Children's Home run by Derby City Council in Derby

Inspection report children's home: SC488596 1 SC488596

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This local authority owned and run children’s home is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to four children who need support with emotional and/or behavioural problems.

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Information about this children’s home

A new manager was appointed in June 2021.

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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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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded. The care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 12 November 2019

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: declined in effectiveness

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: SC488596 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/11/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness 16/07/2019 Full Good 05/12/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/04/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children's home: SC488596 3

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inadequate

Children are not making progress in education. Although efforts have been made by staff to identify suitable schools, two children receive less than three hours formal education per week. One of the children has not attended school since September 2020. Children are often away from the home during the school day. Staff and managers do not ensure that children take part in educational activities during school hours.

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inadequate

Children’s health needs are not well met. Some children lead very unhealthy lifestyles. For example, although specialist support has been sought, one child continues to use drugs on a regular basis. Another child stays up late at night gaming. This lack of routine damages children’s overall well-being. Children have poor sleep patterns and poor diets, and are not motivated to engage in education.

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inadequate

Children say that they are not always involved in decisions that affect them. Staff have undertaken a search of a child’s bedroom without considering whether the child should have been informed. This created mistrust between the child and staff.

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inadequate

Social workers and other professionals say that communication with the home is improving. However, weaknesses in multi-agency working have resulted in slow decision-making and delays in addressing children’s poor outcomes. Multi-agency meetings are scheduled on a regular basis. However, these are not always well attended. This means that information is not shared well, and that children’s support plans are not updated in line with their emerging needs.

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inadequate

Children live in a well presented home. This provides them with a bright and homely environment. However, parts of the garden and some outdoor sporting equipment have not been well maintained.

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

The lack of stable, safe routines increases children’s risk of harm. Staff have not ensured that children are engaged in safe, constructive activities. Instead, children spend considerable periods of unstructured time away from the home, where they are at risk of criminal exploitation and have access to drugs. In some cases, children have used drugs in the home, without staff intervention. They have then been allowed to leave the home while under the influence of drugs.

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

When children go missing, they do not always have an independent return home interview. This means that opportunities to improve children’s safety might be missed. Inspection report children's home: SC488596 4 The manager has failed to ensure that health and safety checks take place regularly. The potential hazards associated with children smoking in their bedrooms have not been addressed robustly. For example, because staff do not remove cigarette lighters from bedrooms, the risk of fire is increased.

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

Medication administration and recording were poor at the previous inspection and have not improved. Although senior managers have invested considerable resources in improving medication systems, including training and formal competency checks, there continue to be shortfalls which could have a serious impact on the children’s health and well-being.

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

There are a low number of restraints. However, when restraint has been required, children have been restrained by staff who have not been trained in the safe holding of children. De-escalation strategies have not always been followed prior to restraints taking place. Other staff have failed to intervene to prevent poor restraint practice. Managers’ evaluation of restraints is poor. As a result, shortfalls have not been addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The exisiting manager was due to leave in late June 2021 and a new, experienced manager has started work at the home. The new manager has a clear understanding of the areas that require improvement and, although she is very new, has clear plans to quickly address poor practice. For example, she has already put in place a more structured team meeting schedule and more organised medication routines.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Management monitoring of the home has not improved. There are several areas where mistakes made by staff have not been identified. For example, medication audits have not identified errors and omissions. These shortfalls create the potential for harm to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Monitoring of staff performance by managers is not effective. Managers have failed to act on recommendations from investigations into staff practice. This lack of oversight means there is a risk of continuing poor practice by staff.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not ensured that all staff receive regular supervision. Some staff have had no supervision with a manager since February 2021. This failure to provide effective support and guidance to staff has contributed to inadequate care standards in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Four requirements set at the last interim inspection have not been met. As a result, management arrangements, care planning and medication administration have not improved. These requirements have been set again following this inspection. Inspection report children's home: SC488596 5

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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

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

ensure, by means of fire drills and practices at suitable intervals, that persons working at the home and, so far as reasonably practicable, children are aware of the procedure to be followed in case of fire. (Regulation 25 (1)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to health and safety checks. 30 July 2021

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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 (4)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff training in restraint techniques. 30 July 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy (“the behaviour management policy”) which sets out—

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Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it. (Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the staff use of de-escalation techniques and the managers’ evaluation of the effectiveness of each intervention. 30 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. 30 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC488596 6 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 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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff’s understanding and implementation of risk assessments and their role in keeping children safe, particularly with regard to children in the community and fire risks.

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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

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

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

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the effectiveness of audits of medication processes by managers and the monitoring of staff performance. 30 July 2021

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that— 30 July 2021 Inspection report children's home: SC488596 7 a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to errors in the recording of the administration of medication.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally.

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iv)(v)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the support provided to children who are not attending school. 30 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: SC488596 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Derby City Council, Treasurers Department, Council House, Corporation Street, Derby DE1 2FE

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Inspector

Simon Hunter, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: SC488596 9 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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