. This potentially undermines the ability of the staff team to confidently and competently meet the specific needs of each child.

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good

Records relating to children are held in both paper and electronic versions. There is a lack of clarity due to this combined system. Records are not easy to access or understand and documents would not provide meaning to children if they were to ask to see them. Some entries do not have identifying information, signatures or dates on them.

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good

The statement of purpose for the home was last sent to Ofsted in 2018. The information relating to staffing is now very out of date. The manager has failed to send a copy of the revised and updated version to the regulator.

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good

Management oversight and monitoring are not robust. There is little evidence of management analysis or evaluation in relation to the records for physical restraints. There has been a significant and concerning increase in missing from care incidents. Management monitoring reports provide little analysis or evaluation around missing incidents. Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 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

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 relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or relevant person to seek to ensure that child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c)) 17/04/2020

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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 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 (1)(2)(viii)) 17/04/2020

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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 to 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

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

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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)(c)(h)) 17/04/2020 Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 6 The registered person must— keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and notify Ofsted of any revisions and send Ofsted a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 17/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purposes of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child); serious damage to the property of any person (including the child). Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b)(2)) 17/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is not more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(d)) 17/04/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify Ofsted and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 17/04/2020

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Recommendations

 When a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of the information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)  Staff should understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4). Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 7

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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: SC065374 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Care Haven (UK) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: c/o Stephen Glicher & Co; Eden Point, Three Acres Lane, Cheadle Hulme, Cheadle, Cheshire SK8 6RL

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Patricia Swallow

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Inspector

Tracy Murty, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC065374 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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