Children's Home run by Hillcrest Children‟s Services (2) Limited in Staffordshire

Inspection report children's home: SC398481 1 SC398481 Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services (2) Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted registered the home in July 2009. The home is owned by a large private organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to five children whose adverse early childhood experiences and trauma may result in them exhibiting complex behaviours. At the time of the inspection, two children lived in the home.

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Information about this children’s home

There is an experienced manager who has applied to register with Ofsted. She holds a health and social care level 5 qualification 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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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 requires improvement to be 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: 13 January 2020

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC398481 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

13/01/2020 Full Outstanding 13/02/2019 Full Outstanding 31/10/2017 Full Outstanding 14/03/2017 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report children's home: SC398481 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Managers and staff support children to attend school and attendance for both children has improved from their starting points. Managers understand barriers to children’s learning and work hard to help children to overcome these. For example, one child is currently refusing to attend school as they want to wear clothing that they have a sentimental attachment to. The manager has bought the child a new uniform and sent it to the child’s parent so that they can pass this on to the child. It is hoped that this will help the child to develop the same attachment to the clothing required to return to school. Creative thinking such as this also supports the emotional well-being of the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Both children are registered with local health services. Staff support children to attend routine appointments and access emergency medical treatment when needed. In addition, staff liaise with specialist health professionals to seek advice about children’s mental health and emotional well-being.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Good daily routines for children are promoted well by staff. These include personal hygiene routines and encouragement to get up in the morning. This has led to a marked improvement for one child. Managers and staff access support and guidance from the organisation’s clinician, who is attached to the home. This enables the team to think therapeutically when meeting the needs of children.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive care from staff who consider children’s views, wishes and feelings. Managers consult with children about the day-to-day running of the home. Two children commented in the home’s location risk assessment that they feel safe living in the area. Good consultation helps children to feel listened to and to develop positive relationships with staff.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to access activities in the community that they enjoy, such as swimming, Guides and trips to theme parks. These opportunities to have fun support children to develop socially acceptable behaviours, develop their confidence and improve their self-esteem.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

On one occasion, a decision to move a new child into the home was made by managers without fully considering staffing issues. The decision was made on the basis of the planned return of two full-time staff who had been off work due to sickness. When they did not return, it meant that there were insufficient core staff to meet the children’s needs. This, coupled with an increase in children’s behaviours which were challenging to staff, meant that the home was very unsettled for a period of four weeks. Additional staff were needed to help manage this situation. A reliance on agency staff and staff from other children’s homes in the organisation means that children have not always received consistent care from staff who know them well. One child moved on during this time and the outcome for this child was not good. The situation is now improving, with new staff joining the team, Inspection report children's home: SC398481 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

developing their experience and getting to know the children.

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

Managers and staff have a good understanding of children’s behaviours and risks. Behaviour management plans and risk assessments are individual to the child and provide clear guidance for staff. For example, plans include behaviours likely to be presented by the child, triggers, warning signs and control measures. Staff keep a chronology of incidents and this supports the manager to assess the level of risk and ensure control measures remain effective.

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

When taking children who are at risk of going missing out on activities, staff consider locations and access to transport. This reduces the opportunity for children to go missing and promotes their welfare. On the two occasions when a child did go missing, staff responded very well. They promptly shared information with parents and professionals, searched the area and gathered information to help find the child. Managers advocate for children to ensure that they are provided with an opportunity to discuss their time away from the home with an independent person. When this has not happened, the responsible individual has challenged the placing authority and highlighted their responsibility to the child. They also arranged for an independent person within the organisation to meet with the child. This is good practice. This child then went missing far less than she is reported to have done prior to moving to this home.

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

Managers and staff have clear expectations on behaviours. There are occasions when staff need to use physical intervention to keep individuals safe. On two occasions, techniques were used by staff to keep a child safe which were outside those that they are trained to use. On both occasions, descriptions of the holds applied were poorly recorded. Managers share practice concerns with external professionals, including the designated officer and placing authority social workers. In addition, incidents are independently reviewed by a person within the organisation. This provides opportunity for rigorous oversight and enables staff to learn from practice.

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

Children’s access to the internet is individually assessed by managers and staff, and one child is supervised by staff when using the internet. Parental settings are also in place to reduce the risk of children accessing sites that may cause them harm. These arrangements support children to explore the internet safely.

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

The home is decorated nicely. Soft furnishings, pictures and ornaments make it feel homely. Managers act promptly when improvements are needed. For example, following some water spillage on the carpet that caused an unpleasant smell, managers planned to have the flooring replaced. Children live in a home that is well kept. Inspection report children's home: SC398481 5

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good

Some aspects of leadership and management at the home are good. For example, close liaison with relevant professionals promotes children’s welfare. Some good oversight by the responsible individual has identified areas for improvement and these have been acted on. In addition, managers pulled together and worked alongside staff to support children during a challenging period. Managers work transparently, helping professionals to understand what is happening in the home and how they are addressing any difficulties. However, leadership and management at the home is not consistently good.

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good

The decision to admit a new child to the home when staffing was precarious was flawed. The children living in the home required more staff support to meet their needs and this was a challenge for the home due to staff absences, vacancies and new and inexperienced staff. Despite this, the manager admitted another child as she was of the view that absent staff, who were experienced, would be returning to work. This did not happen, and the home relied heavily on support from staff from other parts of the organisation and agency staff. As a result, children experienced an unsettled period.

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good

Staff employed by the organisation complete an initial induction. Training on core subjects is completed during their probation period. Four qualified staff, including the manager, work in the home. There are plans in place for the four new employees to undertake a level 3 diploma in caring for children and young people. The manager identifies training needs that are specific to children living in the home. However, some of this training is not always arranged. For example, most staff have not had training in autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

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good

Four new staff have recently started working in the home. The inspector sampled recruitment records for contracted staff and an agency worker. Records show that safe recruitment processes are in place. This reduces the risk of children being cared for by unsuitable individuals.

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good

Managers supervise staff regularly and those who are employed by the organisation have their performance reviewed once a year. This provides staff with the opportunity to discuss children, reflect on practice and develop their performance. This promotes a reflective culture that drives improvement. Inspection report children's home: SC398481 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 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

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)(c)(d)(e)) 28 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iv)(vi)(vii)) 28 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC398481 7

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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’.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hillcrest Children’s Services (2) Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Helen Malanaphy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC398481 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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Inspector

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