Children's Home run by Aspris Children’s Services Limited in Suffolk

Inspection report children's home: SC481221 1 SC481221 Registered provider: Priory Education Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private company and is registered for up to five children. The home offers 38- and 52-week placements for children who have experienced neglect, abuse or trauma that has left them vulnerable.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in May 2018.

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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 home on 8 December 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.

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requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 10 December 2019

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC481221 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/12/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 23/07/2019 Full Good 09/05/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good 26/04/2017 Full Good Inspection report children's home: SC481221 3

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improvement to be good

At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home. Since December 2020, one child moved into the home and left in an unplanned way. There have been recent significant incidents when the staff have called the police because the staff have been unable to manage the incidents safely. These incidents and recent staff turnover have reduced the overall quality of children’s experiences. Several shortfalls have been identified in managerial monitoring. However, despite these shortfalls, children are making some progress.

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improvement to be good

The matching process for one child to other children already living at the home was poor. Although an impact assessment that considered the children’s compatibility was made, full information about the risks for the child was not shared by the placing authority. Furthermore, the risks that were known for this child were not suitably considered against the other children’s vulnerabilities. Failure to ensure that the matching processes are thorough has limited the staff’s capacity to implement effective risk-reduction strategies.

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improvement to be good

The home is spacious and set in large countryside grounds. Children have personalised bedrooms that are decorated in line with their preferences. However, several areas of the house are showing signs of wear. Damage that has been sustained to the home has not always been repaired promptly. This detracts from what is otherwise a well-appointed home.

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improvement to be good

The staff ensure that all the children attend school regularly. They work closely with school staff to address any complex behaviours, helping children to meet their education targets. Children who have previously experienced gaps in education have been able to sustain consistent attendance. They make positive progress from their starting points.

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improvement to be good

Staff provide key-work meetings and house meetings. Key-work meetings are responsive to the emerging needs of each child. These have enabled the children to understand their responsibilities and begin to reflect on their impact on others.

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improvement to be good

Despite high staff turnover, children have established nurturing relationships with the core staff team. Staff offer children a range of activities that support their well- being and interests.

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improvement to be good

Safe recruitment processes are not consistently followed. Managers have not ensured that recruitment records for agency staff always contain the required Inspection report children's home: SC481221 4 information. The current monitoring systems fail to sufficiently reduce the potential for unsuitable people to work at the home.

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improvement to be good

The staff are aware of their safeguarding responsibilities and they have a good knowledge of whistle-blowing procedures. However, one staff member had not completed their principal safeguarding training within a reasonable timescale. The staff member’s induction plan was not monitored effectively. As a result, this deficit went unnoticed by managers. This did not ensure that this staff member had been supported to develop the necessary skills.

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk management plans are detailed and current. They cover a range of risks and behaviours and include individual strategies that staff use to support the children. This contributes to core staff having a good understanding of children’s behaviours and how to manage these. However, the staff have been unable to consistently de-escalate recent challenging incidents effectively. As a result, the police have been called to the home to assist staff.

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improvement to be good

When required, the staff use physical interventions. These are proportionate and only used after other approaches have been tried.

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improvement to be good

Staff have good awareness of children’s individual missing-from-home profiles and procedures. There are effective supervision levels and security arrangements. As a result, no incidents of children going missing from the home have occurred.

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good

The manager is suitably qualified and experienced. A child focused and committed deputy is in post.

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good

The home has experienced a difficult period and high staff turnover. The management team has used staff from the organisation’s other homes and agencies to cover these staffing gaps. Managers have embarked on a recruitment exercise and spoke of plans to address negative trends. However, the high number of different staff who look after the children affects children’s ability to form established relationships with them. This does not ensure that consistent care is provided by staff who have experience of meeting children’s individual needs.

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good

The managerial monitoring is not good enough. Some of the children’s case files are disorganised and contain contradictory information. Furthermore, the timeliness of staff debriefs and managerial oversight of some records of physical interventions and sanctions have been delayed. Failure by the manager to ensure that information is reviewed promptly compromises the overall analysis and learning opportunities from these incidents.

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good

At the time of the inspection, the progress of the current internal review of the quality of care could not be evidenced, despite the required time passing. The previous report did not include any direct feedback from children, their parents or Inspection report children's home: SC481221 5 placing authorities. This reduces the capacity of the management team to have a thorough understanding of the strengths and development opportunities of the home.

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good

Staff attend child-focused meetings. Core staff receive regular reflective supervisions and appraisals. However, managers have not ensured that newly recruited staff receive regular supervisions during their probation. This does not ensure that these staff have the support that they should be receiving at a critical time in their development.

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good

Staff have built good relationships with external professionals and children’s families. The staff are positive about their roles and the support that they receive from the management team.

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good

The management team, including a newly appointed senior manager, understands the improvements that need to be made and has taken some immediate steps to address the shortfalls identified. Inspection report children's home: SC481221 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 the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that a review of negative staffing trends is included in the workforce development plan and an action plan to address the findings is implemented. 30 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

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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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

ensure that records of restrictive interventions and sanctions are accurately maintained and include managerial oversight evaluations within required timescales; 30 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC481221 7 monitor children’s case records to ensure that they are accessible and accurate.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)) 19 July 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

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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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

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that agency staff have had the required checks prior to their deployment. 19 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

ensure that each employee completes an appropriate induction. (Regulation 33 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that timescales defined in staff’s induction plans for core safeguarding training are met. 19 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC481221 8 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 newly recruited staff receive regular supervision in line with the home’s policy. 19 July 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

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (5)) 30 July 2021

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Recommendation

 The registered person should provide a nurturing, homely environment. In particular, they should ensure that all areas of the home are decorated to a consistently high standard and damage is repaired promptly. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9) Inspection report children's home: SC481221 9

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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: SC481221 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Priory Education Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Fifth Floor, 80 Hammersmith Road, London W14 8UD

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Inspector

Mark Anderton, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC481221 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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