Children's Home run by Esland North Limited in Leicestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned by a large provider. It is registered to provide care for one child with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is currently on maternity leave. There is an interim manager in post who is not yet registered with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

This is the home’s first inspection since it was registered in September 2021.

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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: Not applicable.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: Not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: Not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 3

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improvement to be good

The home was registered in September 2021. The child currently living at the home moved in shortly after registration. She has recently been made subject to a court order which restricts her liberty. Leaders and managers have assessed that they cannot care for the child safely in the long term. This is due to the level of restriction, coupled with the impact of staff shortages at the home. At the time of the inspection, the managers and staff were supporting the child until a more suitable placement was found.

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improvement to be good

The staff team at the home has not been stable. Consistency of care has been limited because several staff have left, in one case with immediate notice. The child was present when this happened. This lack of professionalism does not provide the child with a sense of security and has the potential to damage the child’s self- esteem.

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improvement to be good

After ending their employment, some staff have tried to keep in contact with the child without permission from the home or the placing authorities. Although it appears that the actions of staff in this instance were well intentioned, such behaviour has the potential to cause confusion for children and disrupt care arrangements.

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improvement to be good

Despite these shortfalls, the child has developed positive relationships with some staff. Staff demonstrate empathy and understanding in their interactions with the child. The child speaks fondly of the staff. The child enjoys enriching and fun activities in the home and the community. A stimulating programme of activities has helped the child to manage some difficult periods in her life.

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improvement to be good

The child is in good physical health. However, she does not yet have a healthy diet. Managers were not aware of how the child’s eating patterns were impacting on her health. The staff work hard to support the child with her emotional well-being. They provide opportunities for the child to talk about her feelings.

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improvement to be good

Staff have encouraged the child to establish healthy, age-appropriate routines. With support from staff, the child has started to attend education provision. Her teachers say that she is making good progress in terms of attendance and learning. The child has recently experienced a stressful and distressing time. This has impacted on her motivation to return to education. The manager and staff are working on effective strategies to help her re-engage with her timetable. Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 4

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff have worked hard to meet the requirements of the child’s court order. For example, considerable adaptations to the home have been made to ensure the child’s safety. The child’s risk assessment has been recently updated and includes the requirements of the court order. However, managers have not ensured that all staff have received relevant training to enable them to meet the requirements of the court order. While this is not placing the child at immediate risk, managers realise the urgency in rectifying this issue to maintain the safety of the child.

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improvement to be good

A recent internal audit has highlighted that the child had been using a scooter without a proper assessment of risk and without wearing a helmet. The manager has now ensured that this is no longer happening. Also, the manager has not provided sufficient oversight of the administration of medications. A plan is now in place to rectify this.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff have provided extensive support to the child to address self- harmful behaviours. In some cases, this has prevented the child from coming to significant harm. However, there have been a number of incidents at the home which have not been responded to well. For example, debriefs with children and staff have not taken place following incidents. Consequently, opportunities to provide appropriate support and analysis have not been undertaken.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff do not have a good understanding of incidents which require a notification to Ofsted. They have not sought advice to clarify this. As such, relevant incidents have not been notified. This reduces the opportunity for appropriate authorities to ensure that children are being adequately safeguarded.

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improvement to be good

The child has been away from the home without the permission of staff. The staff have worked effectively to return the child safely on a number of occasions. This ensures that children do not go missing from the home for long periods, with the potential for them to be exploited.

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good

There have been considerable changes to the management of the home. The registered manager is currently on maternity leave. The interim manager has been in post since November 2021. However, some periods of time have been covered by other managers within the company. Some management inconsistencies have resulted in weaknesses in practice.

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good

Leaders and managers have insight into the home’s shortfalls. A thorough audit has been undertaken and numerous issues have been identified for improvement. The regional manager is supporting the new manager to implement an extensive action plan to rectify the shortfalls. The manager is committed to this process. However, it Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 5 is in the early stages and improvements are not yet embedded. Management oversight of the home is not yet fully effective.

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good

Leaders and managers have not established stability in the team. Many of the staff are new to the home. The manager has recently recruited additional members of staff. However, they are not yet in post. Leaders and managers recognise that greater stability is needed to improve the quality of care in the home. They are determined to employ staff who can offer a long-term commitment to the children they care for.

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good

Managers are providing regular supervision to staff. Supervision does provide guidance to staff and practice issues are addressed thoroughly. However, support to staff in managing their emotional responses to children’s behaviour is limited. Supervision records of support following distressing incidents are superficial. Clinical support is available to staff members, but the effectiveness of this is not reviewed in discussions with staff.

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good

The manager has not yet implemented systems that enable the child to read and comment on her records. Consequently, the child does not have a good understanding of what is written and shared about her life and experiences. This has the potential to damage the child’s self-esteem and result in the child feeling that she does not have a voice in how her own personal information is shared. Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 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 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

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that staff maintain professional boundaries in their relationships with children, including when staff end their employment at the home. 9 February 2022

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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

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

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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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; 23 March 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 7 ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager recruiting and maintaining a staff team and providing them with the relevant training to consistently meet children’s needs.

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Requirement Due date

The registered manager must ensure regular oversight of the practice and training needs of the team to ensure consistency of care.

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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.

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered person ensuring that staff countersign records of the administration of medication, that every date and time of administration is recorded and that audits of medication continue when children are away from the home, for example, during stays in hospital. 9 February 2022

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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 incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the registered person consistently informing Ofsted of serious incidents involving a child, and seeking advice on when to report, if necessary. 27 January 2022

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Recommendations

Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 8  Staff should have the relevant skills and knowledge to be able to help children understand, and where necessary work to change, negative behaviours in key areas of health and well-being such as, but not limited to, nutrition and healthy diet, exercise, mental health, sexual relationships, sexual health, contraception and use of legal highs, drugs, alcohol and tobacco. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page, 35, paragraph 7.18)  Staff supervision must enable staff to reflect and act upon how their own feelings and behaviour may be affected by the behaviour of the children they care for. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page, 39, paragraph 8.15)  Children should be actively encouraged to read their records and to add further information to them. They should be regularly reminded of their rights to see

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Recommendations

information kept about them and be given information about how they might be supported to access their records in later life. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page, 62, paragraph 14.6)

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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: 2637140 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Suite 1 & 5, Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Milford, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 0RN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Jennafer Lee Gallagher

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Inspector

Laura Walker, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2637140 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.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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