Children's Home run by Doncaster Children‟s Services Trust Limited in Doncaster

Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 1 SC481444 Registered provider: Doncaster Children’s Services Trust Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

A children’s trust operates this home. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who may have social and emotional difficulties. There are currently two children living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

There is currently no registered manager in post.

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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

A monitoring visit was completed 23 March 2021. 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 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: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

10/03/2020 Full Outstanding 14/08/2018 Full Outstanding 20/04/2017 Full Good 21/12/2016 Interim Declined in effectiveness Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy good relationships with staff, whose practice is child centred. Staff work with a range of professionals to understand children’s behaviours, communication needs, and risks, including those relating to exploitation. This focusses the support that children receive.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have well-planned moves into and from the home. Professionals discuss children’s individual needs, and a series of introductions take place. Children benefit from visiting with their parents. They come for tea, have overnight stays, and take part in activities with other children who are already living at the home. This helps them to develop early relationships prior to moving in. Children living at the home make posters to welcome them and acknowledge their arrival.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

When risks to children change, staff meet with other professionals to make informed decisions about their long-term care. Good sharing of information and close liaison with children’s new placements ensure that children know where they will be moving to and are involved in their plans. Children receive memory books, have positive endings, and their time living at the home is celebrated.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have structure and good daily routines. This allows them to engage in their education during the day. A tutor supports one child with their learning. This ensures that they remain involved in education until a formal education placement is identified. Another child enjoys school and is making good progress. Children’s education certificates are on display in the lounge, which shows the value of their achievements.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children take part in lots of activities with staff. They go on holidays and have many day trips to the seaside. Staff are creative in planning fun events at the home, including discos and a red carpet awards ceremony. One child has basketball training and archery lessons. Staff encourage them to experience new things.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The managers are dedicated to listening to children’s views. They respond to children’s complaints and support them to meet with an advocate to ensure they have every opportunity to make their voice heard. One member of staff is allocated as the home’s ‘voice champion’ to develop new and creative ways to support children. Monthly children’s meetings enable them to make decisions about their day-to-day plans, put forward new ideas, and talk about living at the home. Children have choices and their views are heard.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children live in a homely environment that is well resourced to meet their needs. The rooms are decorated in bright colours and are well presented. Children personalise their bedrooms and the gardens are put to best use with lots of play Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 4 equipment. Maintenance work takes place quickly to ensure the home continues to provide a welcoming environment for children.

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

Bespoke safety plans and detailed risk assessments provide staff with an understanding of how to look after children and keep them safe. Strong collaborative working between the managers and professionals keeps risks for children under close review.

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

The risks around using mobile phones are understood and staff educate children to use the internet safely. Children talk to staff about concerns they have when using social media. Consequently, staff put additional safety measures in place report persons of concern to the police. This helps to keep children safe.

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

Staff use de-escalation methods and have a nurturing approach. Physical intervention is proportionately used to maintain children’s safety and well-being. Critical review meetings following serious incidents assess staff’s practice and whether they can continue to keep children safe.

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

Children create targets with staff to improve their behaviour. This input is motivating, and they have success as a result. Restorative approaches support children when things go wrong. This empowers children, who speak about the things that they have done and have the opportunity to ‘put things right’. However, sanction records are incomplete and children’s views on sanctions are not recorded. This does not show how children are effectively supported to progress and develop.

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

Missing-from-care episodes have reduced. Reflective discussions between children and staff when incidents occur do not record the children’s views. Not all risk assessments identify concerns and risks to children from their peers or from children who have recently moved on from the home. Children have not always been supervised effectively or reported to the police in line with their plan.

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

The local authority designated officer is kept informed of any allegations against staff. Procedures are followed to assess whether children have been exposed to harm.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The home has been without a registered manager since January 2022. The deputy manager is overseeing the running of the home until a new manager is appointed. The deputy manager is supported by the service manager and has a good understanding of the home and the children. This reduces the impact of there not being a registered manager. Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 5 Many of the experienced and longstanding staff have worked at the home for a number of years. This provides children with stability. Staff are assigned specific in- house roles, which increases their responsibility. Children are looked after by consistent carers who know how to respond to children’s needs.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff enjoy their work and feel well supported. Reflective practice ensures that they are debriefed when incidents occur. Staff receive regular supervision; this extends, on occasions, to clinical supervision led by a forensic psychologist. Targets are set in supervision and performance reviews to support staff’s continual professional development. This means that staff are trained and skilled in their roles.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

A requirement raised at the monitoring visit has not been met as Ofsted have not always been informed about allegations against staff. This limits Ofsted’s oversight of safeguarding practices and incident management in the home. Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 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

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

The registered person must ensure that children’s missing- from-care risk assessments provide clear strategies for all known risks, including those faced to children in contact with previous residents when in the local area.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that staff uphold the expected level of supervision of children when they are in the community with each other, and that the reporting procedures are actioned within the timescales recorded on children’s missing-from-care protocols. 22 April 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 an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 22 April 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that they review the effectiveness of sanctions that are put in place to determine the impact these have had in Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 7 supporting children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.36)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that records of one-to-one discussions include children’s views, particularly when reflecting on missing-from-care episodes or when consequences are put in place. (‘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 children’s home: SC481444 8

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Doncaster Children’s Services Trust Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Colonnades House, Duke Street, Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN1 1ER

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Inspector

Alexandra Howitt, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC481444 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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