Children's Home run by First Steps Care Ltd in Worcestershire

Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 1 Registered provider: First Steps Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home opened in September 2021 and is owned by a private company. It is registered to care for up to four children, aged between nine and 17 years, with social and emotional needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager is due to leave, and a new manager is being recruited to the home.

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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

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: 2636996 2

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Recent inspection history

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 3

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improvement to be good

Children are cared for by a consistent staff team who provide nurturing care. Children have begun to form positive relationships with staff, and they told the inspector that they like living at the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff have developed plans to help them understand how to support children and provide consistency of care. However, children’s targets are broad and do not tell staff how they should help children to achieve those targets. Children’s progress in meeting these targets is not reviewed by staff. Key-work sessions are not planned and do not provide children with opportunities to learn. As a result, children may not be making as much progress as they could be.

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improvement to be good

Staff are not fully supporting children who are not in education. Staff have not developed detailed plans which encourage children to participate in informal learning. The lack of routine and structure means children do not fully understand the importance of education.

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improvement to be good

Staff have been proactive in keeping children busy and helping them learn new skills. Children have learned to swim, visited places of interest and engaged in activities in the local area. This has helped to develop children’s confidence and self- esteem.

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improvement to be good

Staff take the health needs of children seriously. Prior to a new child moving into the home, staff consulted health professionals and undertook specialist training. As a result, staff fully understand children’s healthcare needs.

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improvement to be good

Children’s moves to the home are well planned, with staff visiting children, children visiting the home and children receiving all the information they need. This means children feel involved in what is happening to them, which helps them to settle into their new home.

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk assessments and behaviour plans do not contain information on known risks or details of people children should not have unsupervised visits with. As a result, children could be at risk of harm from others or from the risk-taking behaviours of the children they live with.

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improvement to be good

Prior to new children moving to the home, managers assess the impact of this move on the child and the children already living in the home. This is to make sure children are suitably matched. However, on one occasion, managers did not review the assessment when new information came to light. This omission could have Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 4 meant that children were not suitably matched and may have resulted in a placement breakdown.

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improvement to be good

When children go missing, staff follow the children’s missing-from-care protocols. Children are helped by staff when they return to settle back into the home. Children are given the opportunity to discuss their reasons for going missing with an independent person. Managers share this information with other professionals and work closely with them to formulate plans to reduce the risk of children going missing.

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improvement to be good

Managers take appropriate action when children make allegations against staff. However, managers have not considered reviewing the mobile phone policy so that staff are clear about when they can and cannot use their personal mobile phones.

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improvement to be good

Occasionally, staff need to use physical intervention to keep children safe. Physical intervention is only used when necessary. However, staff have not considered the risks of using these interventions with children who have medical conditions. Records do not show what interventions should or should not be used with these children. This omission could result in children’s health being made worse.

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good

The home’s registered manager is due to leave. The responsible individual will be supported by an interim manager while a permanent manager is recruited. The interim manager has experience of managing children’s homes and is suitably qualified.

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good

The responsible individual is aware of the shortfalls of the home. He is undertaking audits and has clear plans to make improvements.

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good

When managers identified that the home was not a suitable placement for a child this was shared with the placing authority. Following a child’s placement breaking down, managers reflected on how they can ensure that they can meet the needs of children before they move to the home.

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good

Staff spoken to say they like working at the home and that they feel well supported. However, managers have not made sure staff have received all the training they need to care for the children. As a result, staff do not have all the skills and knowledge they need to safely care for the children and help them to progress.

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good

Managers make sure staff receive regular supervision in line with the home’s policy. However, not all staff who are giving supervision have received training to provide this and supervision records show little reflection of practice. As a result, staff are not having opportunities to reflect on their practice and improve the care they provide to children. Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 5 The home’s records are stored on an electronic system. Those using the system struggle at times to find the records they need, either because they are stored separately or have not been promptly added to the system. Managers do not have a robust plan in the event of a system failure. This could result in staff not having the information they need to care for children when they need it. Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 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 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. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to children’s plans informing staff what children’s daily routines and structures are, that there are achievable targets which are reviewed, and that planned key-work sessions help children to progress. 31 March 2022

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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

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(v))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to children who are not in education and that there is a plan which promotes informal education. 31 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 7 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

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that risk assessments contain all the information needed to keep children safe, such as clear plans when a child poses a risk when travelling in a car, plans informing staff of any contact restrictions and which types of physical intervention holds can and cannot be used to prevent further harm due to an existing medical condition. 31 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—

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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)(a)(b) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff having the training they need to care for the children living at the home, such as training in whistle-blowing, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy) and online safety. Those staff undertaking supervision should have supervision training. 31 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 31 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 8 This specifically relates to ensuring that staff supervision is reflective, with discussions about children and safeguarding.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep under review and, as necessary, revise the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 34 (6))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the home’s personal mobile phone policy is reviewed and updated to safeguard children. 31 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the following items, which may be kept in electronic form, are kept in an accessible manner—

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Requirement Due date

children’s case records (see regulation 36);

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Requirement Due date

other records (see regulation 37). (Regulation 38 (i)(j))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the online system used for storing plans, ensuring that this can be quickly and easily accessed and that a robust plan is in place in the event staff are unable to access the online system. 31 March 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that they only accept placements for children where they are satisfied that the home can respond effectively to the child’s assessed needs as recorded in the child’s relevant plans and where they have fully considered the impact that the placement will have on the existing group of children. This includes reviewing the impact when new information comes to light. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 56, paragraph 11.4)

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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: 2636996 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: First Steps Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Kemp House, 152-160 City Road, London EC1V 2NX

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Inspector

Debbie Bond, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2636996 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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