Children's home run by Blue Mountain Homes Ltd in Ealing

Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 1 SC059998 Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes Ltd Interim inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This children’s home is privately owned. It provides care for up to four children who may have emotional, behavioural and/or social difficulties.

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Information about this children's home

The home is led by a qualified and registered manager who has been in post since November 2019.

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Inspection date: 22 March 2022

Date of last inspection: 6 September 2021

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Inspection date: 22 March 2022

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Inspection date: 22 March 2022

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 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 manager has met two of the three requirements made at the last full inspection. The requirement relating to the professional supervision of staff is restated. A new requirement relating to staff not having safeguarding training has been set. Both of the recommendations set at the full inspection have also been restated.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Three children were living at the home at the time of the full inspection. One of them has since moved on from the home to a foster placement. A child is due to move from the home into semi-independent accommodation and another child is due to move into the home within the next week.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children are supported when they move into, or on from, this home through careful, well-managed planning. Children participate in the planning process. For example, children have the opportunity to visit the home and choose items for their bedrooms ahead of moving in. Good planning supports staff to understand children’s individual needs and consequently improve the quality of care they receive. However, a matching risk assessment for the new child moving to the home had not yet been completed at the time of the inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Staff are better able to manage children’s behaviour. There has been a significant decrease in the number of incidents since the last inspection. Staff have not needed to resort to using sanctions or physical intervention when presented with challenging behaviour. Staff have addressed issues through discussion and by providing clear and consistent boundaries. There has been an increase in staff carrying out direct work with children (key-working sessions). However, these sessions have not taken place as frequently as the manager would have liked.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

A child’s social worker was very complimentary about the manager and staff's work in supporting the child to prepare for independence and their work to improve the child's outcomes. Staff work with children to carry out basic tasks such as being able to prepare a meal, follow food hygiene rules, carry out basic laundry tasks and keep their bedrooms tidy.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Children are kept safe. A child’s social worker commended how pro-active staff were in going out to find a child who had missed a phone call from staff while he was out in the community. Following the last inspection, the manager has completed safeguarding designated-lead training and further training on managing allegations.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Most children engage in their education and attend college regularly. One child has recently passed his GCSE in mathematics. He is now working towards passing his Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 3 GCSE in English with the overall aim of taking up an apprenticeship with a major car manufacturer.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

Managers’ monitoring and oversight of the home has improved. There is better oversight of staff practice. However, not all areas of the home are monitored effectively. The monitoring of delegated supervision, undertaken by the deputy manager and senior staff, needs further improvement. The manager had requested supervision training for these senior staff. However, this has been outstanding since the last inspection.

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children and young people since the most recent full inspection

The manager has not ensured that all staff have had regular professional supervision or that it is adequately recorded. The formal supervision of staff is crucial to ensure that they receive the oversight, guidance and formal support required to provide the best possible care to children. For all staff, the training in safeguarding children is not sufficient. Some staff safeguarding training is significantly out of date. This means that there is a risk that staff will not have all the skills required to keep children safe. A new requirement has been made to address this. Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

06/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 08/11/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 20/08/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/11/2018 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This relates to the supervision of staff not yet being used effectively to address staff practice and performance. 6 May 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 promotes their welfare.

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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 relates to staff not having safeguarding training. 6 May 2022 Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 6

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children's home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of children. Children's homes must comply with relevant health and safety legislations (alarms, food, hygiene etc.); however, in doing so, homes should seek as far as possible to maintain a domestic rather than 'institutional' impression. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulation 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. They should be skilled in anticipating difficulties and reviewing incidents, such as learning from disruptions and placements breakdowns. They are responsible for proactively implementing lessons learned and sustaining good practice. (‘Guide to Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: SC059998 7

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Blue Mountain Homes Ltd

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: 17, Leeland Mansions, Leeland Road, London W13 9HE

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Children's home details

Responsible individual: Pradeep Manaktala

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Inspector

Pradip Panchmatia, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC059998 8 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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