Children's Home run by Ivory Cottage Limited in Warwickshire

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 1

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Ivory Cottage Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to provide care for up to four children with emotional and behavioural difficulties. The home is one of two children’s homes owned by a private provider.

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Information about this children’s home

The home registered in April 2020. It has had three monitoring visits since opening and an assurance visit on 23 and 24 September 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

There is currently no permanent manager in post.

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This monitoring visit

This visit was carried out to monitor compliance with a notice issued under regulation 12 (the protection of children standard) by Ofsted on 23 December 2020. The notice had been issued as staff were not safeguarding children at risk of exploitation effectively. Furthermore, risk assessments did not provide staff with clear guidance on how to respond to incidents of children going missing from home.

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This monitoring visit

This visit was conducted remotely via video call as there was a child in the home who was isolating having tested positive for COVID-19 (coronavirus). The home has also suffered from a recent COVID-19 outbreak among the staff team. As a result, the responsible individual and a manager from the sister home have been working in the home for a period of 10 days, while staff recover and complete their isolation periods.

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This monitoring visit

Staff do not safeguard children effectively. On one occasion, a member of staff failed to follow a child’s agreed plan when managing the time she spends with her boyfriend. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a plan had been agreed with the child’s placing authority and implemented for the child to spend time with her boyfriend. However, a member of staff failed to follow this plan prior to reporting the child to the police as being missing from care. As a result, the police removed the child from Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 2 her boyfriend’s home, which resulted in the child becoming distressed. Staff’s failure to follow the child’s plan impacted on her safety and emotional well-being.

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This monitoring visit

Risk assessments do not provide staff with clear guidance on how to safeguard children effectively. For one child, who is at risk of child exploitation, the risk assessment fails to identify the action staff should take when she has time with her boyfriend which is not supervised by staff. Furthermore, the risk assessment does not clearly outline the arrangements for when staff should carry out visual welfare checks of the child. As a result, the child is not safeguarded effectively.

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This monitoring visit

The systems in place to monitor children’s safety when accessing the internet are not effective. For example, one child has access to social media and the internet via a mobile phone. The responsible individual informed the inspector that monitoring checks are completed informally by staff. However, this strategy is not captured in the child’s risk assessment. In addition, the risk assessment states that the child’s parent will also monitor her safety online. However, staff do not have contact with the parent to check that this is happening. This compromises the child’s safety.

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This monitoring visit

The number of incidents of children requiring physical restraint is low. However, there have been shortfalls in the recording and evaluation process following an incident with one child. The record did not clearly demonstrate the measures taken by staff to avoid the need for physical restraint. The manager also failed to comment on the effectiveness or consequences of the use of the measure. As a result, key reflection and learning opportunities to support children’s behaviour have been missed.

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This monitoring visit

The responsible individual has started to think about areas for improvement and has begun to implement systems to raise standards. For example, there is a new handover system in place and key information around changes to children’s plans is shared in the home’s communication book. One staff member has commented positively on these changes and how they have been able to assist him in his work.

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This monitoring visit

Staff are now completing training which is specific to the needs of children. For example, staff have recently completed child sexual exploitation training and the management team has delivered an awareness session during a team meeting. This enables staff to develop their understanding and practice in safeguarding children.

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This monitoring visit

Staff encourage children to engage with their schoolwork. One child is making excellent progress and has recently achieved good results in his mock examinations. Another child is refusing to attend school. However, staff have implemented a timetable in partnership with the school to ensure that key learning is completed remotely. This approach allows children to make progress with their learning.

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This monitoring visit

Staff do not develop and maintain positive relationships effectively with external professionals. For one child, this has led to delays in arranging safety planning meetings to support the time she spends with her boyfriend. Furthermore, there Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 3 have been inconsistent messages given to the child. These shortfalls have had an impact on her emotional well-being.

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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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; and

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Requirement Due date

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. (Regulation 5 (c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to shortfalls in communication with external professionals and delays in the home escalating concerns when not in agreement with care planning decisions for children. 7 March 2021

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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 7 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 4 necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(v))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to staff’s understanding and implementation of each child’s risk assessment, and their role in keeping children safe, particularly with regards to risks of exploitation.

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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

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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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

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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to management oversight and monitoring of children’s risk assessments and physical restraint records. 7 March 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home. 7 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 5 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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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(v)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

This refers specifically to staff’s use of de-escalation techniques and the manager’s evaluation of the effectiveness of each intervention.

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Requirement Due date

*These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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: Ivory Cottage Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Skytax, 37th Floor, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AA

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Caroline Wigmore

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Inspector

Dean Wilton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 2586067 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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