Children's Home run by 1848 Ltd in Somerset

Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 1 Registered provider: 1848 Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a private provider and provides care for up to three children. At the time of this inspection, two children were living at the home.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in March 2019.

p.1

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.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 13 to 14 October 2020 to carry out an assurance visit. The report is published on the Ofsted website .

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

p.1

requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

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.

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Date of last inspection: 18 February 2020

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: sustained effectiveness

p.1

requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 2

p.1

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/02/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 25/06/2019 Full Inadequate Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 3

p.2

improvement to be good

Progress for some children in this home has been mixed. Since the assurance visit on 13 to 14 October 2020 three children have moved out. Leaders and managers identified that they could not meet two of these children’s needs in this home and the third child moved to another home within the organisation. Since then, good planning has ensured that two new children have moved in positively and have settled well.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s needs and behaviours are understood by staff. However, information in care plans and risk assessments is too broad and lacks clarity about the children’s current needs, behaviours and risks. Consequently, instructions for staff about the supervision of children when they are outside the home and how staff are to manage high-risk behaviours are not clear. In addition, care plan targets are not timely or measurable and do not help staff to maximise the progress children have the potential to achieve.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children can identify an adult that they can talk to and enjoy spending time with. Children are confident that staff listen to any concerns and worries they may have, and that appropriate action is taken in response.

p.3

improvement to be good

The manager and staff are strong advocates for the children they care for. Children’s progress and achievement are celebrated, and the way staff speak about the children is akin to that of a proud parent.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children’s personal talents and interests are promoted. Children enjoy a broad range of activities within the home and in the local community. Children are attending education and their health needs are well met. However, records do not comprehensively capture the support that staff provide to children, especially in relation to helping children to stop smoking.

p.3

improvement to be good

The home is spacious, and children are encouraged to personalise their bedrooms. Maintenance work is scheduled to redecorate a child’s bedroom and en-suite bathroom.

p.3

improvement to be good

Children say that they feel safe living here and that they like the adults who care for them. Staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities to safeguard children and they recognise and report concerns to the manager appropriately. The manager correctly escalates these concerns to safeguarding agencies when necessary. However, records of the actions taken and the outcome of the concern are not consistently documented as required. Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 4 Children’s known needs and behaviours are considered and assessed prior to the decision to admit a child into the home. However, the severity of potential risks and whether they can be managed by the staff team are not considered. In addition, in one instance, the impact of one child’s needs and behaviours on the other children was not thoroughly assessed.

p.3

improvement to be good

Staff help children to develop positive behaviour. Restraint is rarely used and only as a last resort to keep children safe. Opportunities for staff and children to talk about these incidents are provided. However, discussions to help staff reflect on their practice and to explore how children felt about being held are not always considered.

p.4

improvement to be good

Prevalent risks in the immediate local area have the potential to place children at risk of exploitation. In addition, health and safety hazards in the driveway leave children, staff and visitors at risk of potential harm. Prompt action is needed to mitigate these risks.

p.4

good

Since the assurance visit the management arrangements for this home have changed. The registered manager has been working in a different role within the organisation since August 2021. However, at the time of this inspection she remains registered at this home, although she is not currently in day-to-day charge. An acting manager has been appointed who is in the process of applying to register with Ofsted.

p.4

good

The acting manager’s tenacious and child-focused approach is ensuring that her team provides improved quality of care for children. Poor staff performance is managed well and appropriate action is taken in response.

p.4

good

Since the assurance visit formal supervision of staff has been infrequent. The acting manager has taken action to address this and has ensured that supervision is now taking place regularly.

p.4

good

The manager and staff are not compliant with mandatory and specialist training. This limits their ability to support children as effectively as they could.

p.4

good

Some recording systems are cumbersome and not all records are kept up to date. The manager’s monitoring of the home includes a review of patterns and trends, the quality of the environment and the quality of care. However, the manager’s monitoring report does not clearly detail the impact of her assessment or evaluation of the performance of the home.

p.4

good

The manager is creative and presents as having an aspirational vision to develop the quality of care and children’s experiences. However, this vision is not incorporated Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 5 into the home’s development plan, and does not include contributions from children and staff. Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 6

p.4

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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

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))

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the compatibility risk assessment considers the severity of risk and the impact one child’s needs and behaviours can have on other children living in the home. In addition, ensure that immediate action is taken address the hazards in the driveway and identify ways to mitigate the risks in the local area. 10 December

p.6

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

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;

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home; 10 December Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 7 manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

p.6

Requirement Due date

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii))

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all care plans are clear, concise and relevant to each child’s current needs and behaviours.

p.7

Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

p.7

Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(b)(i)(ii))

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that all incidents of restraint are independently reviewed for effectiveness, and that all children and staff are provided with an opportunity to reflect on what happened and explore alternative strategies to prevent reoccurrence. 10 December

p.7

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.

p.7

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—

p.7

Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

p.7

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

After completing a quality of care review, the registered person must produce a written report about the quality of 10 December Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 8 care review and the actions which the registered person intends to take as a result of the quality of care review ("the quality of care review report").

p.7

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) (3) (5))

p.8

Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the quality of care review includes the views of the children and stake holders, and evaluate the impact these have on the quality of care that is provided. In addition, consider areas for development and include these within the home’s development plan.

p.8

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are compliant with mandatory and specialist training. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 53, paragraph 10.11)

p.8

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff receive regular formal supervision, and that the records are of a good quality and reflect the discussions held. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.3)

p.8

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: 2491059 9

p.8

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Old Bank Buildings, East Street, Ilminster, Somerset TA19 0AJ

p.9

Inspectors

Sharron Escott, Social Care Inspector Katie Ratcliffe, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2491059 10 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.

p.9

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.10

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.10

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.10