Children's Home run by Platinum Services for Children (Residential Care) Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent

Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 1 Registered provider: Platinum Services for Children (Residential Care) Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

Up to four children can live in this home. It is one of four homes owned by an independent organisation. The home cares for children who display challenging behaviours and supports their emotional needs. The manager has extensive experience in children’s residential care. He has level 4 and 5 qualifications in leadership and management.

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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 27 October 2021 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on our 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

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/07/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 19/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 12/07/2018 Full Good 30/08/2017 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 3

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improvement to be good

Staff provide care and encouragement which have helped children to settle and make significant progress from their starting points. A parent acknowledged the progress that his daughter has made while living in this home. One child reflected on her own journey. She recognises that she displayed unsettled behaviour at times when she first moved into the home. By providing consistent care, staff have helped this child to develop social awareness and empathy.

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improvement to be good

Children’s social workers confirm that staff are committed to helping children have the best possible experiences and outcomes. One social worker described being ‘over the moon’ with the progress of one child, who is now preparing to move in with a foster family.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children make social and academic progress. Children play outside with their friends and integrate into the neighbourhood. One child has successfully transitioned to high school, where she has made new friends. Staff invite children’s friends to visit for tea. Another child is preparing for college, and staff guide him to seek opportunities which will enhance his future career aspirations.

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improvement to be good

The inspector saw significant and recent damage to the home. Staff have removed a broken television from one of the lounges. This restricts children choosing where they want to watch television. The registered manager oversees repairs to the home. However, currently, the house is not a welcoming home for children to live in.

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improvement to be good

Staff are not always successful in helping one child to manage his behaviour. This affects the experiences of other children living in the home. One child complained that this child has broken some of the home’s televisions and sometimes, when he is unsettled at night, she cannot get to sleep.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always identify and manage risks in the home to keep children and others safe. Staff had not tidied away broken wood from a recently damaged gate. One child, when unsettled, threatened staff with fishing wire and broken glass. Staff do not routinely search the house and children’s bedrooms to ensure that they remove all risks. Therefore, they do not use opportunities to remove broken or hidden objects which children could use to hurt themselves or others.

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improvement to be good

Staff are not always effective when they intervene to help a child manage their behaviour. Staff do not always act quickly enough to protect other children. As a result, one child was upset when she was the victim of a verbal and physical altercation. When a child is unsettled, staff are not always successful at de- Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 4 escalating the situation to reduce the length of a child’s distress. This increases the potential risk of harm for the child and others.

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improvement to be good

Staff use physical interventions to help keep children safe. The registered manager talks to staff following a physical intervention. He does not, however, record the debrief or comment on the accuracy of the report. This does not provide independent oversight of the effectiveness of the measure in helping the child to successfully manage his emotions and behaviour.

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improvement to be good

The registered manager ensures that the number of staff on duty is always adequate, and that all staff are safely recruited. This means that the home is able to provide appropriate levels of care for children with complex behaviours. One child’s social worker confirmed that the registered manager shares information with professionals effectively, including the designated officer. This ensures independent safeguarding oversight of all incidents involving the child.

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improvement to be good

Children rarely place themselves at risk by staying away from home. If children do go missing, staff are proactive in encouraging children to safely return home. The registered manager ensures that guidance is in place for staff, and children’s risk assessments are up to date. Staff use independent return home interviews as an opportunity to talk with children to ascertain why they went missing, and to gather information that can be used to advocate for the children with the local authority

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improvement to be good

Staff carefully balance risk to encourage children to develop their independence and self-care skills. Staff regularly complete mobile phone monitoring checks to keep one child safe. Staff have provided her with the resources and skills to manage her phone, now that she is at high school. As a result, the child informs staff promptly if there is any inappropriate social media contact from school peers.

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improvement to be good

All children have trusting relationships with the staff, who they enjoy spending time with. Children speak with staff as they know that staff will listen and respond. This helps children to feel supported and protected.

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good

Leaders do not always direct staff to ensure that they are promoting a child’s welfare and reducing the child’s levels of risk. Leaders were unaware of the reduced effectiveness of daily checks around the house. As a result, potential risks have not been managed as well as they should have been, to keep children and others safe.

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good

The registered manager has not increased his oversight of how staff are performing when under stress. He has not always managed how staff record incidents and key- work sessions, such as sessions addressing sexual health, to improve the quality of care and experiences that children have.

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good

All staff state that they feel supported by the registered manager. Leaders provide supervision which allows staff to reflect on their own well-being. As a result, staff Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 5 are committed to the children they care for and there are no significant incidents of staff sickness. This helps to provide consistent care for children.

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good

The registered manager successfully defuses potential conflicts with neighbours, while supporting the dignity and confidentiality of children living in this home.

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good

The registered manager has developed tools to help him track and analyse behaviour trends for children. When children are unsettled, the registered manager reviews their plans and decides what action to take. The registered manager is creative in exploring all options for children. This supports all children to have the best possible experiences and outcomes while living in this home. Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 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 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—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the replacement of broken items, so that each child can choose where they would like to sit and watch television. 23 July 2021

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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; 23 July 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 7 help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to staff identifying and understanding risk so that they can effectively manage incidents to keep children and others safe.

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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 home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm; and

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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)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to staff regularly cleaning children’s bedrooms and completing searches in the home to remove anything which could potentially be a risk to a child or others. 23 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

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and 23 July 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 8 promotes their welfare.

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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

understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the registered manager reviewing the effectiveness of the care that staff provide for children and, when necessary, providing additional guidance to improve experiences for children.

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the registered manager evidencing that he has spoken to the staff involved in a physical intervention, and confirming the accuracy of the records. 23 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: 1222089 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Platinum Services for Children (Residential Care) Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Apex, 2 Sheriffs Orchard, Coventry, Warwickshire CV1 3PP

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Leonard Pattinson

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Inspector

Joanna Warburton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1222089 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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