Children's Home run by Buckinghamshire Council in Buckinghamshire

Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a local authority. It provides care and accommodation for up to five children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since April 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Previous inspection date: 5 November 2019

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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. 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: 1277453 2

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The care of children

Children live in a beautifully decorated and newly furnished home. Carefully selected colours create a different feeling and ambience in each room. The home is clean, organised, and has plentiful resources such as arts and crafts and board games for the children. The staff listen to the children and make purchases to benefit their individual likes and interests. For example, the home has a full-sized basketball hoop, an exercise bike and a boxing station.

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The care of children

The staff have positive and trusting relationships with the children. This has helped with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic as the children have been able to ask questions and express their views in understanding the restrictions. As a result, the children are clear on the measures to keep themselves and others safe, such as handwashing and wearing masks in public.

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The care of children

Throughout the restrictive measures, the staff supported the children to go on a holiday of their choice. Staff supported one child to enjoy a spa break while another child visited a campsite from childhood memories. This approach helps children to feel valued and listened to and develops their sense of identity.

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The care of children

Staff recognise the complexities some children have around seeing their families. The staff are clear advocates for the children and sensitively share the children’s views within relevant meetings. As a result, one child has recently started letter box contact with a significant family member.

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The care of children

The children attend educational provisions that are suited to their needs and interests. Their attendance is good, and this continued throughout the first national COVID-19 lockdown. As a result, the children are making steady progress from their starting points and are building confidence in their academic achievements.

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The safety of children

Staff have a good understanding of the children’s strengths and vulnerabilities. The staff support and encourage the children to take age-appropriate risks and explore teenage friendships. The staff support the children in developing their understanding of danger through key-work sessions, reflection, and open conversations. This helps the children to increase their awareness of risk for themselves.

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The safety of children

The staff work hard to ensure that the children receive well-thought-through support to increase their independence skills. Each week, the staff support the children to create a menu planner and then help them to understand the nutritional value of these dishes. This teaches the children the importance of healthy eating and how to balance lifestyle choices appropriately.

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The safety of children

The registered manager and staff regularly review and update the children’s risk assessments and management plans after every significant event. Embedded in these plans are clear preventative measures and reactive strategies for the staff to Assurance visit report: 1277453 3 follow to help the children keep safe. As a result, the staff rarely use physical intervention with the children.

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The safety of children

Poor communication from senior leaders within the local authority caused a delay in informing the staff team of serious safeguarding concerns that could affect the children’s safety. Immediate protective measures were implemented by the registered manager and this continues to be in place while an independent investigation remains underway. This demonstrates a disconnect between the wider local authority and the home’s staff team in terms of the current child protection procedures in place.

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Leaders and managers

The registered manager has implemented a COVID-19 station in the airlock at the front of the children’s home. This serves as a protective measure for visitors, staff and children. As a result of taking temperatures and tracking visitors, the staff team is alert and responsive to the risks surrounding COVID-19.

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Leaders and managers

The registered manager’s monitoring systems are excellent and demonstrate that he has clear managerial oversight of the home. He is reflective, focused, and highly driven in delivering a person-centred approach to care. The staff say that the registered manager is a clear leader, approachable and listens to the children and the staff.

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Leaders and managers

The registered manager is a strong advocate for the children and understands the benefits of working collaboratively and within a multi-agency approach. For example, he is working with professionals to deliver an education and health care plan for one child. This is to make sure that the child’s needs can be understood collectively and approached consistently.

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Leaders and managers

The matching process for the children moving into the home is clear and includes in- depth risk assessing against the home’s statement of purpose and the children currently living in the home. However, the registered manager has not considered the matching of the staff team’s experience and training against the needs of the child moving in. Although this omission has not affected the welfare of the children, it could have improved the experience for one child moving in.

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Leaders and managers

The home’s workforce development plan focuses on individual staff’s training and development needs. The plan’s emphasis on professional development demonstrates the importance that the registered manager places on continued learning. However, the plan lacks detail on staff supervision, induction, probation, and procedures for managing and improving staff performance. The registered manager was quick to accept these shortfalls and plans to revise this document immediately.

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Statutory requirements

Assurance visit report: 1277453 4 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 registered person must prepare and implement a policy which—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard children accommodated in the children’s home from abuse or neglect; and

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Requirement Due date

sets out the procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation of abuse or neglect. (Regulation 34 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This is specific to revise and update the home’s current policy/procedural guidance when the local authority is made aware of an allegation. 11/01/2021

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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 (paragraphs19 and 20) The plan should: - 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; - detail the process and timescales for supervision of practice (see regulation 33 (4)(b)) and keep appropriate records for staff in the home. The plan should be updated to include any new training and qualifications

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Recommendations

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 home regulations Page 53, paragraph 10.8)  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate facilities and resources to support their training needs and should understand the key role they play in the training and development of staff in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11) Assurance visit report: 1277453 5 In particular, the registered manager should ensure that the staff have the training and skills to support children’s needs when moving in to the home.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Buckinghamshire County Council, County Hall, Walton Street, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP20 1UY

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Inspector

Kelly Monniot, Social Care Inspector Assurance visit report: 1277453 6 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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