Children's home run by Hexagon Care Services Limited

Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 1

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Information about this children’s home

This children’s home is run by a private provider. The home is registered to provide care for up to three children who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been registered with Ofsted since August 2021.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken by the provider in response to the three compliance notices that were issued following the full inspection in February 2022. These notices were in response to significant shortfalls under regulations 12, 13 and 20.

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This monitoring visit

No new children have moved into the home and two children have moved on following the last inspection. A recent period of stability has enabled the remaining child to settle since their peers have moved on following the provider ending their placements. No new allegations or incidents have been reported during this time.

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This monitoring visit

The child’s risk assessment has been updated and now reflects the known risks and any potential risks that may occur. The revised document now identifies this clearly and also includes the actions staff should take to reduce and manage the risks. An updated missing-from-home protocol identifies the actions for staff to take in the event of any missing episodes. Staff read and sign to show they have read and understood the revised risk assessments. This helps to ensure that staff are aware of how to respond to the child’s behaviours.

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This monitoring visit

Staff work with the child about their online safety at a level aligned to their age and understanding. Safeguarding training has helped the staff to better understand how they should respond in the event of allegations or incidents of concern. Staff now know when to whistle-blow and whom to escalate their concerns to. Designated safeguarding lead refresher training has better equipped the manager to respond to these incidents should they occur. Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 2 Revisiting gaps in the manager’s induction and knowledge base alongside the responsible individual has also strengthened the manager’s ability to respond to allegations or concerns appropriately. Allegations raised by children following the last inspection were appropriately dealt with and escalated for scrutiny and oversight. This helps to keep children safe.

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This monitoring visit

Allegations and concerns about staff conduct are investigated fully to ensure that only suitable and safe staff work with children. The compliance notice in respect of regulation 12 is therefore met.

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This monitoring visit

Improved monitoring systems now enable the manager to have better oversight of the care delivered in the home. The reduction in the number of children living in the home has enabled a period of stability. In addition, the manager is no longer required to work shifts. This has improved her oversight and monitoring of the home.

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This monitoring visit

An improved emphasis on supervisions shows these are now planned with staff and include a review of probation with new starters. An ongoing commitment to staff development through an extensive programme of training shows the provider has acted on addressing the gaps in staff’s knowledge and skills. This means that the compliance notice under regulation 13 is met.

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This monitoring visit

The poor restraint practice that was applied in the home has been reviewed and analysed by the provider to inform lessons learned. This will be discussed with staff during the two-day refresher training that is due to take place this month. Regular feedback and evaluation from the provider’s learning and development team are informing the manager’s practice and overview.

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This monitoring visit

The child’s behaviour management plan is updated to identify how staff should respond in the event of these behaviours. However, the plan did not reflect some of the child’s behaviours. This was rectified during the monitoring visit to mitigate this shortfall. The compliance notice under regulation 20 has been met.

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This monitoring visit

The requirements raised at the full inspection are carried forward and were not reviewed during this visit.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 01/02/2022 Full Inadequate 23/01/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 16/09/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 3

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Statutory Requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

seek to secure the input and services required to meet each child’s needs; and

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they provide sufficient challenge to social workers in their response to managing disclosures of abuse made by children and in undertaking their responsibility to complete and share the outcomes of an independent return home interview when a child has been missing from care.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that they are proactive in securing key documentation from placing authorities relating to a child’s care, including placement planning meeting minutes, strategy meeting minutes and review minutes. 20 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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b)) 20 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 4 In particular, the registered person must ensure that children’s care is planned to ensure placements are effectively managed and sustained.

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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 ensure that— a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that records of medication are legible, fully complete and dual signed when required. 20 March 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

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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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

details of any methods used, or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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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. 20 March 2022 Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 5 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 confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3) (1)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person is to ensure that a clear and accurate record of any restraint and injury sustained to a child is recorded. The registered person is to ensure that incidents are recorded in a timely manner and that a thorough management evaluation and debrief of the staff are included.

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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)) 20 March 2022

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the children’s home since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Hexagon Care Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 1 Tustin Court, Riversway, Preston, Lancashire PR2 2YQ

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Thomas Cappleman

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Inspector

Parveen Hussain, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home - monitoring visit: 2509367 7 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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