Children's home run by New Beginnings Young People’s Care and Support Services Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 1 Registered provider: New Beginnings Young People’s Care and Support Services Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately owned children’s home. It is registered to provide care for up to two children who may have social and emotional needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is leaving the organisation in January 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

Due to COVID-19, at the request of the Secretary of State, we suspended all routine inspections of social care providers carried out under the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF) on 17 March 2020. We returned to routine SCCIF inspections on 12 April 2021.

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Information about this children’s home

We last visited this setting on 11 November 2020 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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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: This is the first inspection at the home.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

This is the first inspection to the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are happy living in the home. They make good progress in different areas of their development. For example, a child who previously did not safely manage his health condition has responded extremely well to the guidance and support provided by staff. Another child is building positive relationships with the staff. These are positive steps forward for children who previously struggled to listen to the advice and guidance of the adults caring for them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The relationships between the staff, children and professionals are effective. They all work in partnership to achieve the best outcomes for children. A social worker said, ‘The quality of care here is superb. Children thrive, and all [are] very well supported. The staff team are great, and communication is really good.’ Effective consultation is regularly undertaken with children to ensure that they can voice their views and opinions.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff ensure that children receive the necessary advice to keep themselves and others safe within the government’s COVID-19 guidelines. Strict protocols were followed when a COVID outbreak was experienced. Managers and staff carefully considered the safety of the children and limited the number of people entering the home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a warm and nurturing environment and the home is furnished to a good standard. Children are encouraged to personalise their bedrooms and had recently been involved in the planning and purchase of the new Christmas tree and decorations. One child said, ‘There is nothing I would change about my home.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Some children are making progress with their education and aspire for their future careers. However, not all children have an education provision, and this has delayed their learning and outcomes. The registered manager has challenged the local authority and education professionals about the delays, and has escalated her concerns about the long-term impact on the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to understand the importance of learning new skills for their future from day one. The staff work individually with children on practical and emotional life skills. This is helping children to recognise their changing needs as they grow and develop. In addition, children are developing new hobbies and interests. This is helping them to grow in confidence.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to spend quality time with their family and friends. This is safely managed, and family time has increased for all children. Staff are readily available to facilitate contact regularly. In addition, family members are friends are welcomed into the home to spend quality time together. One child said, ‘It’s the first time my friends have been able to visit me where I live.’ Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 4 Children who have moved on from the home have done so by means of a planned and collaborative approach with their placing authority.

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

Children said that they are safe and protected from harm. They can identify an adult they can talk to in the home about any worries or concerns. Children confirmed that staff help them understand the risks that they can face in society and in and around the home.

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

Staff are confident about managing risk. They consistently follow the strategies outlined in the children’s plans, to keep the children safe. High levels of staff supervision mean that children are safe in their home and in the community.

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

Children receive a good level of support following significant incidents in their lives. The support focuses on learning from incidents and educating the children on their choices to keep themselves safe. Consistent boundaries are in place that help the children to develop a sense of stability and safety.

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

Staff have used physical intervention on occasions to support children who are experiencing a period of crisis. The techniques applied are in line with the training provided and children and staff have an opportunity to discuss the intervention afterwards. The registered manager uses this information to share any learning from events with the staff team.

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

Consequences are not consistently proportionate and do not always contain sufficient information to demonstrate why the measure was necessary. Further work is required to demonstrate how all children are supported to learn from incidents.

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

The registered manager and staff know what to do in response to any allegations made. Referrals made are timely, and suitable action is taken to minimise the risk to children to allow the necessary enquiries to be made.

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

Children know how to complain. The setting’s complaints policy is easy to understand and is child focused. Children are kept fully informed throughout the process and understand the actions taken because of their complaint. Their complaints are treated seriously and are responded to clearly.

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

Medicines, in particular control drugs, are not consistently recorded in a safe way. The time that medication is administered and the amount that is given are not clearly recorded. A requirement is issued.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

There is a suitably qualified registered manager in the home. She is experienced, qualified and leads a nurturing and child-focused culture in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 5 Children and staff speak highly about the support the manager provides. She is a strong advocate for children in her care and consistently ensures, through regular communication and challenge, that all professionals provide children with a good- quality service. The registered manager is supported by a deputy manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children’s needs are prioritised. They are cared for by a stable staff team whose members know and understand them well. Feedback from professionals and family members is very positive. They recognise the good-quality care that the team provides. Professionals say that communication from the home is excellent.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff meetings take place on a regular basis. The manager uses these meetings as an opportunity to reflect on practice issues. Staff have regular supervision and training to continually update their knowledge and skills and provide opportunities to discuss care practices.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Rotas provided by the manager do not provide a clear picture of the staff working in the home, their actual names or the hours worked, particularly when agency staff have been used. Therefore, there is no clear record of who has worked in the home. This is not safe and accountable practice for staff or children. Furthermore, a clear record of the children living in the home, their legal status, and the address they have moved from and to is not consistently documented as required by regulation.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The local area assessment does not provide a robust evaluation of the local area that is meaningful to the home. The manager has not fully considered the information that she received from the police or local authority to fully inform her assessment. The content of this document is also not considered prior to all new children moving into the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager evaluates care practice and considers how she can develop the service to improve children’s lives. However, the manager has not consistently recorded that she has monitored and reviewed a range of documents in the home, including care planning documentation. Furthermore, despite care documents being updated, they are not signed and dated by the author. This means that it is sometimes unclear about when documents have been reviewed and by whom. Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 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 registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home. (Regulation 23 (1)(2)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to ensuring that staff follow good practice in relation to compiling medication administration records that include the time that medication is administered, and that there is an effective system for monitoring and auditing the arrangements for managing and recording medication. 4 February 2022

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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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 35 (1)(a)(b) (2)) 4 February 2022

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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

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.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)(c)) 4 February 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 7 Schedule 4 sets out the other information that the registered person must keep in relation to a children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain in the home the records in Schedule 4.

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Requirement Due date

The provider needs to demonstrate all hours that all staff have worked on rotas, including managers and agency staff. Furthermore there needs to be a clear register containing information about all children moving in and out of the home. 4 February 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must review the appropriateness and suitability of the location of the premises used for the purposes of the children’s home at least once in each calendar year taking into account the requirement in regulation 12(2)(c) (the protection of children standard). (Regulation 46 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the registered manager undertaking a thorough and meaningful assessment of the home’s location 4 February 2022

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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 for children’s home: 2554036 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: New Beginnings Young People’s Care and Support Services Ltd

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Inspectors

Michelle Edge, Social Care Inspector Elaine Allison, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2554036 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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