Children's home run by YCPG Services Ltd in Walsall

Assurance visit report: SC392492 1 SC392492

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for four young people aged between 11 and 17 years. There is currently no registered manager in post.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection date: 21 October 2019

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection judgement: Requires improvement to be good

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Information about this visit

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), Ofsted suspended all routine inspections in March 2020. As part of a phased return to routine inspection, we are undertaking assurance visits to children’s social care services that are inspected under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF).

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Information about this visit

At these visits, inspectors evaluate the extent to which:  children are well cared for  children are safe  leaders and managers are exercising strong leadership.

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Information about this visit

This visit was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000, following the published guidance for assurance visits.

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Information about this visit

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s social care system has delivered child-centred practice and care within the context of the restrictions placed on society during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Findings from the visit

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance visit. Assurance visit report: SC392492 2

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The care of children

Staff build positive relationships with young people. Young people feel supported and settled in the home.

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The care of children

Three of the four young people attend school or college full time. The fourth young person is waiting for a suitable school provision to be identified and is currently receiving home tuition. Staff supported the young people with home learning and activities when schools were closed during the period of social restriction due to COVID-19.

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The care of children

Young people have been supported by staff to understand the COVID-19 pandemic and the implications for them. Staff supported young people to keep in touch with family and friends when face-to-face visits could not take place due to restrictions.

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The care of children

Two young people are working on their independence skills. With staff support, they budget, shop and prepare some of their own meals.

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The care of children

Staff support all young people to keep their bedrooms clean and tidy. However, there are areas of the property that would benefit from further maintenance and redecoration.

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The care of children

Staff do not support young people to contribute to their records. This is a missed opportunity by staff to engage young people in their care plans and to understand their goals.

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The safety of children

The home uses a variety of documents to assess young people’s risks. However, risk assessments lack detail. Risk assessments do not clearly identify recent risk incidents. This means that they do not provide up-to-date information for staff. Risk assessments contain general information and are not specific to each young person. However, staff know the young people well and are aware of their key risks, and young people feel safe.

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The safety of children

There is a consistent staff team in place, which provides stability in the home. The young people like the staff and are able to talk to them if they have any worries.

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The safety of children

On occasion, staff prevent young people from leaving the home without good reason. Young people’s paperwork directs staff to block exits should young people try to leave the home without permission. This is not proportionate to young people’s identified risks.

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The safety of children

Staff do not record all sanctions they give to young people. In addition, sanctions are not always relevant to the behaviour. For example, a young person had their television removed for smoking in the home. Assurance visit report: SC392492 3

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Leaders and managers

The home has been without a registered manager since July 2020. There is currently no manager in post. The two deputy managers are currently providing the leadership and management in the home, with support from senior managers.

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Leaders and managers

Managers do not always use monitoring and review systems effectively. For example, not all staff receive regular practice-related supervision. As a result, staff do not have the opportunity to discuss their performance and to develop their practice.

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Leaders and managers

Staff delivering supervision have not received training in this. As a result, supervision records lack detail and do not evidence comprehensive discussions.

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Leaders and managers

Incident reports contain no management oversight. This omission means that managers are not reviewing incidents, the quality of the recording, or staff interventions and their effectiveness.

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Leaders and managers

The home’s statement of purpose does not reflect the staff team’s qualifications. In addition, it states that all staff must have, or be working towards, a level 3 diploma in residential childcare; the majority of staff do not have this qualification.

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Leaders and managers

External professionals, such as social workers and reviewing officers, are happy with the level of care and commitment provided by the staff team to the young people placed at the home.

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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— that staff—

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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 06/11/2020 Assurance visit report: SC392492 4 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; and

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(a)(i)(iii)(vi)) 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

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; and

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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)(2)(c)(h)) 06/11/2019

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (b)(c)(i)(ii)(iv)) 06/11/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees – undertake appropriate continuing professional development; and

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)) 06/11/2020 Assurance visit report: SC392492 5

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Recommendations

 The Statement of Purpose is of particular importance to this Standard (regulation 6(2)(a) and (b)(i)). Homes are required to develop and keep under review a “Statement of Purpose” (regulation 16 and schedule 1). (Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards, page 14, paragraph 3.5)

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Recommendations

 Regulation 19(2) details sanctions that are prohibited in behaviour management. Any sanctions used to address poor behaviour should be restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them and the wider community. In some cases it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour and the staff in the home should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. (Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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Recommendations

 For children’s homes to be nurturing and supportive environments that meet the needs of their children, they will, in most cases, be homely, domestic environments. Children’s homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations (alarms, food hygiene etc.); however in doing so, homes should seek as far as possible to maintain a domestic rather than ‘institutional’ impression. (Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards, page 15, paragraph 3.9) This is in relation to maintaining a good quality of redecoration and maintenance across the home.

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Recommendations

 Children should be actively encouraged to read their records and to add further information to them. They should be regularly reminded of their rights to see information kept about them and be given information about how they might be supported to access their records in later life. (Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards, page 62, paragraph 14.6)

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: D M R Services, 102 Queslett Road, Streetley, Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham B74 2EZ

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Children’s home details

Registered manager: Post vacant Assurance visit report: SC392492 6

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Inspectors

Debbie Holder, Social Care Inspector Sarah Berry, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: SC392492 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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