Children's home run by Beaufort Care Group Ltd

Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 1 Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group 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 who may have social and emotional difficulties. The home is operated by a private provider who has several other homes in the area.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since 5 May 2020.

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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 16 and 17 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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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children enjoy living in the home. Staff know the children well, and support them to share their space with each other. Children trust each other with their belongings and feel at home. One child’s school described them as the happiest the school had ever seen them since they have been living at the home. Children benefit from spending time with family or friends who are important to them. One parent described the home as welcoming and staff as committed to their child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have good opportunities to explore a wide range of interests and hobbies. Children have had singing lessons, and been to music concerts and seasonal events. Children enjoy going to the gym, boxing and swimming, as well as to the cinema and the beach. Children pursue individual interests, such as photography, music and make-up. Staff encourage children to help care for the resident tortoise. Experiences are remembered through photographs and souvenirs.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support children to access education. Staff organised additional tuition for one child to improve their knowledge of core subjects. One child is not in school and receives tutoring from a teacher and additional support from an engagement worker. The manager attends regular meetings and advocates for appropriate provision to be identified. All children aspire to future learning goals, whether in higher or further education.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children attend medical appointments and are in good health. Specialist referrals are pursued when necessary. The manager supports children to access the help they need. Staff have supported children to isolate when diagnosed with COVID-19. They continue to follow best practice to minimise the risk of further infection.

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

Children feel safe in the home and with staff. They can identify who they would speak to with worries. Staff support children to develop their understanding of risk through effective use of key working. Staff hold open conversations with children about worries as they arise. Staff have facilitated support from a specialist programme for one child to improve awareness of cyber-crime.

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

Staff understand and manage risk well, keeping children in the home safe. Risk assessments are clear and contain relevant information. Staff work appropriately within the framework of an inherent jurisdiction order relating to one child, depriving the child’s liberty. Staff encourage suitable risk-taking and development within the permissible restrictions. This prepares the child to take supported steps towards greater independence when the order ends. Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 4 Staff understand the children and how they communicate. As such, behaviour is well managed. One professional reported that staff achieve the right balance of support and challenge.

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

The manager appropriately reported an allegation made against a member of staff. The manager worked with other professionals to the conclusion of the investigation.

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

Staff maintain a safe physical environment for children, responding swiftly to concerns. Staff promote fire safety, and support children to understand the importance of knowing what to do when there is a fire.

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good

A skilled and experienced management team leads the home. Despite staff vacancies, managers maintain a level of stability through use of consistent agency workers or staff from other homes in the organisation. All staff, including agency staff, receive regular, reflective supervision. Staff said that they feel supported by managers. Leaders and managers ensure that agency staff have Disclosure and Barring Service checks and verified references before working in the home. However, leaders and managers do not assure themselves of all suitability checks are undertaken in line with the regulatory requirements.

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good

Professionals reported that there is good communication with the home and that staff know about the children and their views. Managers and key workers attend and contribute to reviews and meetings. Leaders and managers learn from previous placements and put in place identified actions. For example, the induction process for new staff has been reviewed and changed.

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good

Leaders and managers complete weekly and monthly audits. However, this process does not identify inconsistent oversight and evaluation of incidents. Restraint records do not contain any evaluation of effectiveness or suitability. Incidents and safeguarding records do not consistently include a review of the learning and what the implication of this is for the child.

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good

Leaders and managers have identified the strengths and limitations of the home in relation to one child. However, this has not yet translated into clear planning enough for the child’s future. This means that managers do not know how they will support the child as significant changes approach. While managers consider the risks of the children in relation to each other, they do not formulate this in a live matching assessment document. As such, they do not fully understand the current lived experience for children. Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 5

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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 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

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult; (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iv)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must ensure that clear plans, including contingency plans, are in place for staff to support one child to address proposed changes over the coming months. 2 March 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— 2 March 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 6 understand the impact that the quality of care provided in the home is having on the progress and experiences of each child and use this understanding to inform the development of the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager must review any restraints that take place for the suitability of the intervention. The registered manager must also review any incident, missing episode or safeguarding log to demonstrate understanding of the learning in relation to the child and staff supporting them. There should also be frequent review of the matching of children in the home, to include information shared by children about their lived experiences.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home,

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the individual is to perform; and

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)) 11 February 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 7 In particular, the registered manager must ensure that they satisfy themselves that the required checks have been completed for agency members of staff and record this.

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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: 2588486 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Beaufort Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Beaufort Care Group Ltd, Unit 2, Hollygrove Business Park, Verwood Road, Ashley, Ringwood BH24 2DB

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Inspectors

Clare Nixson, Social care inspector Paula Lahey, Social care inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2588486 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

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

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