Children's Home run by Aegis 247 Limited in Sheffield

Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 1 Registered provider: Aegis 24/7 Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by a private provider. It is registered to provide care for up to one child 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 July 2021.

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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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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 requires improvement to be 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: requires improvement to be good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

05/01/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

No children have moved in to or from the home since the last full inspection. The current child has been living at the home for five months, allowing them time to settle and develop some trusting relationships. This has enabled the child to share their needs and views with staff. The child is settled in the routines that staff provide and is making measurable progress from their starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the child to have direct time with family and friends. Staff facilitate extensive travel, which ensures that the child maintains regular contact with important people. A parent said that staff ‘go above and beyond’ as they extend their support to the family while the child is at home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff work collaboratively with professionals, including the looked after children’s nurse, to communicate about the child’s health. This has led to the child having a more positive approach to accessing therapeutic support and attending health appointments.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are aspirational for the child’s future, and they fully promote and advocate the importance of education. This has led to the child now attending a formal education provision, having previously been out of education for a significant period of time.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff encourage the child to become more independent, and this approach is helping the child to develop their own coping strategies. Staff celebrate the child’s achievements and use restorative approaches effectively, which is developing the child’s understanding of cause and effect. The child’s social skills are improving and their investment in the home is increasing.

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

Risk assessments are detailed and inform staff on how to respond in situations of risk. This is further enhanced through consultation with the home’s psychologist, who helps staff to better understand the child’s journey. This consistent approach in parenting has led to the child making progress in how they approach others and their ability to make their needs known.

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

Partner agencies and the child’s family members are positive about how staff support them and how well they work together. One professional said ‘I was wonderfully astonished and very impressed they had implemented this so quickly’ when talking about changes made to the child’s plan. It is a collective view that the manager and staff team impact positively on children’s lives. Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 4 The child has become increasingly safe living at the home. Concerns around substance misuse and being missing from care are no longer present. Staff talk to the child about risks around mobile phones and social media. Staff check to make sure that the child can use these safely.

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

Restrictive physical interventions are not needed as staff are able to de-escalate challenging situations effectively and quickly. Staff talk to the child when incidents occur to help them to better regulate and understand the importance of relationships. This relationship-based approach is improving relationships and the frequency of these incidents is decreasing.

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

Staff are trained, confident and vigilant in managing self-harmful behaviours. Staff document the reasons for room searches and ensure that the child is aware when these take place. Staff empower the child as they provide the child with their own safety plans.

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

Staff uphold a clear message around the health and safety implications of smoking. Good fire risk management ensures that the child has a safe environment to live in. Cessation support plans and direct work with the child’s family ensure that the child now smokes less.

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

Allegations against staff are well managed in line with the provider’s policy, and safeguarding concerns are shared with the local authority designated officer. This means that matters are investigated promptly. Staff and the child understand the outcomes of the action taken as they have a debrief with the manager. The appropriate response to allegations promotes the safety of the child and staff.

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

Staff and the manager work with professionals and attend strategy meetings to agree plans on how to keep the child safe. However, it is unclear if an action identified in a multi-agency meeting has been completed thoroughly. Records do not demonstrate that sufficient discussions have taken place to inform the child’s understanding of safe and appropriate relationships. This does not promote their safety and well-being.

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good

The manager is suitably qualified and receives regular support from senior managers. The monthly reports compiled by an independent visitor and the internal quality-of-care reviews increase their oversight of how the home is functioning. The manager has started to analyse what is working well and is building on this to improve outcomes for the child further.

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good

The manager is now keeping the regulator informed of significant events. The revised statement of purpose has not been shared with the regulator in a timely manner. This does not support transparency and oversight in relation to the operational functioning of the home. Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 5 The staff team provide the child with stability and are equipped to fulfil their role. They are supported to improve their qualifications, skills and understanding further. They undertake mandatory training courses and access additional learning to improve their practice. Staff speak highly about their development opportunities and are enrolled to complete the relevant diploma qualifications.

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good

Reflective practice is improving. Monthly team meetings, post-incident debriefs, and the regular supervision give opportunity for staff to discuss their work and receive feedback on their performance.

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good

Staff appraisals are one-dimensional. Objectives are inconsistently recorded, and the review of personal targets is unclear. The manager does not demonstrate how the views of others inform staff appraisals or how they effectively use targets to support staff development.

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good

A structured induction process supports new team members to work at the home. Not all senior managers who are part of recruitment selection processes have training in safer recruitment. Suitability checks are undertaken for new staff, but interview records lack detail. This does not demonstrate how decisions are being made regarding the suitability of staff to work in the home.

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good

Efficient maintenance systems and high expectations of staff ensure that children have a homely and well-presented place to live. Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 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 must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must— notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(b)) 20 May 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure the actions for the home agreed at strategy discussions are fully recorded; particularly that ongoing support is provided to the child about maintaining healthy relationships. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.7)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all managers involved in recruitment are trained in safer recruitment practices and that interview documents are clear in recording why staff are successfully appointed to post. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the annual appraisal of staff is informed by a reflective account from the member of staff and, where possible, the views of professionals and children. Targets set at appraisal and through supervision should be regularly reviewed. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.5)

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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: 2630701 7

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Beverley Jackson

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Inspector

Alexandra Howitt, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2630701 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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