Children's Home run by Sea Sanctuary in Cornwall

Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 1 Registered provider: Sea Sanctuary Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider and is a ship that is permanently moored to the quayside on a tidal estuary. The provider states in its statement of purpose that care is provided for up to six children with social, emotional or behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has been in post since May 2019.

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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 4 November 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: 12 November 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: 2530977 2 Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

12/11/2019 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 4

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improvement to be good

Outcomes for children are mixed. One child who has extremely complex needs is making small but steady progress and incidents are reducing, due to the trusting and nurturing relationships the staff have built with her. Another child moved to live in a supported living arrangement in accordance with their plan, having made progress at the home. However, other children have had to leave the home as the staff have been unable to manage their behaviour and keep them safe. The staff are currently struggling to manage the behaviour of one child and keep him safe.

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improvement to be good

Too often, the staff are allowing the children to have too much control in the home and are not implementing consistent boundaries and routines that would help to ensure that all the children make progress and feel safe. Staff report that they are not always clear about what the plans are for the day. This shortfall is understood by the manager, who is introducing a key-worker checklist. This is not yet embedded in practice.

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improvement to be good

Leaders and managers do not always ensure that the children are making educational progress through receiving education in line with their plans. Where children do not have an education placement, there is no alternative and creative plan in place to ensure that educational activity takes place during a school day.

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improvement to be good

The home meets the complex emotional health needs of children and the staff work effectively with health professionals. Therapeutic support is offered to children to meet their emotional health needs. However, it is not clear how this therapeutic support informs the children’s plans, for example by offering creative strategies for the staff to use to manage the children’s behaviour. This is recognised by the manager and she is currently undertaking work to improve the gathering and recording of evidence around the impact of the children’s therapeutic input.

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improvement to be good

The children enjoy a range of activities in line with their interests, such as canoeing, football clubs and shopping trips. The children also enjoy helping the staff to walk their dogs.

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improvement to be good

The home provides the children with a homely and comfortable environment. Any damage to the home is promptly repaired. The children choose the colours and furnishings for their bedrooms. Photographs of the children are displayed throughout the ship, giving the children a sense of belonging.

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improvement to be good

Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 5 Behaviour-management strategies used in the home are not always effective. On too many occasions, children have been out of the staff’s control. Children have damaged the home, hurt staff, set fires in the home, thrown furniture and personal items belonging to the staff overboard and locked themselves in rooms.

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improvement to be good

The use of physical restraint to manage behaviour is minimal. When restraint is used, the record of restraint does not always describe the hold used or why the restraint was necessary.

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improvement to be good

Managers do not comprehensively monitor the use of sanctions to ensure that they are effective. For example, one child was given the same sanction three times. The evidence that this sanction was not effective was not identified by managers to inform a different and more effective strategy.

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improvement to be good

Comprehensive assessments of risk and control measures are in place to help promote the safety of children. The manager and the staff work effectively with safeguarding professionals and social workers, such as when there is a concern about the practice of a member of staff.

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improvement to be good

The children report that they feel safe living in the home and could name a trusted adult they would speak to if they felt worried or upset. When children go missing, the staff are vigilant and use professional curiosity to find out where children are and who they are with.

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improvement to be good

The staff are rigorously checked prior to starting work in the home, to ensure that they are suitable people to be working with children.

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good

The manager is experienced and is well liked by the staff and children. Significant changes of staff have taken place in the last 12 months. Leaders and managers recognise that this lack of consistency is not helpful for the children and have undertaken a review to look at the reasons why staff have left and identify any trends and patterns. Arising from this work, an action plan has been put in place.

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good

The staff benefit from a comprehensive induction period when they start work at the home. An extensive training programme is offered to staff. However, not all staff have completed the specialist training that is necessary to support children with complex care needs.

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good

Leaders and managers have not notified Ofsted of two serious incidents as required by the regulations.

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good

Management oversight of records and documents lacks rigour. In the majority of cases the manager actively challenges other professionals to provide the services the children need. For one child, the offer of an advocate and confirmation of an education placement has not been secured. Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 6 The record of complaints to the home do not evidence that complainants are informed of the outcome of their complaint and it is not recorded whether they are satisfied with the outcome of the complaint. Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 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 educational and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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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 overcome any such barriers;

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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;

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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. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(v)(viii)(ix)(x)) 1 October 2021

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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

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers serious. 1 October 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 8 A notification made under this regulation—

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Requirement Due date

the other persons, bodies or organisations (if any) who or which have been notified; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions taken by the registered person as a result of the matter. (Regulation 40 (4)(e) (5)(a)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

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 the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and the duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and consequences of the use of the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(ii)(iv)(v)(vii)) 1 October 2021

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Requirement Due date

The quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare; 1 October 2021 Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 9 (Regulation 6 (a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to leaders and managers ensuring that children benefit from healthy and structured daily routines.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the aims of a child’s placement are clearly documented in their plans, along with how these plans will be achieved through using therapeutic interventions, and document 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

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child. (Regulation 13(1)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly relates to ensuring that all the staff in the home receive specialist training around topics such as supporting children who self-harm and have an eating disorder, so that they can safely meet the complex needs of the children in their care. 1 October 2021

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Recommendation

 Ensure that all children have access to appropriate advocacy support, and where possible this should be provided by a person that the child chooses. Looked-after children are entitled to an independent advocate to advise them and ensure that they have the support needed to express their views, wishes and feelings about their care and lives. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 23, paragraph 4.16)

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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, Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 10 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: 2530977 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Waterside Court, Falmouth Road, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 8AW

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kimberley Ibbotson

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Inspectors

Tina Maddison, Social Care Inspector Justine Hosking, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2530977 12 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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