Children's home run by Seva Childcare Ltd Assurance visit report: 2548794 9

Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 1 Registered provider: Seva Childcare Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is run by a private provider and offers care and accommodation for five children. The home’s statement of purpose states that the home cares for children who have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and/or learning difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home’s manager was registered in March 2021 and the home was registered in July 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

There were two children living in the home at the time of this inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

This inspection was conducted on site and involved meetings with children and staff. Written and telephone discussions were held with one parent, placing authority social workers and other professionals, including a treating clinical psychologist. A staff questionnaire was also shared for those staff who were not working but wished to contribute their views.

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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 to carry out an assurance visit on 15 December 2020. This 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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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 2 The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 3

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improvement to be good

The quality of children’s care is limited due to an inexperienced and unsettled staff team with a high staff turnover. Children have experienced instability due to changes within the staff team. The lack of consistent staff has compromised the continuity and quality of care that children receive.

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improvement to be good

Despite this, children make progress and are supported by staff who provide them with a genuine sense of warmth and affection.

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improvement to be good

The home is a large, modern and spacious home. Each child benefits from having their own space which includes their bedroom, separate bathrooms and living areas. This allows them to develop their independence.

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improvement to be good

Staff help children to establish healthy lifestyles, for example supporting children with appropriate dietary advice. This is attributed to the hard work of staff in diversifying diets and encouraging children to prepare their own food. Further improvements include eliminating the need for sleeping medication for one child and helping them to sleep through the night.

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improvement to be good

Children enjoy positive time with their family in the home. The home’s large garden provides opportunities for children to enjoy ‘COVID-safe’ family gatherings. This included a recent celebration of Eid and a child’s birthday. Additionally, staff record children’s progress and achievements via photo albums and share pictures with family members through social media.

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improvement to be good

Staff manage children’s challenging behaviour well. Staff understand children’s complex individual behaviours and take prompt action to support them, when necessary. An example of this is when children are unsettled due to too many people being in a room.

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improvement to be good

The use of physical intervention is appropriate. When restraint has been used, staff reflect well and reassess their techniques, to try to reduce the need for a restraint.

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improvement to be good

Educational achievement for children is positive and the home is supported by a specialist local school. One child who had not attended school for two years has recently started to attend. The child’s social worker referred to this as being ‘a great achievement.’ Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 4

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improvement to be good

During the inspection, one child’s bedroom was presented as a possible hazard as their wardrobe was not securely fitted and had signs of damage on the door. These concerns were rectified on the second day of this inspection.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from improved advocacy provision, and independent advice and support is now routinely offered to children. In addition, staff use their knowledge of, and relationship with, children to advocate for them effectively. For example, staff recently challenged the levels of prescribed medication that one child was receiving and the negative effects that this appeared to have on the child’s behaviour. The child’s prescription was subsequently amended, resulting in an improvement in their behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Multi-agency work is effective. Staff monitor children’s behaviour and feedback any concerns to children’s social workers. For example, staff report observations from children’s time with their family to allocated social workers. This ensures that information is shared promptly, and that action is taken to support children.

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improvement to be good

Managers have ensured that the quality of risk assessments has been improved. Assessments now give clear guidance to staff regarding possible signs of agitation that individual children may exhibit, and the strategies identified to support staff to calm children. Children respond well to simple strategies including holding hands with staff or taking deep breaths.

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improvement to be good

The staffing levels at night are insufficient. Although children’s risk assessments state that they require two-to-one staffing levels, the home was only providing one waking night member of staff. Managers acknowledged this error and commissioned the addition of an extra staff member during the inspection. Although no harm was caused to children, the failure to follow risk assessments compromises children’s safety.

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improvement to be good

Notifications of serious events are sent to Ofsted as required. One notification has been received since the last inspection and this evidenced a coordinated and appropriate response from staff.

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good

The registered manager has been an integral part of the development of the home since her arrival in March 2021.

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good

The staff team remain inexperienced. The registered manager is the only member of staff who has achieved the required national qualification for children’s residential care. One staff member has not completed their qualification within the required timescale. Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 5 The inexperience of the staff team is exacerbated by high levels of staff turnover. Half of the staff team have left the home since the last inspection. Furthermore, one staff member was promoted to a senior position without a performance appraisal or full assessment of their ability to undertake the role.

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good

Staff succession planning remains poor in the home, despite this being raised as a concern at the last inspection. The home lacks a deputy manager, and this places undue pressure on the registered manager who remains ‘on call’ throughout the weekend and working week.

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good

Key documents such as children’s behaviour support plans are not updated appropriately and lack details, such as the outcome of recent specialist assessments. This presents a confusing picture of the progress achieved by children.

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good

Training provision for staff is variable. Despite a clinical psychologist and a psychotherapist offering bespoke training, staff lack key training in areas such as the use of social story books for children. This limits their ability to engage with children.

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good

Practice relating to the admission of children is improved. One child has been admitted since the last inspection. The admission was preceded by a full assessment of suitability and meetings with the child and their family and in-depth planning with the placing local authority.

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good

Despite the shortfalls found at this inspection, staff morale is positive. Staff reported that they receive improved levels of supervision and management support. One staff member remarked on the ‘fantastic opportunity and enjoyment the home offers’, and the happiness they felt seeing the progress and achievement of children.

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good

The recruitment of staff is safe. The registered manager ensures that all references are fully verified and any gaps in employment history are explored. This helps to ensure the safety of children.

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good

The registered manager has addressed most of the requirements and recommendations made at the previous inspection. One requirement relating to staff training and one recommendation regarding succession planning are repeated for this inspection. Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 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 registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)) 1 September 2021

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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. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that staff have the specialist training to ensure they can meet the needs of children. 1 September 2021

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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; 1 September 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 7 ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to leaders and managers ensuring that they maintain a consistent staff team with the right qualifications, skill set and experience to meet the needs of each child in the home. For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) ("the Level 3 Diploma"); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may defer the relevant date if the individual—

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Requirement Due date

does not work, or has not worked, in a care role in a home for a prolonged period; or

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Requirement Due date

works, or has worked, in a care role in a home on a part- time basis. (Regulation 32 (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b) (6)(a)(b)) 1 September 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policy on record keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. In particular, to ensure that risk assessments are updated with key information regarding the specialist assessments that have taken place and record any recommendations. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure the home has a plan in place to maintain effective management when the manager is absent, off duty or on leave. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards (2015)’, page 54, paragraph 10.20)

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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: 2548794 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 71-75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9JQ

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Inspector

Barnaby Dowell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2548794 10 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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