Children's home run by Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust

Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 1 Registered provider: Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The service provides short breaks for up to six children who may have sensory impairment, and/or physical disabilities and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The service is dual-registered with Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is a qualified learning disability nurse, and holds the level 5 diploma in leadership and management of residential childcare.

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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 30 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: 4 February 2020

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/02/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children benefit from a well-planned introduction to the short-break service. This careful planning helps staff to gain a good understanding of each child’s needs and preferences. For example, one parent told the inspector how the staff had purchased her daughter’s favourite toys prior to her first stay. This tailored approach helped her to quickly settle.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children’s care plans are personalised and take account of children’s abilities and routines. The smallest of details are captured. For example, staff have recorded how a child likes to be gently patted on the back until they fall asleep. This child-centred approach to care enables children to feel safe and comfortable during their short stays.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff set ambitious targets to help children to develop their life skills. However, records do not make it clear whether parents and carers have been consulted on these ambitious targets. This creates a missed opportunity to engage/involve parents in helping to develop their child’s independence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are involved in a wide range of activities that reflect their individual preferences. During the COVID-19 pandemic, children have been able to use the on- site hydrotherapy pool and the sensory room. As the restrictions have begun to be lifted, children have enjoyed going for walks and picnics. Some new equipment has been purchased, such as a mirror tunnel. This has provided children with hours of fun and entertainment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean and tidy, and improvements to the environment continue. This includes managers improving the accessibility of play equipment so that all children can benefit from active play. However, some of the play equipment is covered in grass and weeds. This stops children from being able to access the equipment.

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

Staff benefit from a range of training courses to help them understand their responsibilities in regard to safeguarding the children in their care. However, some training has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, staff are still waiting to receive their training in autism spectrum disorder awareness and in using different communication techniques.

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

Staff have ensured that children all have detailed risk assessments and behaviour management plans in place. As a result, incidents are rare.

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

Staff are knowledgeable about children’s health needs. Staff work closely with children’s doctors and parents to ensure that the children’s health needs are regularly reviewed and recommendations implemented. Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 4 Regular checks are carried out to ensure that the environment is safe. Equipment required to support children’s physical well-being is regularly serviced and maintained. All children have personalised plans to ensure their safety should there be an emergency.

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

Safe recruitment checks are completed. However, on one occasion, managers accepted a verbal reference for a new member of staff. This does not align with the requirement to seek written references.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are enthusiastic and passionate about children’s care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home is led by a committed and experienced manager. She has high expectations for the quality of care that children receive, and is pushing forward improvements. She is being helped by a new independent visitor. As a result of this new partnership, marked improvements are now visible.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s parents and social workers highly value the service. For example, parents comment that they feel supported and able to call the staff at any time for ‘advice or just a chat’. One social worker told the inspector that she felt that the staff were highly skilled and communicated well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

During the COVID-19 pandemic, staff who work in the day have continued to receive regular supervision. However, the registered manager has not ensured that staff who work at night receive the same level of supervision. Furthermore, supervision notes sometimes lack the required detail to show how staff reflect on their practice. This creates a missed opportunity to support staff with their ongoing professional development. Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that play equipment in the garden is free from overgrown grass and weeds. 12 November

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that night staff receive regular supervision and that supervision notes are improved. 6 August 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they agree with the placing authority or the child’s parents/carers, and if appropriate, the child’s school, an approach to meeting any relevant education targets while the child is in the short-break setting. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 29, paragraph 5.22) Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 6  The registered person should ensure that staff can access appropriate training. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they maintain good employment practice. They must ensure that recruitment, supervision and performance management of staff safeguard children and minimise potential risks to them.(‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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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: 2516984 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 2, Kings Court Business Park, Charles Hastings Way, Worcester, Worcestershire WR5 1JR

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Inspector

Louise Battersby, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2516984 8 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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