Children's Home run by T-Junction Children’s Services in Leicestershire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 1 Registered provider: T-Junction Children’s Services Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is one of three homes owned by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to three children who have emotional and support needs. The statement of purpose states that the home aims to help and support young people who are still looking for the right place to call home.

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Information about this children’s home

The home has not had a registered manager since June 2020. A new manager has been appointed and is going through the process of applying to register with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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inadequate

How well children and young people are helped and protected inadequate

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inadequate

The effectiveness of leaders and managers inadequate

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inadequate

There are serious and/or widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected and their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded, and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

28/04/2021 Full Good 27/11/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/10/2019 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 3

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inadequate

Poor safeguarding practice at the home and ineffective leadership and management have adversely affected the progress children make and their experiences while living at the home. The home has been without a registered manager for a substantial period of time.

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inadequate

Two children are new to the home, and they were able to visit and meet staff prior to moving in. This level of planning has supported them to settle in well and has helped to reduce their anxieties. One child recently moved on to a supported accommodation arrangement. The manager advocated for the young person to move to the home of their choice, and they have managed this move well.

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inadequate

Another child left the home in an unplanned manner. There had been a number of incidents at the home and relationships between the children had become difficult. The manager felt that the home could no longer meet this child’s needs. This was not a positive ending for the child as they were moved to an unregistered setting temporarily.

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inadequate

All the children have education provision in place, although attendance and engagement are variable. Staff work closely with schools in adapting timetables and providing additional support to maintain children’s education. The home’s clinical psychologist is planning to provide the children’s schools with additional information for the teaching staff on how best to work with children who have experienced trauma.

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inadequate

Relationships between the children in the home have not always been positive and this has led to conflicts and incidents. There have been some incidents of bullying and harmful behaviour between the children.

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inadequate

Children are starting to build positive relationships with staff and enjoy spending time with them. Children have access to a range of activities in the home and community. One child has started to build a friendship group in the local area, and this provides opportunities to socialise and share hobbies with friends. Children are supported to stay in touch with those who are important to them.

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inadequate

Children have regular meetings where they can express their views about the home and their care. The manager now has oversight of these meetings and will give feedback to children following these. Children are given options and choices and are starting to benefit from more structured routines and boundaries.

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

There have been several incidents of abusive behaviour and bullying between the children, including physical attacks. Staff have failed to undertake any targeted work Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 4 in response with the children involved. This does not support children in learning about conflict and the impact of their behaviour on others. Staff are not trained in bullying and in how to manage peer-on-peer abuse.

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

On one occasion, a child alleged an assault and bullying at school which caused them significant distress and led to the child having suicidal thoughts. This information was not shared with the school or the child’s social worker. This prevented action from being taken in response and had the potential for ongoing harm being caused to the child.

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

Allegations of harm caused to children by staff are not reported to external agencies in a timely way. Some safeguarding concerns are not shared with Ofsted, as regulator. This prevents external agencies from having robust oversight and prevents staff receiving timely guidance in managing allegations. On occasions, staff have been left on shift to continue working with children following an allegation of harm. This has left children at risk of further harm. Children’s risk assessments regarding the management of allegations allow for staff to decide whether the allegation is false. This is not in line with the organisation’s own policy and leaves children vulnerable to harm. On one occasion, a child displayed harmful behaviour in the community, and this was not risk assessed by the manager to mitigate further risks to the child and others in the home and community. Action was not taken by the manager to seek

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

additional help and support in response to the child’s behaviour. This left the child and others at risk of harm. Staff have not been trained and lack the knowledge and experience to manage this risk. Managers and staff lack understanding around wider contextual safeguarding issues which may impact on children.

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

Staff sleep-in arrangements do not always safeguard children during the night and have, on occasion, led to concerns arising from poor supervision. On one occasion, children were downstairs and unsupervised while trying to access inappropriate material on the computer. Staff were not aware of this until the following morning.

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

The use of physical restraint does not always have management oversight and debriefs are not always undertaken with staff and children. Staff have used a physical restraint prior to other de-escalation and preventative measures being considered. The manager did not consider this as a factor in reviewing practice. This has the potential for physical intervention to be used inappropriately to enforce compliance.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home has not had a registered manager for nearly two years. This has impacted on the stability and positive development of the home. There were significant delays in a previously appointed manager applying to register with Ofsted. This applicant subsequently withdrew their application, and another manager was appointed. The new manager is beginning to implement positive changes, but there has been insufficient time to embed good practice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 5 Management oversight has been poor and there has been a lack of information- sharing and proactive working with external professionals. This has limited the actions, responses and scrutiny of safeguarding concerns and risk management in the home by external agencies. External monitoring of the home is not strong and there have been gaps in visits and reporting. The independent visitor does not routinely consult with external

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

professionals or children to gain their views and feedback on the care provided in the home. Internal monitoring and auditing by the management team and senior manager is ineffective as shortfalls and weaknesses in practice are not readily identified and/or evaluated. There is a strong emphasis on the positive factors, which is not always congruent with known areas for development. Learning points from incidents and events are not implemented or reflected on. This approach hinders opportunities for the progression and development of the home, and it limits improvement in practice. Children, staff and external professionals are not routinely consulted with about the quality of care being provided. Staff have not had regular supervision, and this limits their opportunities to discuss their work and any concerns they have and to develop their practice. Staff have not received training that would support them in developing knowledge and

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

understanding of children’s specific needs and behaviours. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 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

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;

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Requirement Due date

seek to develop and maintain effective professional relationships with such persons, bodies or organisations as the registered person considers appropriate having regard to the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the children’s home is to provide care and accommodation. (Regulation 5 (a)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to managers and staff sharing information with external professionals and working effectively within multi-disciplinary teams. 19 June 2022

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding; 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 7 communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

understand and communicate to children that bullying is unacceptable; and

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to recognise incidents or indications of bullying and how to deal with them. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(iii)(v)(xii)(xiii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to staff working with children to understand the impact of their behaviour on others, including incidents of peer-on-peer abuse and bullying. This also relates to staff receiving training in bullying and peer-on-peer abuse and recognising and understanding this behaviour.

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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

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

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; 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 8 that the effectiveness of the home’s child protection policies is monitored regularly. *(Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(v)(vii)(b)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to the management of allegations, and the assessment and management of risk.

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Requirement Due date

The leaderships 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 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

lead and manager the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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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

understand the impact that 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

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

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to management oversight, reviewing and monitoring of all aspects of the home. This also relates to staff training in order to meet the needs of children in the home. 19 June 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 effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 9 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)(a)(vii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, this relates to management oversight and evaluation of restraint practice, and that debriefs are undertaken with staff and children involved.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each 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;

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Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)(e)) 19 June 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 person’s working at the home as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must provide a copy of the independent person’s report to HMCI. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(7)(a)) 19 June 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children ("a quality of care review") at least once every six months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating— 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 10 the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

supply to HMCI a copy of the quality of care review report within 28 days of the date on which the quality of care review is completed.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c)(4(a)(5))

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should endeavour to prioritise their application to become the registered manager. (‘Guide to Children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 60, paragraph 12.1)  The registered person should have a system in place so that all serious events are notified, within 24 hours to the appropriate people. This system should also cover arrangement for the weekend or bank holiday. (‘Guide to Children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.13)  The registered person must have a system in place to ensure that all staff receive regular supervision from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional. (‘Guide to Children’s homes regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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) Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 11 Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: T-Junction Children’s Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 27 The Pastures, Narborough, Leicester LE19 3DS

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Inspector

Sarah Orriss, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2495951 13 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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