Children's Home run by Alicie Enterprises Limited in Ealing

Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 1

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Alicie Enterprises Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a private children’s home that is registered to care for up to four girls who are aged 12 to 16 on admission. The home’s statement of purpose says that the home offers a safe, nurturing environment where young people can address past traumatic experiences. It aims to offer stable, long-term placements.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since the home’s registration in August 2019. The home had previously been registered on another site from December 2013 until its move in 2019, and has had the same registered manager throughout.

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This monitoring visit

This visit was conducted because concerns were raised about the absence of both the registered manager and the responsible individual, due to sickness. Further concerns were raised regarding the home’s failure to promptly forward the independent person’s monthly monitoring reports to Ofsted.

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This monitoring visit

This visit found that these shortfalls have had no impact on the care offered to young people.

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This monitoring visit

The visit was conducted virtually and included the inspector holding telephone interviews with the registered manager and reviewing documents. It was not possible to speak to young people during the visit, although one young person did complete a questionnaire.

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This monitoring visit

Two young people were resident in the home at the time of this visit, having arrived in November 2020 and December 2020 respectively. Both have settled into the home well. One social worker commented, ‘They are providing a great service for young people.’ In addition, a young person described moving into the home as being ‘given a magic wand’. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 2 The home has experienced some recent upheaval. The registered manager returned to work on 20 December 2020 after being off work with poor health. She is now splitting her time between working in the home for three days per week and conducting supervisions and other management tasks from home for two days per week. The registered manager remains available to the staff and young people. She is supported by an experienced deputy who has worked at the home for seven years.

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This monitoring visit

The responsible individual stated that she plans to resign her position due to ill health. The home has identified an experienced replacement who is currently undergoing employment checks. The current responsible individual will remain in position, pending a planned handover. She will continue working in the home on an ongoing basis as a finance worker.

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This monitoring visit

Staff said that the team’s morale is strong. The home benefits from having an experienced core staff team. Staff reported that they were feeling motivated by an engaging training programme which has been specifically adapted to relate to the individual needs of the young people resident in the home.

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This monitoring visit

The home is not being adequately monitored. Ofsted has not received the management monitoring report which was due in September 2020. The registered manager said that she is in the process of completing the overdue report. In addition, the independent person’s monthly monitoring reports are not being received in a timely fashion. The registered manager accepted responsibility for this and stated that she does not offer her comments promptly, therefore delaying the submission of the reports to Ofsted.

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This monitoring visit

This visit did not consider the requirements and recommendations that were set at the last inspection. These are all repeated for this inspection, with the addition of two further requirements relating to the management monitoring report and monthly independent monitoring reports. These shortfalls have not impacted on the care offered to young people.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 11/12/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 3

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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 registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

A visit by the independent person to the home may be unannounced.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, the registered person must ensure that monthly reports are provided in a timely fashion to HMCI. 28 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 4 Review of quality of care

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review, the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed; and

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Requirement Due date

make a copy of the quality of care review report available on request to a placing authority, if the placing authority is not the parent of a child accommodated in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (3) (4)(a)(b) (5)) 28 March 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that a review of the appropriateness and suitability of the location and premises of the home occurs at least once a year. The review should include the identification of any risks and opportunities presented by the home’s location, and strategies for managing Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 5 these. Specifically, this is in relation to ensuring that local knowledge of the area surrounding the children’s home is included. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 64, paragraph 15.1).  The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. Where there are safeguarding concerns for a child, their placement plan, agreed between the home and their placing authority, must include details of the steps the home will take to manage any assessed risks on a day-to-day basis.

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Recommendations

Specifically, this is in relation to ensuring that risk assessments are clear and staff understand what actions to take to reduce risks (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5).  The registered person should ensure that the home’s procedures take into account the views of appropriate local services and have regard to police and local authority protocols for responding to missing persons incidents in the area where the home is located. When a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. Specifically, this is in relation to ensuring that all details are recorded of actions taken by staff, and that return

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Recommendations

home interviews have been requested from the placing authority. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.29 & 9.30).  The registered person should ensure that children are encouraged by staff to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’, supporting them to view and contribute to the record in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. Specifically, this is in relation to ensuring that children contribute their wishes and feelings to the planning process, and that these are recorded (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19).  The registered person should ensure that they have a workforce plan which can fulfil the workforce-related requirements of regulation 16, schedule 1 (paragraphs 19 and 20). The plan should: – detail the necessary management and staffing structure (including any

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Recommendations

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; Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 6 – 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 completed by staff while working at the home and used to record the ongoing training and continuing professional development needs of staff – including

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Recommendations

the home’s manager. Specifically, this relates to management oversight of processes in the home and ensuring that records are held that clearly demonstrate all of the above. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.8).

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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: Alicie Enterprises limited

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Inspector

Barnaby Dowell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: 2544885 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 after children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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