Children's Home run by Keys Child Care Limited in Warrington

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 1 SC026991

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Keys Child Care Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private provider. The home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

Young people were spoken to as part of this inspection.

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This monitoring visit

On 7 August 2020, Ofsted received a complaint which was followed by information from the designated officer. The concerns related to the sharing of documents to promote the children’s health and well-being. As a result, a monitoring visit was carried out to check whether the home was meeting regulations.

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This monitoring visit

The registered manager confirmed she had not responded to a request for information as she was unsure if it could be released under the General Data Protection Regulations. The delay in sharing risk assessments and planning documents is not conducive to good safeguarding practice and may place children at risk of harm. The registered manager has failed to understand the crucial importance of a strong working relationship between the home, the authority and other professionals involved in children’s lives.

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This monitoring visit

During the visit, inspectors saw that one child’s clothes were strewn in a locked cupboard in the hallway of the home. The child told inspectors that she had to, ‘wait until staff were awake to get dressed’. Staff and managers are not meeting children’s basic day-to-day needs and physical necessities. This may re-enforce previous experiences for children and this does not meet the therapeutic approach described in the home’s statement of purpose. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 2 This service is commissioned as a therapeutic environment with clinical input. However, there is a lack of therapeutic involvement in the children’s care. A social worker said, ‘The therapeutic process has been an issue. The report was not completed by the psychologist and this led to delay in putting strategies in place. I am disappointed as [name of child] was struggling at the time.’ As a result of the

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This monitoring visit

delay, children have not been helped to understand how their emotional responses and behaviours link to past behaviours and places them at risk of harm.

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This monitoring visit

Care plans and risk assessments do not accurately reflect or address the current needs of children. Insufficient action has been taken to ensure that all risk assessments are reviewed and updated following significant incidents. The risk assessments do not detail how risks are to be reduced or managed. They do not identify alternative support to educate children about the significant risks they are placing themselves in and to understand the serious implications of their behaviour.

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This monitoring visit

Staff are not suitably skilled or trained to meet the complex needs of the children in their care. Staff testimony and scrutiny of training records confirm that not all staff have been trained in working with children who harm themselves. This potentially compromises the care of the children and means that their individual needs may not be fully met.

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This monitoring visit

The quality of care provided to the children is not effectively monitored. For example, staff use the threat of restraint to manage children’s behaviour. A child said, ‘When I damage stuff, they say if I do that again they will restrain me.’ The registered manager had not identified these shortfalls. The lack of rigour by the registered manager has not developed the home to sufficiently protect the children and maintain good standards of care.

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This monitoring visit

Children’s safety is compromised by the lack of independent oversight of physical restraints when the manager has been directly involved in the restraint. The recording of physical interventions is poor. For example, the management overview and debrief of staff and children does not consider each individual intervention. Therefore, the manager cannot be sure that all interventions were carried out safely and in accordance with the home’s policies and procedures.

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This monitoring visit

The current standards of care and support provided at this home mean that the children’s safety, health and emotional well-being needs are not being adequately met. The lack of co-ordinated placement planning to support the children effectively at a critical period in their lives is placing them at significant risk and potentially compromising their future life chances.

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This monitoring visit

Alarms are used routinely to monitor the movement of children. The registered manager has not considered the effect of using nightly alarms on each child’s bedroom door. The home’s policy is to use alarms for every child living in the home Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 3 and does not consider individual risks or needs. This represents an unnecessary restriction on the children’s privacy.

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This monitoring visit

The registered manager has failed to keep a staff duty roster of people working at the home, and a record of the actual rosters worked. The rosters at the home do not show the full names of staff.

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This monitoring visit

The physical environment of the home needs improvement. For example, carpets in the home were stained and had burn marks on them. Basic items such as bathroom fittings and bedroom furniture were missing. This does not provide a homely environment for the children to live in.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 22/05/2019 Full Good 16/10/2018 Full Good 06/02/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 20/04/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 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, the 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

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs; and

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seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation.

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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The health and well-being standard is that—

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the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure— 13/09/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 5 that each child has access to such dental, medical, nursing, psychiatric and psychological advice, treatment and other services as the child may require.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c)(2)(c)) 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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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(d)) * 13/09/2020

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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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helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 13/09/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 6 promotes their welfare.

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

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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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ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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

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ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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; and

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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)(2)(a)(b)(c)(e)(f)(h)) * No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child.

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The following measures may not be used to discipline any child—

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

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the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children;

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Requirement Due date

the child’s placing authority consents in writing to the monitoring or surveillance; 13/09/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 7 so far as reasonably practicable in the light of the child’s age and understanding, the child is informed in advance of the intention to do the monitoring or surveillance; and

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 24 (1)(a)(b)(c)(d)) The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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

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

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a description of the measure and its duration;

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

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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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the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and 13/09/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 8 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”)—

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has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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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.

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(Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b)(3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i) (ii)(c)) * The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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are signed and dated by the author of each entry.

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Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4; and

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ensure that the records are kept up to date.

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In particular, ensure that there is a clear record of the staff working in the home at any time. 13/09/2020

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*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 9

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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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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Child Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Queensway, Halesowen B63 4AH

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Inspectors

Elaine Allison, social care inspector Suzanne Birchall, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC026991 10 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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