Children's home run by Happy Group (UK) Limited

Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 1 Registered provider: Happy Group (UK) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private provider. It can provide care and accommodation for up to three children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager is registered with Ofsted and is suitably qualified and experienced.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers on 17 March 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 15 September 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 18 December 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/12/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 29/10/2019 Full Inadequate 07/11/2018 Full Good 28/11/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have positive and trusting relationships with the adults that care for them. Staff know the children well and understand their needs. Children have stable and consistent routines and boundaries. This has supported children to feel safe and cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children engage in education and are making progress. One child, who was previously not engaged in learning, is now undertaking a full programme of education. They are undertaking exams and are predicted to achieve the qualifications that they need to achieve their career ambitions. Another child has maintained their previous school placement since moving into the home. This provides stability and consistency.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health needs are met. Children have been well supported during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is regularly discussed in the home. Regular, honest discussions support children to understand the safety measures that the home has taken in order to protect them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One new child at the home did not have a relevant care plan provided when they moved in. This prevented staff from having a clear knowledge and understanding of the child and planning fully for their care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The care plans in place for the other child are clear and detailed. The child has helped to write their plan and given their views. The child’s progress in the home is documented and shared with the child. This has supported them in identifying their own targets and goals.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child’s placement ended suddenly due to a sustained escalation in behaviour that the manager felt the home was unable to manage safely. The impact on the other child, who is making good progress, was considered in the decision to end the placement. The manager worked with the placing authority in finding an appropriate new placement and supporting a smooth transition.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Incidents in the home are infrequent because staff have good behaviour management and de-escalation skills. When incidents have happened, they have been well managed. Staff and children have had opportunities to debrief with the manager following incidents.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff are able to manage allegations, disclosures and other safeguarding issues well. They confidently discuss safeguarding and the actions that they take in order to keep children safe. A recent allegation was thoroughly investigated and appropriate external agencies had oversight of the investigation. Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 4 There have been no complaints about the home. However, children know how to make a complaint and can identify a trusted adult that they would speak to if they had any concerns. Children have regular opportunities to express their views. Staff listen to these views and act on them.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Risk assessments are generally of a good standard and support staff to keep children safe. However, one risk assessment for a child new to the home did not contain all known and current risk factors. This reduced the capacity of staff to keep the child safe.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has benefited from a consistent management team. Managers work well together and provide good leadership in the home. Staff say that they feel supported and benefit from regular supervision and team meetings. Staff morale is high. Staff are encouraged to share their views and contribute to decision-making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager knows and understands the home and the children well. He has good oversight and monitoring systems and can identify the strengths and weaknesses of the home. A clear development plan is in place. Reflective practice following significant incidents has been used to good effect. Improvements have been made in engagement with the wider community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There has been a high turnover of staff in the home and there have been some staff vacancies. This has led, at times, to staff lone working. Although risks associated with lone working were considered by managers, these were not formulated into a risk assessment or shared with relevant professionals. As a result, staff were not provided with clear guidance about what to do in the event of an incident or emergency.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The majority of the staff team are unqualified and have limited experience. Managers have taken action to ensure that this does not result in poor care quality. Staff are being supported on shift by the management team to develop their skills and knowledge. Staff have access to a range of training. The manager has been proactive in enrolling new staff on courses that will give them the necessary knowledge and qualifications to work with children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The physical environment looks welcoming and homely. However, some aspects of the home and garden do require maintenance and updating to ensure a consistently high standard. Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 5

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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to ensuring that children’s risk assessments contain all relevant and known risks. 1 July 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should challenge the placing authority if they do not provide a care plan on admission to the home of a child. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.5)  The registered person should ensure that a written formal assessment is made, including any risk factors, in the event of a shortfall in staffing levels in the home. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 54, paragraph 10.18)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the ‘Social care common inspection framework’. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Happy Group (UK) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: West Walk House, 99 Princess Road East, Leicester, Leicestershire LE1 7LF

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Inspector

Sarah Orriss, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1236625 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 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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