Children's Home run by The Serendipity Centre Limited in Hampshire

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 1 SC478315

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The Serendipity Centre Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned home which is registered to care for up to four children who have complex behavioural difficulties. The organisation has other homes in the local area, and a therapeutic education setting.

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Information about this children’s home

This home has not had a registered manager since 1 November 2018.

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This monitoring visit

The monitoring visit was instigated following three complaints received by Ofsted which raised concerns about a lack of management support, insufficient staffing, inaccurate recording and the safety and welfare of the children.

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This monitoring visit

The home has been without a registered manager since November 2018. The last manager resigned from the post on 28 July 2020. A manager has been appointed and is due to start on 1 September 2020. The length of time that there has been no registered manager in place is of concern. This has had a significant impact on the management of the home and on the consistency for staff and children.

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This monitoring visit

There are significant shortfalls in relation to staff induction and training. Some staff members, including newly appointed staff, have not completed training in relation to caring for children who may self-harm, internet safety, criminal exploitation, child exploitation, deprivation of liberty and children’s mental health. This does not equip the staff with the knowledge needed to meet the needs of the children placed in the home.

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This monitoring visit

The inspector examined staffing rotas and spoke with the responsible individual, the operations lead and two staff members. The staffing complement is not as described in the home’s statement of purpose. For example, the statement of purpose states Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 2 that ‘there is always a senior staff member to lead the shift’. which was not reflected in the staff rota or in place at the start of the inspection.

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This monitoring visit

The provider’s plans in relation to staffing arrangements were unclear. There were a number of staff leaving, including experienced senior staff. New staff were being appointed, however, there was a lack of clarity in regard to their start dates. The inspector was informed that other staff have given their notice in to leave. Less experienced staff, who had yet to pass their probation, are often working together without the support and direction of established staff. In addition, there were also occasions when two agency workers worked with one core staff member. The overall picture is of a rapidly diminishing staff team, an issue exacerbated by the lack of a clear contingency and succession plan.

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This monitoring visit

The responsible individual said that staff from the sister home may be used to fill gaps in the rota. However, this claim was not supported, for example, by the planned duty rotas seen by the inspector. Consequently, it was not possible to determine how the home was to be fully staffed.

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This monitoring visit

A workforce plan has not been completed in order to assess the skills, competency and training of the staff. This is a significant shortfall given the number of new staff who have not received essential training.

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This monitoring visit

An individualised lone working risk assessment was not completed in line with the company’s policy. The care records for the child who is currently living there allows for the use of physical restraint under specific circumstances. However, in practice, staff sometimes work alone, which could put the child and staff at risk if physical intervention was necessary.

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This monitoring visit

The quality of recording is inconsistent. Incident records seen lacked detail, which compromised analysis of the event. Some records did not have information such as whether medical attention was sought, and there was no management evaluation recorded. Other records were well written and clearly evaluated by the manager. This lack of consistency highlights the failures in training and in management monitoring processes.

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This monitoring visit

An incident occurred when a child put themselves at risk of harm. The staff failed to get immediate medical attention for the child, despite this being requested by the emergency duty team for the placing authority.

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This monitoring visit

The feedback from one child’s social workers was negative, raising concerns in regard to poor communication and the care of the child. The social worker for the child living there at present was positive. The social worker reported that the child is showing good progress, communication is good and she described a good working relationship. The child accesses the organisation’ s therapeutic services and attends the school.

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This monitoring visit

At a case review on 14 August 2020, Ofsted acknowledged that the feedback from the child’s social worker was largely positive, in terms of the progress being made. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 3 Ofsted concluded, however, that the provider is failing to demonstrate a sufficient grasp of the staffing situation, and that significant shortfalls in respect of staff sufficiency and competency need to be urgently addressed in order to promote the welfare and safety of children.

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This monitoring visit

A restriction notice and two compliance notices were issued as a result of the findings of this inspection.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 08/01/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good 28/08/2019 Full Inadequate 21/02/2019 Full Good 13/12/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

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

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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.

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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

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;* 20/09/2020 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 5 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

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home.

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience.

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20) The plan should:

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Recommendations

- detail the necessary management and staffing structure (including any staff commissioned to provide health and education), the experience and qualifications of staff currently working within the staffing structure and any further training required for those staff, to enable the delivery of the home’s statement of purpose; - detail the processes and agreed timescales for staff to achieve induction, probation and any core training (such as safeguarding, health and safety, and mandatory qualifications); - detail the process for managing and improving poor performance; Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 6 - detail the process and timescales for supervision of practice (see regulation 33 (4) (b)) and keep appropriate records for staff in the home.

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Recommendations

The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications completed by staff while working at the home, and used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of staff – including the home’s manager. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards page 53, paragraph 10.8.)

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Recommendations

 No more than half the staff on duty at any one time, by day or night at the home should be from an external agency. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards page 54, paragraph 10.17.)

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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: The Serendipity Centre Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 1st Floor, Goodlands House, St Lukes Close, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2US

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Inspector

Suzy Lemmy, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC478315 7 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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