Children's Home run by Inspire Care (UK) Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 1

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Inspire Care (UK) Limited

Monitoring visit Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home provides care for up to three children who have experienced trauma and encounter associated difficulties with their emotional well- being.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted to manage the home in August 2019.

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This monitoring visit

This home had an assurance visit on 18 December 2020, when it was judged to have no serious or widespread concerns. In response to the third national lockdown due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, Ofsted has suspended assurance visits and is undertaking monitoring inspections when needed.

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This monitoring visit

This monitoring inspection has been undertaken to monitor children’s welfare at the home following concerns raised from recent safeguarding notifications received by Ofsted about incidents that have occurred in the home. There were two children living at the home at the time of the visit. The inspector visited the home to conduct this monitoring visit.

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This monitoring visit

The home has no behaviour management policy. There is no clear guidance about how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted. Staff have mixed ideas of how to manage behavioural incidents in the home. For example, some staff will call the police during incidents to manage a child’s behaviour, while other staff will not. The omission of this policy means that staff do not have a consistent approach to support children with their complex needs.

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This monitoring visit

Staff demonstrate good practice and try hard to build relationships with the children. However, this relationship-building is not consistent across the staff and, when children display high levels of aggression, staff quickly become overwhelmed and Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 2 require the assistance of police. This results in staff being assaulted and damage to the home. This means that children are at greater risk of criminalisation.

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This monitoring visit

Children’s individual risk assessments contain useful information. However, some of this information contradicts that contained in behaviour management plans. For example, one child’s risk assessment states that his assessed risk for going missing from care is low, while the same child’s behaviour management plan identifies the risk as high. This inconsistency may lead to ineffective safeguarding measures being implemented.

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This monitoring visit

When training has expired, not all staff have refreshed their training. Managers fail to ensure that all staff attend the necessary training they require to provide safe and effective care to the children. For example, despite two children living in the home who go missing from care, none of the staff have received missing-from-care training. This leaves staff ill-prepared for their roles in safeguarding the children and may leave children at risk of harm.

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This monitoring visit

Staff benefit from effective and structured supervision. As well as one-to-one supervision, staff receive clinical input through team meetings, where they can reflect on practice as a team. This means that staff are receiving some support and guidance to support them in their roles. This needs to be embedded into day-to-day practice to bring about improvement.

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This monitoring visit

Children are helped by staff to develop their independence skills. As a result, children learn how to cook meals and take responsibility for their laundry. This is providing children with essential life skills.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 18/12/2019 Full Good 28/11/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 12/09/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 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 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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand, in a way that is appropriate according to the child’s age and understanding, personal, sexual and social relationships, and how those relationships can be supportive or harmful;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust; 24 March 2021 Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 4 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. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(viii)(ix))

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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 work as a team where appropriate;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)) 24 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.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2)) 24 March 2021

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks of each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, ensure that the information in risk assessments and behaviour management Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 5 plans correlates to avoid confusion. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)

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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: Inspire Care (UK) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 263 Nottingham Road, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG7 7DA

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Inspector

Kev Brammer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home - monitoring visit: 1271234 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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