Children's Home run by Trafford Borough Council in Trafford

Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 1 SC032496 Registered provider: Trafford Borough Council 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 local authority and provides care and accommodation for up to six children or young people who may have emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home uses the ‘No Wrong Door’ model and offers outreach support.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in April 2017.

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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 25 February 2021 to carry out a monitoring 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: 4 September 2019

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

04/09/2019 Full Good 05/09/2018 Full Good 26/06/2017 Full Good 26/10/2016 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 3

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improvement to be good

The home has been using the ‘No Wrong Door’ model since October 2019. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this has not been fully implemented. Managers plan to relaunch the ‘No Wrong Door’ model by modelling practice from other authorities that have been successful.

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improvement to be good

Three children are resident in this home. The manager has improved the referral process for children coming to live in the home. This includes good matching of other children’s needs. However, the manager has not considered the home’s location area report as part of the process. As a result, she has not considered any potential risks and whether these would have any bearing on the suitability of the placement.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they feel happy and safe at this home. They speak about the good relationships that they have with each other and the staff team. The children are able to identify several members of staff who they can talk to if they have a concern. One child said, ‘It is great. Staff really listen. I would recommend this home to other children.’ The inspector viewed positive interactions between children and staff throughout the visit.

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improvement to be good

Staff have the necessary educational documents for the children. However, information has not been taken from these documents to form a plan of how to support the children. As a result, staff do not know what exams the children have taken, at what stage they are at academically or what their attendance is like. Further to this, children have secured placements at college but there is no information about what support they require at college.

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improvement to be good

Children have good access to a range of health services. For example, they receive extra support from external mental health professionals to help them with their emotions. However, the only information around this is the appointment records, which have not been fully completed with all the information required. Similarly, some children have outstanding immunisations but there is no record of how staff have followed these up. There is little information around the children’s personal, physical, emotional, social or sexual health needs and how the staff are supporting the children in these areas.

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improvement to be good

On a positive note, children receive additional support from a speech and language therapist. The therapist has been able to help children who have difficulty processing information. Likewise, staff have written information to follow to support them in conversations with the children, for example keeping sentences short or giving children time to reflect and answer. A child told the inspector that this has helped them enormously. Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 4 Numerous documents are not signed by the author, the manager, the staff or the child’s named social worker. This does not show that everyone agrees with the plans or that the staff are aware of any changes to the children’s plans. Significantly, a child’s local authority placement plan is unsigned, which contains permission for emergency medical treatment. This means that there could be a delay in receiving emergency treatment. Likewise, although children are making progress, there is little

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improvement to be good

information on how this progress is achieved. Therefore, this does not show the child’s journey throughout their stay at the home.

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improvement to be good

Members of staff work closely with the children, their parents, their family members and professionals so that they see each other regularly. This focus on positive family time means that important relationships are maintained and built on.

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improvement to be good

Preparation for semi-independence is a strong feature in the home. Children’s life skills are assessed, and staff give them support to help them learn practical skills, such as budgeting, cooking and in maintenance. Children have bank accounts and have applied for jobs and been successful. As part of preparing children for adult life and their careers, the children have completed online training in first aid, food hygiene, and health and safety. They have certificates in these areas to show future employers. In addition to this, the child’s key person remains involved in the child’s future by visiting and offering additional support after they leave.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they feel safe, and that staff do their very best to safeguard them, including teaching them about risky or unsafe choices, such as unhealthy relationships. One child said, ‘This is the safest that I have felt in a long time.’

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk assessments and behaviour management plans highlight all known risks that are recorded in children’s local authority documents. However, there is little information on the agreed strategies to use to de-escalate situations and there is no clear guidance for staff to follow if an incident occurs. Consequently, staff are not provided with clear guidance on safeguarding matters, which undermines continuity in the staff team’s response to the children.

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improvement to be good

Children have been reported missing from this home. Some children have been missing for extended periods. The manager has not always informed Ofsted as part of the home’s safeguarding process. This reduces the regulator’s oversight. However, as part of the ‘No Wrong Door’ model, there is a police officer based at the home. She said, ‘The staff are excellent at gaining soft intelligence from the children so that I can make enquires.’ She continued to say that staff search the local area and continually try to find children, often doing this in their own time or travelling long distances. Return home interviews are completed by an independent person. As a result, children have been able to share the reasons of why they went missing and action has been taken to support the children. As a result, some children have significantly reduced their missing-from-home episodes. Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 5

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improvement to be good

There have been no safeguarding concerns to report to the safeguarding agencies. Staff demonstrate that they know the procedure to follow if a concern was to arise. All staff have received safeguarding training and additional supportive training, such as in child sexual exploitation, county lines and child criminal exploitation, which is refreshed regularly. This means that they have the knowledge to support children and can identify early signs of involvement.

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improvement to be good

Children say that the rewards and incentives systems in the home encourage them to be good. Likewise, children say that sanctions are fair and that they are given the opportunity to make things right.

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improvement to be good

Safe recruitment and health and safety practices at the home ensure that only the most suitable staff work at the home and that it is a safe place to live. Records show that children, staff and visitors are taken through the emergency evacuation procedure. Likewise, all visitors complete checks for COVID-19. This means that everyone is kept as safe as possible.

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good

The manager returned to work in March 2021 after having a long period off sick. During this period, there was little oversight of the home by other managers or leaders. As a result, the manager says that she is aware that the home needs to improve, especially in the recordings around the children. She has identified most of the shortfalls through an audit of the home’s documents. However, she is confident that the staff have focused on the children and their needs. Children confirmed this.

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good

The manager has a good range of experience to care for the children and staff. She has a leadership and management qualification. The manager is supported by two senior residential care workers. All staff have a relevant childcare qualification. This means that children are cared for by a qualified, experienced and well-trained staff team.

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good

The manager and staff have not received regular supervision. This does not ensure that they are given the opportunity to reflect on their practice. However, staff say that they feel supported, valued and motivated because they have daily handovers, discussions with the ‘No Wrong Door’ team and fortnightly team meetings. They say that they can share their knowledge and discuss the children in depth. The staff also benefit from a wealth of training and development opportunities to support their continuing professional development. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, most of the training has been completed online. However, face-to-face training events have resumed and further training is scheduled for the coming year.

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good

The home’s records do not show the support that staff have given to the children to help them to make progress. Further to this, the children’s files are not easily accessible. This is because old or duplicate information is kept on the child’s file. Numerous records have not been signed or dated by the author, the acting manager or the social worker. This does not ensure that there is good oversight of the records Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 6 or that all parties agree with the plans. The external monitoring is ineffective because the independent visitor has not highlighted these issues to the manager. As a result, the manager has not been able to address and take quick action to remedy these issues. Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 7

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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 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

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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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

maintain regular contact with each child’s education and training provider, including engaging with the provider and the placing authority to support the child’s education and training and to maximise the child’s achievement;

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Requirement Due date

raise any need for further assessment or specialist provision in relation to a child with the child’s education or training provider and the child’s placing authority;

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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 28 September Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 8 exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(ix)(x)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to ensuring that a child’s education plan contains information from essential education documents that helps staff to support a child in their education.

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs; and

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Requirement Due date

understand and develop skills to promote the child’s well- being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)) 28 September Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 9 This relates specifically to ensuring that a child’s health information is collated into a document that gives the child and staff a clear understanding about a child’s personal, physical, emotional, social and sexual health.

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to ensuring that children’s risk assessments have clear guidance on the strategies for staff to use to de-escalate behaviour and clear actions to follow if an incident occurs. 28 September

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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 premises used for the purposes of the home are located so that children are effectively safeguarded. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to ensuring that the location risk assessment is considered when accepting new admissions into the home. 28 September

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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;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, this relates to ensuring that the manager and staff receive regular supervision. 28 September

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which— 28 September Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 10 include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

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Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

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Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child—

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e)) 28 September

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the child’s placing authority consent) as the independent person requires. 28 September Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 11 The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and

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Requirement Due date

the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person’s report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Requirement Due date

This relates specifically to the independent visitor scrutinising the home’s records and identifying shortfalls.

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Requirement Due date

This also relates to the report being sent to Ofsted in a timely manner.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff encourage children to see the home’s records as ‘living documents’ and support them to view and contribute to the records in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. This is specifically in relation to the structure of the children’s files. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 58, paragraph 11.19)  The registered person should ensure that the home’s records on each child represent a significant contribution to their life history. This is specifically in relation to ensuring that the steps taken by staff to secure good progress and outcomes are clearly recorded within the child’s documents. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.5)

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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: SC032496 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Trafford Council, Town Hall, Talbot Road, Manchester, Trafford M32 0TH

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Inspector

Pam Nuckley, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC032496 13 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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