Children's Home run by Nugent Care 2019 in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 1 SC025395

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Nugent Care 2019

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is operated by a charity over two sites, providing care and accommodation for 19 children in total.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is registered to care for children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties and learning disabilities. The home also provides provision, according to its statement of purpose, for a mother and baby placement.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager at the home since July 2020, following the retirement of the previous registered person.

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This monitoring visit

Ofsted identified significant shortfalls in safeguarding practice, care planning for children and the leadership and management of the home at a monitoring visit on 1 December 2020. As a result, three compliance notices were issued under section 22A of the Care Standards Act 2000. These were in relation to regulation 12, the protection of children standard, regulation 13, the leadership and management standard, and regulation 14, the care planning standard.

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This monitoring visit

During this visit, inspectors considered the action taken by the provider to meet the steps under each compliance notice. The inspector found that the provider met the steps under the compliance notices for regulations 12, 13 and 14.

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This monitoring visit

Children spoken to by inspectors said that they felt safe and happy at the home. Children said that staff had talked to them about how to keep themselves safe, and positive relationships were observed between children and staff.

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This monitoring visit

Children have regular key-work sessions to help them understand how to keep themselves safe. Staff have worked with other professionals involved in children’s Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 2 care to ensure that a collaborative approach is used to minimise the risk factors. This has resulted in the risk for children reducing.

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This monitoring visit

Risk assessments have been updated and contain clear strategies and guidance for staff. Staff demonstrated that they understood risk-management arrangements and had implemented these in practice when working with children. Staff told inspectors that communication has improved and that they benefit from ‘daily briefings’ to discuss any changes to children’s plans. As a result, safeguarding practice is more consistent.

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This monitoring visit

Staff have had training in ligature prevention and how to identify and understand county lines. However, not all staff have yet had training in the new risk-assessment process. This includes members of the management team. Consequently, this has meant the new process has not been fully implemented and has led to shortfalls in the review and update process. In one example, a risk assessment for a child had not been updated after a new risk was identified. As a result, action had not been taken to reduce this risk and prevent further occurrence. Managers took immediate action to rectify the shortfall when inspectors brought it to their attention.

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This monitoring visit

Records, such as incident reports, are clear about what actions staff have taken to protect children. A new debrief system provides staff with the opportunity to discuss incidents together and identify any learning from the incident. Where appropriate, individual sessions with staff also identify any individual learning and development needs. This has improved the quality of records for children.

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This monitoring visit

Despite these improvements, the management oversight of restraints is not always effective in evaluating all incidents. For example, during one incident when staff needed to hold a child using a physical restraint, it is recorded that the situation escalated, and police assistance was required. There is no analysis of the holds used and their effectiveness. As a result, further consideration has not been given to any changes that may be required to consistently manage behaviours. A requirement is issued to address this shortfall.

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This monitoring visit

Since the last visit, no new children have moved into the home. Managers have developed impact assessments that now consider the needs of the new child and their compatibility with the group. Recently, the manager had considered new referrals for several children. However, a decision was made that, due to the needs of the children and their compatibility with the current group of children, a placement would not be appropriate. Furthermore, the management team has made the decision to give notice on two of the children already in residence. Despite this being a difficult decision, it demonstrates that managers are acting in the best interests of children and ensuring that they only care for children whose needs they can meet in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 3

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 27/11/2019 Full Good 07/08/2018 Full Good 17/10/2017 Full Good 27/03/2017 Interim Improved effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 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; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children;

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Requirement Due date

understand and communicate to children that bullying is unacceptable; and

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a) (xi)(xii)(xiii)) 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

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are located so that children are effectively safeguarded.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1) (2)(c)) 7 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 5 In particular, where appropriate, consider environmental factors in the risk-management plans for children.

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)) 7 March 2021

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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

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;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(f)(h)) 7 March 2021

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children— 7 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 6 receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

medicines kept in the home are stored in a secure place so as to prevent any child from having unsupervised access to them.

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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 the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; 7 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 7 the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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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. Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 99 Edge Lane, Edge Hill, Liverpool L7 2PE

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Inspectors

Jessica Forshaw, social care inspector Suzanne Birchall, social care inspector Denise Jolly, social care inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: SC025395 9 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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