Children's home run by Blue Elephant Childcare Limited

Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 1 Registered provider: Blue Elephant Childcare Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home provides accommodation, care and support for up to two children with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties. The home is one of four operated by the same provider offering placements to Devon County Council.

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Information about this children’s home

An application has been submitted to register the new manager, who has been in post since November 2021.

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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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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 inadequate

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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: 18 February 2020

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

18/02/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 3

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improvement to be good

Children want to live in this home. Following several previous unsuccessful placements, they have found the warmth, support and unconditional positive regard they need to support their development. Progress is evident in a reduction of risk- taking behaviour, including self-harm, and in fewer incidents of children going missing from the home.

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improvement to be good

The stability of the staff team has been impacted by COVID-19 and the nationwide difficulties associated with recruiting care staff. Even so, some staff have been moved to other homes within the organisation without proper consideration of the impact on the young people they cared for. One young person expressed concern about this to the staff and to other stakeholders, who noted an increase in anxious behaviour in the children.

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improvement to be good

One child’s bedroom was in a state of disarray, chaotic and messy. Staff say they do help with this, but the support is currently ineffective in making a lasting difference to the state of the child’s room.

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improvement to be good

Children access routine health checks and have the support of specialist health services, such as child and adolescent mental health services, when necessary.

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improvement to be good

One child is in full-time education, another is due to take exams soon and one has secured employment.

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improvement to be good

The home is personalised for and by the children. Good use is made of the large garden, especially by one child who has a passion for playing football. Staff are aspirational for the children; they support activities and provide opportunities for them to try new things and take them on holidays. One young person has flown in a plane for the first time, another went indoor skydiving.

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improvement to be good

Children say they feel safe in this home. Risk-taking behaviour has significantly reduced in the past six months. However, potentially harmful behaviour is not always robustly assessed and monitored to ensure all is being done to reduce risk.

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improvement to be good

Arrangements for monitoring one young person’s welfare when they are out with friends is not clear or consistently applied. There is a failure to impose additional boundaries when these are required. For example, addressing cannabis use does not extend beyond referrals to specialist agencies, even though this proved ineffective. Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 4 No action was taken to avoid a repeat incident when a young person left the home in the night without staff’s knowledge. It is not clear if young people have been involved in discussion with an independent person when they have returned from being missing from the home.

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improvement to be good

Not all staff are aware of how to manage allegations. While they would take action to safeguard the young person, some inappropriate sharing of information could compromise any investigation. During the inspection, the responsible individual took immediate action to inform staff across the organisation of the correct way to manage allegations.

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improvement to be good

Young people trust the staff to act in their best interests and feel they have someone to talk to. They know how to make a complaint and can expect it to be dealt with effectively. Young people have access to, and one makes good use of, an independent advocate.

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improvement to be good

Behaviour management is informed and interpreted by the support of a clinical psychologist. Physical intervention is not a feature of the care provided to the two young people. Sanctions are not used to manage behaviour.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager took over the running of this home in November 2021 at unavoidable short notice. Her current understanding of, and access to, records is insufficient to provide effective oversight and monitoring of the care provided to young people.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Records are kept electronically. They lack purpose and clarity and are often unhelpful and difficult to find on the computer. For example, a young person’s reward chart did not make any sense. It is not clear if actions from support sessions have been followed up. Risk assessments are not fully up to date and the manager had been denied access to some supervision records. Problems around records and recording have already been identified by leaders and managers as a significant issue prior to this inspection. In response, the provider has invested in a bespoke electronic recording package. This new system has yet to be implemented in practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Improvements to the handling, storage and administration of medication are not fully implemented in practice. This shortfall was also an issue at the previous inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The independent visitor is not routinely spending time with children or contacting or observing them to assure their safety and welfare.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The care provided to the children is informed by work with specialist agencies and other stakeholders. Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 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 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—

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Requirement Due date

ensure that medicine is stored in an orderly manner and a record is kept of the reasons for administration of non- prescribed medication are clearly recorded. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(c)) 31 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the independent person should attempt to speak to each child and/or observe the interaction between children and staff. 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

promotes their welfare. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(e)(f))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care for each child, understand the impact that 31 March 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 6 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

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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

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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.

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies.

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(c)(d)(e)) 31 March 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that when a child returns to the home after being missing from care or away from the home without permission, the Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 7 responsible local authority must provide an opportunity for the child to have an independent return home interview. Homes should take account of information provided by such interviews when assessing risks and putting arrangements in place to protect each child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 45, paragraph 9.30)  The registered person should ensure that an evaluation of missing incidents is undertaken to identify any gaps in training, skills or knowledge for staff or to record and retain evidence of what worked well. This evaluation should inform the review of the quality of care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.31)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. Records should be readily accessible to leaders and managers. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 2546960 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Blue Elephant Childcare Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 30, Chivenor Business Park, Barnstaple, Devon EX31 4AY

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Inspector

Janice Hawtin, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2546960 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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