Children's Home run by Prime Adolescence Limited in Barnsley

Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 1 Registered provider: Prime Adolescence Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private provider. It is registered to provide care and accommodation for one child who may have social and/or emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager in post is currently in the process of registering with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted undertook one monitoring visit on 10 March 2020 to check on the progress made to rectify the serious deficits found at the inspection undertaken in January 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

The home closed temporarily in March 2020 and the staff were furloughed during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. The home reopened in March 2021 and one child is currently living in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, 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

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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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. Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 2 Date of last inspection: 21 January 2020

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

21/01/2020 Full Inadequate Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 4

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improvement to be good

Throughout the pandemic, the child has maintained constant contact with family members, with regular visits, telephone calls and video messaging. This helps to support and rebuild the relationship that the child has with his family. A parent said that good levels of communication are maintained with staff. This helps to ensure that family members are kept well informed about their child’s progress.

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improvement to be good

It has not been easy during the pandemic to participate in activities outside the home. However, as restrictions have eased, the child has enjoyed trips to Blackpool, bowling and eating out. The child also enjoys baking, gardening, going on days out and playing video games. These activities help to ensure that the child has opportunities to do things he enjoys.

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improvement to be good

The health needs of the child are being met. Healthcare appointments and check- ups have taken place. The placement stability he has experienced means that emotional and mental health assessments can now be undertaken. This will help to ensure that appropriate support and assistance are in place for the child now and in the future.

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improvement to be good

Full-time attendance in school is not yet established for the child. However, home tutoring with a qualified person has commenced. This helps to ensure that the child has access to the support needed to reintegrate into full-time education.

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improvement to be good

The communal rooms in the home are suitably decorated and comfortably furnished. However, there was evidence of wear and tear in the child’s bedroom, and a number of doors and door frames have been damaged. Furthermore, there was evidence of debris and potential hazards in the garden. This falls short of providing a safe and well-maintained environment for the child.

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improvement to be good

Safer recruitment checks are undertaken. All staff have a current Disclosure and Baring Service (DBS) check and identification documents, and for most, references are held. However, the inspector identified some shortfalls. These include one missing reference, one incomplete employment history and not all files detailing whether staff are physically and mentally fit to work with children. Therefore, recruitment checks fall short of the required standard.

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improvement to be good

Risk assessments identify individual risks and are updated on a regular basis. This ensures that staff are kept fully informed about any changes to the child’s risks or of incidents that have occurred. Staff apply suitable strategies and respond appropriately when the child goes into crisis. This helps to better protect the child. Although incidents continue to occur, Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 5 they are reducing in number and severity. This is an indication of progress from the child’s starting points.

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good

The home has not had a registered manager since February 2020. A new manager is now in post and in the process of registering with Ofsted. In addition, a new responsible individual with a wealth of experience in residential care of children has recently commenced in post. This provides the service with stability and stronger leadership.

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good

The home has sufficient staff in post to care for the child residing at the home. Recruitment to two vacant posts is under way. This includes a post for a deputy manager. This will help to ensure that adequate staffing levels are maintained.

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good

The home’s statement of purpose has not been reviewed after staff changes and submitted to the regulator, as required by the regulations.

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good

The staff team has undertaken appropriate training to understand and meet the complex needs of the child. Once staff have completed the required probationary period, they commence the required level 3 qualification.

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good

New staff complete an induction. However, on occasions, new staff form part of the staffing numbers and are required to work on shift with the child. This means that some staff may not be fully equipped with the knowledge and skills to undertake their duties.

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good

Most staff are receiving supervision and there are regular staff meetings that support teamwork and learning and development. However, there has been a high turnover of staff. This does not promote consistency of care. Staff and a professional spoken with during the inspection stated that further work is needed to achieve a consistent ethos throughout the team to further improve the care delivered to the child.

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good

The monthly Regulation 44 monitoring visits by an independent visitor and the recent input from the new responsible individual support improvement of the quality of care delivered. However, the manager’s oversight of the home is not yet effective. For example, there are gaps in recruitment files, not all training records are updated, some records are not easily accessible, and the supervision matrix was not available for review. This lack of oversight hinders the manager’s ability to make sustainable improvements to the operation of the home.

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good

The manager’s six-monthly review report on the quality of care has not been completed and submitted to Ofsted, as required by the regulations. In recent weeks, the manager has been required to work on shift to cover the staff vacancies. This is a contributory factor to the shortfalls found. Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered persons 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 persons 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

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—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, damaged items must be replaced and repairs undertaken without delay. Potential hazards must be removed from the garden. 18 June 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification, and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and 18 June 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 7 full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the recruitment files must include a full employment history, record whether staff are mentally and physically fit to work with children, and seek two references (one from the most recent previous employer). All information received must be held on the individual’s file.

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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

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;

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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.

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the home must have a cohesive staff team whose members work consistently together with clear aims. It must improve the manager’s monitoring systems for electronic and paper recordings, including for staff recruitment, staff supervision and case file records. 28 June 2021

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 28 June 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 8 The registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction;

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Requirement Due date

provide each employee with a job description outlining the employee’s responsibilities.

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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; (Regulation 33 (1)(a) (4)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that new staff do not form part of the staffing numbers until an induction period has been completed to equip them fully to undertake their duties. 28 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.

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Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review (“the quality of care review report”).

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed;

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 45 (1) (3) (4)(a)) 28 June 2021

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Recommendations

 Sufficient staff means a home having enough suitably trained staff (including someone in a management role) on duty to meet the assessed needs of all children in the home, and that those staff are able to respond to emergency placements, where these are accepted. The registered person must demonstrate every effort to achieve continuity of staffing so that children’s attachments are not overly disrupted, including ensuring that the employment of any temporary staff will not prevent children from receiving the continuity of care that they need Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 9 (Regulation 31(1); ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality Standards’, page 51, paragraph 10.1)  The registered person is responsible for leading a team that provides high-quality care for all children living in the home. They must lead and manage the home in a way that delivers the ethos, outcomes and approach set out in the home’s

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Recommendations

statement of purpose. They should also play a key role in shaping the ethos of the home through developing a culture of high aspiration for children that is demonstrated through the care, resources and opportunities offered to the children. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 52, paragraph 10.4)

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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: 2516658 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Prime Adolescence Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 3 Wood Walk, Wombwell, Barnsley, Yorkshire S73 0LZ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jason Darbyshire

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Inspector

Debbie Foster, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2516658 11 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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