Children's Home run by United Children's Services Limited in Leicestershire

Assurance visit report: SC489970 1 SC489970

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private company and provides care for up to four children and young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has been without a registered manager since May 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection date: 18 February 2020

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection judgement: Declined in effectiveness

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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:

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Information about this visit

 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 identified the following serious and widespread concerns in relation to the care and protection of children at this assurance visit:

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Findings from the visit

 Staff have failed to keep children safe. Assurance visit report: SC489970 2  Staff have not prevented children from accessing dangerous items that have not been stored safely in the home.  Staff have not managed children’s behaviour effectively and the police have been called to restore order.  Staff have refused to allow a child into the home following the child being returned home by police.  Leaders have not ensured that Ofsted has been notified of a significant event and other notifications have not been sent in a timely manner.  This home does not have a permanent registered manager.  The staff team is not stable, with most staff being new and temporary staff having to be called upon.

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The care of children

Children and staff have experienced considerable turbulence over the past few months. Children have, at times, been unsafe because of poor care practice by staff and a lack of robust management oversight and action. The absence of a manager, and acute staffing problems, have contributed to failings that have put children at risk.

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The care of children

Staff have failed to understand a child’s emotional distress when she was returned home by police, following being missing. Staff refused to allow the child and police into the home, while they [the staff] took advice from another agency and manager. This compounded the child’s distress and is unacceptable care practice.

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The care of children

Staff promote children’s education. Children attend school regularly and enjoy school. Staff understand how important school is for children and so praise good attendance and make sure children have the equipment they need. Staff talk to children about what they have been doing at school and take an interest in their education.

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The care of children

Children receive the help and support they need to keep in contact with their families and friends. During the pandemic, staff have been flexible, to ensure that children have maintained these important relationships. Staff work to the agreed plans for family meetings and ensure that children receive the emotional support they need and are kept safe when seeing those important to them.

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The care of children

Children benefit from a comfortable and modern home environment. Staff ensure that the physical environment is maintained to a high standard and there is no damage to the home.

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The safety of children

Staff have failed to keep children safe. Children have managed to obtain, on several occasions, dangerous items which should have been securely stored. Children have harmed themselves and, at times, threatened staff. This has required police assistance to keep children and staff safe. This is indicative of staff not being able to manage children’s behaviour, leading to worrying incidents. Assurance visit report: SC489970 3 The lack of a consistent staff team and permanent manager has led to staff being unclear about the actions they should take to keep children safe. Shifts have been disorganised and staff have been left floundering, without clear direction in respect of what they need to do to safeguard children.

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The safety of children

Leaders failed to ensure that Ofsted received notifications of significant incidents in a timely manner. Indeed, following one incident they did not send a notification at all. This prevents Ofsted from ensuring that all the actions required to keep children safe are being carried out.

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The safety of children

Children currently living at the home are now safer. They do not engage in risky behaviour, they listen to staff and engage in discussion, so situations are resolved quickly and without aggression.

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Leaders and managers

Leaders of the organisation have not been able to secure a permanent, registered manager. An acting manager was appointed but she quickly moved on. The home is now being managed on a day-to-day basis by a relatively new deputy manager. She states that she had no proper induction and had to pick up the reins quickly. She has worked diligently to bring stability to the day-to-day running of the home. Securing a permanent, experienced and registered manager is a key priority for leaders in the organisation.

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Leaders and managers

The staff team has been through considerable instability. More than half the staff are new, and the home is heavily reliant on temporary staff, and drafting staff in from other homes. This prevents children from developing secure and trusting relationships with consistent adults in their lives and leads to inconsistent care practice.

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Leaders and managers

Leaders of the organisation have recently appointed a new responsible individual who is fully aware of the problems. She has provided Ofsted with an improvement plan to address the shortfalls identified from this visit. This includes the transfer to the home of an experienced manager from another service. The improvement plan is detailed and provides Ofsted with reassurance that robust and rapid progress will be made to improve the care and protection given to children.

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Leaders and managers

Requirements made at the last interim inspection have not been fully met. There remain outstanding concerns, as detailed in this report, around leadership and management, ensuring the welfare and protection needs of children are consistently met. There are also continuing concerns about managers’ ability to submit notifications to Ofsted regarding significant incidents in a timely manner. Assurance visit report: SC489970 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 positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour.

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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

understand how children’s previous experiences and present emotions can be communicated through behaviour and have the competence and skills to interpret these and develop positive relationships with children.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised in response to the incident where staff refused to allow a child into the home when she was returned home by police. 08/10/2020

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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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person; and—

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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

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm; and— 08/10/2020 Assurance visit report: SC489970 5 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

This requirement is in response to a child accessing dangerous items on numerous occasions, staff actions being ineffective and poor management oversight. 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 promotes their welfare.

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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 the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement is made to ensure that leaders lead the home in line with the statement of purpose and always prioritise children’s welfare and protection. 08/10/2020

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Requirement Due date

The registered person 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

This is to ensure a manager is appointed and registered without delay. 08/10/2020

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Requirement Due date

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

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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 any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 40 (4)(b)(e)) 08/10/2020 Assurance visit report: SC489970 6 This was made in respect of safeguarding notifications not being sent to Ofsted in a timely manner and, on one occasion, managers failing to notify Ofsted of a significant incident.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: United Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Old Coach House, Gainsborough Road, Drinsey Nook, Lincoln LN1 2JJ

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Inspector

Phillip Morris, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: SC489970 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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Inspector

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