Children's Home run by Benjamin UK Ltd in Milton Keynes

Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 1 SC391379 Registered provider: Benjamin UK Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and run by a private organisation. It provides care and accommodation for up to four children. The organisation also has a registered school and teachers from the school provide education in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has not had a registered manager since 1 February 2021.

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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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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 requires improvement to be 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: 26 November 2019

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

26/11/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 22/05/2019 Full Good 22/11/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 30/05/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Professionals are positive about the progress children are making in the home. Some children make excellent progress. For example, children who previously struggled with attending education are now regularly accessing different educational opportunities. Children are encouraged, and fully supported, to work towards their career aspirations and they make good progress in doing so.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff at the home maintain good relationships with parents, where possible. A parent reported that they were happy with the care their child was receiving. Children are supported to maintain relationships with those who are important to them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s emotional, social and well-being needs are met through the provider’s therapeutic approaches. Interventions such as ‘diversion’ allow children to access new experiences and activities. For example, one child recently accessed local snowboarding lessons. The staff supported the child to attend as this was a new experience. As a result, the child enjoyed the activity and this boosted the child’s self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from access to a therapist who also works as a care worker. Children access formal and informal therapy sessions when the therapist works on the shift pattern. This enables the therapist to build a relationship with children and have an understanding of children’s daily lives when interventions are considered. Children’s confidence has improved as a result. For example, children who previously did not engage in the community are now accessing college and becoming more independent.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

One child is exploring their identity and has been supported in this without fear of judgement. Their views, wishes and opinions have been fully considered. However, the views of children are not always fully acted on. For example, children’s request for better internet access has not yet been fulfilled. Currently, children can only access the internet in the lounge area and do not have access in their bedrooms.

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

Risks are identified, understood and well managed by staff. Children’s risk assessments are clear and focus on known risks. They are reviewed regularly and updated when required. Staff ensure that these plans are followed and updated after behavioural incidents or missing-from-home episodes. The manager ensures that these plans are checked at least weekly and updated when required. Children benefit from a home where their safety is a primary concern.

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

The manager ensures that there is a robust response when children go missing. When a child is missing, their protocol is followed and professionals are made Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 4 aware. Staff ensure that all relevant agencies are informed in a timely manner. Staff actively search the local and wider community and look for the child. Children are supported to return home and they receive non-judgemental support on their return. This has resulted in a decrease in missing-from-home incidents for one child who has a history of going missing regularly.

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

Staff can safely manage children’s behaviour. Staff use the provider’s ‘token system’ to promote positive behaviour and allow children to focus on achieving positive incentives. This system is individual to the needs of the child and is written in consultation with the home and the provider’s therapy team. This focus on positive behaviour has contributed to there being no incidents of restraint in the home since November 2020. Children’s well-being is secure in the home as they feel a sense of achievement in being able to recognise the progress that they have made.

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

The manager ensures that tolerance, equality and diversity are promoted within the home. A child who is exploring their identity is being supported by staff and the manager through this. When the child’s parent complained about the support their child was receiving regarding their exploration of identity, which conflicted with their cultural beliefs, the manager challenged this complaint sensitively. This means that the child feels supported to discover their identity in a non-judgemental manner while being respectful of parental views.

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good

The manager has a good understanding of the children in her care. The manager has plans to support a child to transition to another home, and a core group of consistent staff is in place.. The child will transition to another of the provider’s homes in a solo placement, which the manager feels would be better suited to the child’s needs.

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good

Some children’s bedrooms were found to be messy and unkempt during the inspection. For example, one child’s bedroom was unclean and had leftover food in it, and the windows did not have blinds or curtains. The inspector contacted the responsible individual, who, in response, attended the inspection and acknowledged that this was not acceptable. The manager took immediate action to improve these areas. The child’s bedroom was cleaned and blinds fitted to the windows. There is a lack of monitoring and review by the manager, and this has contributed to the poor state of these areas.

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good

Leaders and managers have failed to actively and regularly monitor the quality of care provided. This requirement should be carried out every six months but has not been completed. During the inspection, a report was sent to the inspector for the previous six-month period. However, the manager was unable to supply a copy of the report for the six-month period before that, which had not been made available to Ofsted as required. The lack of this report meant that the inspector was unable to Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 5 identify whether the manager used learning from practice and feedback to improve the experiences and care of children.

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good

There is some minor damage in the home. The manager is reviewing the process for reporting maintenance issues. This process is lengthy and not effective as it does not ensure that essential issues are put right at the earliest opportunity.

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good

Team meetings are regular and focus on current issues. The meetings are child- centred, which ensures that children remain at the forefront of staff practice. The meetings enable staff to discuss issues arising and share strategies. This means that children receive a consistent approach.

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good

The manager ensures that tolerance, equality and diversity are promoted within the home. At the time of the inspection, one child was being supported through Ramadan. The manager ensured that support to the child was adjusted to enable the child to best manage changes to their routine.

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good

Staff are carefully vetted prior to their employment starting. Since the last inspection, a number of staff have been recruited. The organisation ensures that all required processes are followed. This means that adults at the home are safely recruited.

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good

Supervisions are regular and practice-focused. The manager identifies training and new staff benefit from learning and performance targets to improve. The manager is skilled at delivering a reflective style of supervision and staff are happy with the support they receive. As a result, children benefit from a team of staff who are keen to learn and improve their practice.

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good

The manager does not always ensure that other services meet children’s needs. For example, one child is not accessing education as per their plans. The manager has not challenged this with the education provider. The child’s education plans are not being followed or reviewed. As a result, the child does not have meaningful activities to engage in during their day. This lack of challenge means the child continues to access a limited education timetable. Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 6

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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

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the cleanliness of children’s bedrooms, ensuring that foodstuffs are removed and rooms are cleaned in a timely manner. 17 June 2021

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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. (Regulation 45 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This refers to one report not being completed, and one report not being submitted to Ofsted in a timely manner. 17 June 2021

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(viii)) 17 June 2021 Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 7 In particular, ensure that all children have access to education in line with statutory guidance.

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the manager must ensure that they can identify the home’s strengths and weaknesses and have measures in place to address any shortfalls. 17 June 2021

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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: SC391379 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Churchfarm, Station Road, Aldbury, Tring HP23 5RS

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Claudette Rudman

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Inspector

Matt Nicholls, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC391379 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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