Children's Home run by Cove Care – Residential Limited in Telford and Wrekin

Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 1 Registered provider: Cove Care Residential Limited Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is registered to provide care for up to three children with complex mental health, emotional and/or behavioural needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is led by a manager who was registered by Ofsted in February 2021.

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Inspection date: 21 February 2022

Date of last inspection: 3 November 2021

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Inspection date: 21 February 2022

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection date: 21 February 2022

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 2

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

This home was judged requires improvement to be good at the last full inspection. At this interim inspection, Ofsted judged that it has sustained effectiveness.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has made some improvements to practice since the last inspection and, as a result, three of the previous six requirements have been met. The home now has an effective heating system which provides hot water, staff’s management of conflict between children has improved and medication is now stored securely and administered as prescribed. However, the managerial oversight of the home lacks vigour and, as a result, three requirements have been repeated and another requirement made.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

One child has moved into the home since the last inspection. The impact risk assessment, which was completed to understand the risks and suitability of matching this child to live in the home, was poor. It was inaccurate and did not provide a rationale of how the staff and manager could meet this child’s needs alongside those of the child already living in the home. However, since the new child moved into the home, they are developing positive relationships with staff, although their relationship with the other child living in the home is strained.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The child who moved in most recently said that they were getting on well with staff. This child’s social worker described good communication with the registered manager and said that the child found the home ‘nice and cosy’ and scored it nine out of 10. The registered manager understands that this child, who is in Year 10, needs to receive education. This continues to be provided by staff in the home two months after the child moved in, while an educational placement is identified. The lack of urgency in this being progressed does not promote the child’s progress.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager ensures that staff complete their mandatory training. At the last inspection, it was identified that staff had not received training in autism spectrum disorder to improve their understanding of children’s behaviour and needs. In December 2021, the registered manager shared a link for staff to complete this training independently, but at the point of inspection no staff had completed this. This reflects the lack of pace in driving forward practice improvements.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The registered manager has secured progress in the way that staff record children’s behaviour and in staff’s responses when children need to be restrained or go missing. Staff responses are appropriate and sensitive and restorative practice is used to support children’s reflection and understanding of their behaviour. There is also now a clear record that would help the child to understand how they have been helped by staff. However, consistent management oversight is lacking, and this leads to shortfalls in practice, such as the failure by staff to record a sanction until 10 days after the event, the visitors’ book and staff rota not being fully completed, and a Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 3 return interview not recorded as having been carried out following a child being missing. This lack of scrutiny and attention to detail means that the quality of care is not consistently improving.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff promote children’s family time, which supports children’s identities. However, this is not recorded as taking place or whether staff have supervised this when it forms part of a child’s care plan. This means that children will not know how staff have helped them to keep in touch with their families if they view their records now or in the future. Significantly, it also prevents the registered manager being able to assess how children’s conversations with their families, either online, face to face or on the phone, are affecting children’s behaviour. This does not promote children’s welfare.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

There are shortfalls in the quality of care provided in the home. One child’s bedroom does not have window coverings. This does not provide the child with privacy and does not promote a nurturing environment. In addition, during the inspection, there was no soap or towel available for children, staff or visitors to use, which as well as being unhygienic does not demonstrate that staff are providing good basic care. Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/11/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 11/02/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/09/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 20/03/2019 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 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 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;

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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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that staff have relevant training to meet the children’s individual needs, including regarding autism spectrum disorder. In addition, ensure that monitoring systems are effective. 31 March 2022

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that each child’s relevant plans are followed;

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Requirement Due date

that, subject to regulation 22 (contact and access to communications), contact between each child and the child’s 31 March 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 6 parents, relatives and friends, is promoted in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that matching risk assessments should consider how each child’s needs can be met. Also, ensure that family time is promoted in accordance with the child’s care plan and is recorded.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was issued at the last inspection and is restated.

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected. (Regulation 21(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that children’s bedroom windows have blinds or curtains. 22 February 2022

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes—

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so ("the authorised person")—

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Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record 31 March 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 7 confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(iii)(iv)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered manager should ensure that the recording of sanctions is timely and in line with regulation.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was issued at the last inspection and is restated.

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that the home meets children’s basic day-to- day needs and physical necessities. Staff should seek to meet the child’s basic needs in the way that a good parent would, recognising that many children in residential care have experienced environments where these needs have not been consistently met; doing so is an important aspect of demonstrating that the staff care for the child and value them as an individual. This includes the availability of soap and a towel for handwashing. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)

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Information about this inspection

This inspection focused on the effectiveness of the home and the progress and experiences of children and young people since the most recent full inspection.

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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: 1231311 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Cove Care Residential Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 16 Waterloo Road, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV1 4BL

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Inspector

Rebecca Quested, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 1231311 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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