Children's Home run by Positive Outcomes Childcare Ltd in Dudley

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 1 SC483958

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Positive Outcomes Childcare Ltd

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A private company operates this home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to three young people who may have social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since December 2019.

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This monitoring visit

At the last full inspection in May 2019, the home was judged to be requires improvement to be good, and leadership and management were judged as inadequate.

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This monitoring visit

On 20 May 2020, Ofsted completed a remote monitoring inspection of the home in response to safeguarding concerns raised at another home in the company. A number of concerns were identified, and two compliance notices were issued in relation to shortfalls in regulations 12 and 13.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this inspection was to review the progress made in addressing the compliance notices. Progress has been made in relation to the compliance notice under regulation 13, and this is considered met.

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This monitoring visit

The registered manager and staff team have completed further training to improve their skills and knowledge in self-harm, report writing and recording, substance misuse and risk assessments. The registered manager is using team meetings and supervision effectively to discuss issues in the home and to improve practices.

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This monitoring visit

The registered manager has put together an action plan to address shortfalls and improve practice. In addition, new checklists are in place that provide staff with further guidance on how to respond to incidents in the home. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 2 Carpets in the home have been replaced, and two young people told the inspector that they are happy with their bedrooms and the appearance of the home.

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This monitoring visit

Staff build positive relationships with young people. All young people are supported by staff in developing their independence skills to prepare them for adulthood. Young people told the inspector that they feel safe in the home.

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This monitoring visit

Issues with risk assessments remain. Risk assessments are not up to date and do not reflect young people’s known risk behaviours. They do not provide staff with clear strategies for responding to behaviours. Therefore, the compliance notice under regulation 12 has not been met and will be reissued.

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This monitoring visit

The requirements issued will be considered at the next inspection.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 30/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 07/02/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness 22/05/2018 Full Good 20/03/2018 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 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 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—

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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;

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Requirement Due date

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

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 8(1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(x)) 01/07/2020

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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 staff— 01/07/2019 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 4 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;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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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)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(d))* 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

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;

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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

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child; 01/07/2019 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 5 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;

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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)(a)(c)(d)(f)(h)) The care planning standard is that children receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14(1)(a)(b)(2)(a)) 01/07/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16(3)(a)(b)) 01/07/2019

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (‘the Level 3 Diploma’). (Regulation 32(4)(a)(b)) 01/07/2019

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the records are kept up to date; and

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Requirement Due date

retain the records for at least 15 years from the date of the last entry.

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Requirement Due date

This is in relation to maintaining a copy of an accurate staff duty roster of persons working at the home and a record of the actual rosters worked. (Schedule 4(3)). (Regulation 37(1)(2)(a)(b)) 01/07/2019 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 6 The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if 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)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 01/07/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (‘a quality of care review’) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (‘the quality of care review report’).

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— 01/07/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 7 supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1)(2)(a)(b)(c)(3)(4)(a)(b)(5))

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendations

 Records must be kept detailing all individual incidents when children go missing from the home (regulation 36 (schedule 3(14)). This information should be shared with the placing authority and, where appropriate, with the child’s parents. Evaluation of missing incidents should be undertaken to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. This evaluation should inform the review of the quality of care. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.31) This is with particular regard to ensuring that staff fully complete missing from care documentation.  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 information provided by such interviews when

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Recommendations

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) This is with particular regard to ensuring that independent return interviews are offered when children return after being missing or away from the home without permission.  The registered person is responsible for ensuring that all their staff have been adequately trained in the principles of restraint and any restraint techniques appropriate to the needs of the children the home is set up to care for as defined in the home’s Statement of Purpose. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.57)  Children should be encouraged by staff to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’ supporting them to view and contribute to the record in a way Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 8

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Recommendations

that reflects their voice on a regular basis. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)  Records of restraint must be kept and should enable the registered person and staff to review the use of control, discipline and restraint to identify effective practice and respond promptly where any issues or trends of concern emerge. The review should provide the opportunity for amending practice to ensure it meets the needs of each child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 49, paragraph 9.59)

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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.

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Information about this inspection

Ofsted is aware of the challenges that COVID-19 (coronavirus) is currently posing to those we inspect. During this visit, the inspectors took into consideration the impact of any measures being taken to slow the spread of COVID-19 by the home. This has included the effect these have had on staffing arrangements.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Positive Outcomes Childcare Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Positive Outcomes Childcare Ltd, Suite 3, Churchill House, Queen Street, Wellington, Telford, Shropshire TF1 1SN

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Inspector

Debbie Holder, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC483958 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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