Children's home run by Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 1 Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides care for up to three children with learning disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder. It is owned by a large national provider of children’s homes.

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Information about this children’s home

The provider made the decision to not look after any children permanently between December 2019 and May 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted on 22 July 2020.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), at the request of the Secretary of State, Ofsted 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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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: 1249031 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 05/06/2018 Full Good 08/02/2018 Interim Sustained effectiveness 08/05/2017 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 3

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improvement to be good

Children’s overall experiences and the quality of care that they receive is not consistently good. This is because of weaknesses in the help and protection they receive and the leadership and management of the home.

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improvement to be good

The provider made the decision to not look after any children permanently between December 2019 and May 2021. The provider moved a child in to the home in May 2021. The transition plan for the child was individualised to meet his needs. However, staff struggled to help the child manage his feelings and behaviour. Following a period of crisis, the child left the home earlier than planned.

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improvement to be good

The home’s admission procedures fail to fully consider staff’s abilities and experience to respond effectively to children’s complex needs. A child’s move into the home at a time when another child was struggling had a negative impact on both children.

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improvement to be good

Children do not yet have a healthy lifestyle. Staff have not sought advice from health professionals in their efforts to improve a child’s eating habits and provide him with healthy and nutritious food. Also, staff have failed to make sure that a child has had all his outstanding immunisations.

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improvement to be good

Despite these shortfalls, children have gradual introductions to the home. The manager provides children with information in ways that are tailored to their communication needs and capacity for understanding. The manager and staff use social stories effectively to help the children understand about why they are moving to live at the home, what it is like living there, and to help them cope with this significant change in their lives.

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improvement to be good

One child is settled and happy. He has a strong sense of belonging and, as a result, he is making progress. Since coming to live at the home, the child is developing his social and communication skills, absorbing and retaining information, managing his feelings, and enjoying a wide range of activities in the community.

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improvement to be good

This child enjoys warm and trusting relationships with staff. Staff understand how the child communicates his feelings through his behaviour and his preferred way of communication. They have the skills to communicate easily with him. They listen to him carefully and respond appropriately to his wishes and feelings.

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improvement to be good

Children live in a comfortable home, which is designed and decorated to meet their individual needs. The house is well maintained, children are protected from avoidable hazards and any damage is repaired quickly. Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 4

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improvement to be good

The practice in relation to helping and protecting children needs to improve. There is nothing to show that the failings found at this inspection have led to children suffering harm. However, if they are left unchecked, they have the potential to do so.

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improvement to be good

Some staff are uncertain about what they need to do if they have concerns about children’s safety. They do not have a clear understanding of the home’s safeguarding and missing-from-home procedures.

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improvement to be good

Staff struggled to support one child when he was in crisis. They did not always work effectively as a team to provide a consistent response that helped the child to manage his emotions and feel calm. This resulted in staff needing to use physical restraint to keep the child and other people safe.

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improvement to be good

The physical intervention records do not always show the steps staff have taken to avoid the use of physical restraint. This information is important to enable the manager to evaluate critically what had happened and to identify what needs to improve to help the child.

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improvement to be good

Staff follow the guidance in risk management plans to protect children from harm. Effective management oversight makes sure that these plans are up to date, effective and continue to promote children’s safety and welfare.

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improvement to be good

Staff take reasonable precautions, based on children’s individual needs and abilities, to allow children to take risks that promote their independence and provide opportunities for new experiences. Staff help children to understand about risk and how to keep themselves safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff’s nurturing and positive approach and use of social stories help children to feel safe, manage their emotions and make sense of the world around them. Staff are helping a child to cope successfully with changes in his daily routines. In particular, they supported him when he was unable to go to school because of COVID-19 restrictions and during the summer holidays.

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improvement to be good

A health professional said, ‘The staff team understand the child’s need for a low arousal and positive behaviour support approach. I haven’t received any reports in relation to incidents of challenging behaviour or physical intervention since he moved in. This reflects how settled he is now and how safe he will be feeling with a consistent and capable staff team around him.’ Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 5

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good

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2020. She is experienced and knowledgeable about providing residential care for children with learning disabilities. She is appropriately qualified for the role. She understands the home’s strengths and areas for improvement and is supported by two deputies. Together, they share the same vision for the service.

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good

The manager is building a new staff team. She is aware that many of the staff are inexperienced and unqualified so they need support and training to develop their confidence and skills.

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good

There are not enough staff working at the home to meet the needs of three children in line with the home’s statement of purpose. The manager is taking steps to recruit new suitable staff and has no plans to move any children into the home until the staffing complement is achieved.

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good

The staff duty rosters do not provide an up-to-date record of who is working at the home and the actual time worked by the manager and staff.

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good

Staff are enthusiastic and resourceful. They share the ethos of the home in providing a positive, nurturing and safe place for children to live in. They feel valued and supported by the manager.

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good

However, staff are not receiving regular supervision as set out in the home’s policies. The lack of regular supervision does not enable staff to understand their responsibilities, reflect on their practice and learning and to identify any further training that they need to support their continued professional development.

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good

The information written about children is another area where improvement is required. Children’s records are not always signed and dated by the person completing them. The records are not always written in a way that is helpful to the child. Staff do not always use positive and non-stigmatising language or show children’s strengths, talents and achievements.

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good

Children and parents are not consulted regularly on their views about the home. This is a missed opportunity to help the registered person understand fully the effectiveness of the quality of care and its impact on children’s lives.

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good

The manager acknowledges fully all the shortfalls raised at this inspection. She recognises how they impact on the day-to-day running of the home and the outcomes for children. The manager shows the capacity and enthusiasm to make the required improvements, including the recruitment, support, training and development of staff. Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 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 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;

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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

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;

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to such dental, medical, nursing, psychiatric and psychological advice, treatment and other services as the child may require . (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(iii)(iv)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to making sure that the children are encouraged and supported to have healthy and nutritious diet based on the advice of a health professional. Also, to make sure that children are up to date with immunisations. 12 September

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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

promotes their welfare. 12 September Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff work as a team where appropriate;

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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. (Regulation 13 (1) (2)(b)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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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.

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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 children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the registered person making sure that they agree for children to come to live at the home only when they are satisfied that staff have the experience, skills, understanding and training to respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 5 September 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees receive practice-related supervision and have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 12 September Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 8 The registered person must ensure that 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

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(v)) 18 August 2021

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records (“case records”) for each child which—

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Requirement Due date

are signed and dated by the author of each entry. (Regulation 36 (1)(b)(c)) 12 September

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4 and ensure that the records are kept up to date. (Regulation 37 (2)(a)(b) and Schedule 4 paragraph 3)

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must make sure that there is an up-to-date staff roster of people working in the home and an accurate record of the actual time worked at the home by the registered manager and staff. 18 August 2021

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Recommendations

 The registered person should make sure that children and parents are consulted regularly about their views about the home and care provided to help the registered person review the quality of care and make continued improvements. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including quality standards’, page 20, paragraph 4.11)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should make sure that information about children is always recorded in a way that is helpful to the child. Staff should record information about each child using non-stigmatising language. Records should clearly show the quality of children’s experiences, their strengths, skills and achievements. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 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: 1249031 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 2nd Floor, Maybrook House, Queensway, Halesowen, Worcestershire B63 4AH

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Inspectors

Nick Veysey, Social Care Inspector Michelle Edge, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 1249031 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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