Children's Home run by Roundhouse Care in Staffordshire

Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 1 SC404983 Registered provider: Roundhouse Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to two children who have social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is suitably experienced and qualified.

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Information about this children’s home

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

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted last visited this home on 19 November 2020 to undertake a monitoring inspection. 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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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

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requires improvement to be good

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

Date of last full inspection: 16 October 2019

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/10/2019 Full Good 31/12/2018 Full Good 30/05/2017 Full Good 20/12/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 3

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improvement to be good

Two children were living at this home at the time of the inspection. One of the children has moved into the home since the monitoring visit in November 2020.

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improvement to be good

Managers do not ensure that the home is kept to a reasonable standard. Some areas of the home require decoration and modernising. One child said that they would like to change the decor of the home. While most areas are kept clean, some require attention. Two wooden outbuildings are in poor condition. One is used by staff for storing gardening equipment; this is not secure and could be accessed by children. Managers have obtained a quote for repairing the garden retaining wall; however, there is no date scheduled for this to be completed. The slow response from managers and staff to invest in and look after all areas of the home means that the home environment requires improving to fully meet the needs of the children who live there. This shortfall was raised at the monitoring visit in November and has not been actioned in full.

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improvement to be good

Staff have ensured that both children have registered with local health services and for the most part, staff support children to access these when needed. However, one child’s plan identifies that they need immunisations and this had not been actioned in a timely way by staff or managers. This does not promote this child’s health and well-being.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not undertaken timely discussions with one child about issues pertaining to sexual health and relationships. This is a missed opportunity to discuss a sensitive but important subject that will help promote this child’s health, safety and well- being.

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improvement to be good

Staff generally support children to manage specific health conditions well and children have access to their medication when required. There are some shortfalls in the systems for the staff’s handling and recording of over-the-counter medication. For example, there is a lack of guidance for staff to follow about the use of over-the- counter medication. In addition, there is no central log of over-the-counter medications bought into the home. This makes it difficult to audit this medication and increases the risk of mistakes being made without being quickly identified and rectified.

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improvement to be good

Managers work well with professionals to ensure that children access schools that consider their long-term plans. For example, staff transport a child to a school that is a one-hour drive away because there is a plan for the child to move on and live in the area close to this school. Staff have supported another child to move schools. She had commenced full time on the week of the inspection. This shows very good progress from her starting point. Staff ensure that children have the correct school uniform and equipment. Children are supported by staff to have career aspirations Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 4 and attend school daily, and this helps them to invest in their learning. Social workers are pleased with the progress children are making.

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improvement to be good

Children have positive experiences of moving into the home, which help them to settle quickly. Children report being happy at the home. They enjoy a range of activities with each other and with staff that promote their well-being. For example, children have enjoyed bike rides and film nights with staff, along with trips to go bowling and to the snow dome and the cinema. This supports children to build positive and trusting relationships with the adults who care for them.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to visit their family members. This enables children to stay in touch with people who are important to them and promotes their emotional well- being and identity.

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improvement to be good

Staff records about children’s day-to-day events are excellent. Staff write these in the form of a letter to each child. This is a lovely, child-friendly way to enable children to reflect on their experiences in a way which is helpful to them.

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improvement to be good

One child is particularly vulnerable when using the internet. For example, she has shared inappropriate personal images and messages through her electronic devices and this increases her risk of being exploited and harmed. Access to the internet is restricted at night, but this measure alone does not sufficiently mitigate known risks. Although managers and staff have discussed the need for some additional measures to be put into place to support the child’s safe use of the internet, they have not challenged the placing authority’s decision not to agree to any such measures. As a result, the child is not routinely and robustly supported to manage her use of the internet safely.

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improvement to be good

When a child spends time away from the home, a measure designed to promote her safety is to reduce the amount of time she spends in the community with friends. However, this is not effective in reducing the risk while she is in the community and the risks relating to behaviour and relationships remain the same. Managers and staff are concerned about this but have not challenged the placing authority to consider any additional strategies. This concern coupled with a lack of discussion about issues to do with sexual health and relationships means that they are not doing all they can to safeguard this child.

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments detail children’s known risks, taking into account the child’s history and current behaviours. However, these documents are not sufficiently detailed. For example, information about a child’s friends, known associates and places she likes to visit are not included. This shortfall is a recording issue and improvements would be particularly helpful for new or agency staff.

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improvement to be good

Managers and staff respond well in practice to children who go missing from home. Staff search for children and keep in touch with them while they are missing. Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 5 Concerns are shared with professionals and family members so that relevant people know what is happening. When children return home, they receive a friendly welcome and support from staff. Children have the opportunity to speak to someone independent following an episode of going missing. Effective support and following clear processes have led to a reduction in children going missing from home.

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improvement to be good

The manager has completed the home’s fire risk assessment. However, he has not undertaken relevant training to ensure that he has the appropriate knowledge to assess such risks. In addition, there are some gaps in the recording of fire evacuation drills and two members of staff have not completed a fire drill in the last 12 months. There have been some differing perspectives on the necessity for internal doors to be fire doors. The fire and rescue service visited the home during the inspection and confirmed that installing fire doors is good practice. The fire safety officer advised the provider about a schedule of works to make these improvements. Collectively, these shortfalls mean that the home environment is not as safe as it could be, which poses an increased risk to children.

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improvement to be good

Managers ensure that staff are safely recruited. As a result, children are cared for by staff who have been assessed as suitable. This promotes their safety and welfare.

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good

Managers have not taken effective action to address two shortfalls identified at the monitoring visit in November. As a result, requirements in relation to the home environment and holding professionals involved in the children’s care to account are repeated.

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good

Staff have not received training specific to the needs of one child who has been known to put ligatures around her neck. Only one member of staff has received training in removing ligatures and there are no ligature cutters available to staff should these be needed. All staff have received training in self-harm. This provides staff with some knowledge but does not go far enough given the needs of a child living at the home.

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good

Managers have some monitoring systems in place; however, these do not always provide for evaluating the quality of the content of these records. For example, the monthly manager’s report refers to both children having risk assessments, however there is no information recorded about the quality and effectiveness of these records. In addition, the manager has not identified shortfalls noted during the inspection. Shortfalls in some aspects of monitoring do not help managers to work with staff to continually improve practice and improve records to ensure that they contain all the necessary information and guidance.

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good

Staff feel supported and find supervisions helpful. Supervision sessions provide opportunities for staff to discuss the needs of the children, reflect on their practice and support their personal development. However, regular agency staff have not Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 6 received any formal supervision. Consequently, all staff do not receive the same level of support and this is a missed opportunity to review staff performance.

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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

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (c)) 8 July 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

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably;

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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—

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Requirement Due date

meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 6 (1)(a) (2)(b)(vii)(c)(i)) 8 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. 8 July 2021 Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children have immunisations as outlined in their plans and children receive sexual health advice when appropriate.

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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;

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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)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that risk assessments contain all relevant information and that issues pertaining to fire safety are addressed. 8 July 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

In particular, the standard in paragraph 1 requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; 8 July 2021 Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 8 use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(b) (2)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff receive ligature training, have access to ligature cutters and know how to use them if needed. In addition, ensure that managers develop more effective monitoring systems and use these to drive forward improvement.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1)) 8 July 2021

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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

In particular, ensure that agency staff who work in the home regularly receive supervision. 8 July 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: SC404983 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Roundhouse Care Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ventura House, Ventura Park Road, Tamworth, Staffordshire B78 3HL

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Inspector

Helen Malanaphy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC404983 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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