Children's Home run by HAVEN CARE GROUP LIMITED in Birmingham

Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 1 Registered provider: Haven Care Group Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is one of eight within the organisation. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who have had adverse childhood experiences.

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Information about this children’s home

There is currently no registered manager in post. The previous manager has recently left. A manager is providing cover and is in day-to-day charge of the home until a permanent manager is recruited.

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Information about this children’s home

Ofsted undertook an assurance visit in October 2020. Serious concerns were identified at this visit. Ofsted last visited this home on 17 December 2020 to carry out a monitoring visit. The reports are published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about this children’s home

The home closed between July and December 2021. This is the home’s first full inspection since registration.

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

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 2 Enforcement action since last inspection: As a result of an assurance visit on 21 and 22 October 2020, a compliance notice was raised under regulation 12 (the protection of children standard) due to significant shortfalls in how the home is designed, furnished and maintained. A monitoring visit on 17 December 2020 found that this compliance notice had been met. Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 4

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inadequate

At the time of this inspection, three children were living in the home. One child had recently moved on.

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inadequate

Care planning for children is inadequate. Managers do not obtain the relevant paperwork from the local authority to inform them of the children’s needs and risks before they move into the home. For one child, there is no internal care plan in place to provide guidance to staff on how to care for the child or how to keep them safe. As a result, it is not clear whether the child is receiving the necessary care to meet their needs.

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inadequate

Children were admitted to the home when there were insufficient staff to care for them well. One child left the home in an unplanned way. Managers served immediate notice on this child during a bank holiday weekend because there were not enough staff to adequately care for children. This resulted in a child having to leave the home with no plans in place for her. Poor care planning leaves children vulnerable to the risk of harm and means that they do not experience stability.

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inadequate

Healthcare arrangements for children are inadequate. For example, staff have not arranged for a child to have a health appointment to review a particular condition. Furthermore, actions from medical assessments have not been completed despite timescales having passed. This has not been followed up by staff. These shortfalls compromise children’s health and well-being.

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inadequate

Children do not receive sufficient support from staff to help them to overcome difficulties in their relationships with one another. Managers fail to address this lack of support for children. As a result, children experience a chaotic environment, which has resulted in one child being assaulted by another child in the home. The lack of direct work to help children to rebuild relationships means that children do not learn from incidents that happen. In addition, they do not receive good-quality care to support their progress and welfare.

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inadequate

Managers and staff do not individually assess the need for use of bedroom door alarms for children. This blanket approach means that children do not receive individualised care as set out in the home’s statement of purpose.

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inadequate

Improvements have been made to the environment of the home. Children’s bedrooms have been decorated. The home has a more inviting feel. Children told the inspector that they like their bedrooms and they go there to ‘chill out’.

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inadequate

Some children enjoy doing different activities, including go-karting, playing football in the garden, and going out to play pool. Although there are pool tables in the Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 5 home, the cues are broken and so children cannot play there. Other children are less engaged in leisure activities.

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inadequate

Individual plans are in place so that children receive educational input which is tailored to their needs. For example, some children attend school and are achieving their targets. Another child has work to do at home while an alternative provision is sought.

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

Managers and staff do not manage potential risks posed to children effectively. Police have warned managers and staff that a child should not visit a particular property due to safeguarding concerns. Despite this, staff still transport the child to the area in which this property is situated to spend time in the community. Arrangements for welfare checks during this time are inadequate. Staff believe that the child visits the property, but no action has been taken in response to this. Failing to understand and manage risk places children at risk of harm. Steps were taken during the inspection by managers, and the placing authority was informed.

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

The home’s day-to-day care is not arranged and delivered to safeguard children. For example, there have been concerns that children spend nights in each other’s bedrooms without staff’s knowledge. However, managers have not implemented effective risk management strategies to address this and protect children from the risk of harm.

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

Bedroom door alarms were broken at the time of this inspection. Explanations from the responsible individual and a manager contradicted one another. This raises concerns about the safeguarding arrangements in the home and the effectiveness of management oversight of children’s care. Managers implemented waking night staff during the inspection while the door alarms were fixed.

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

Staff do not keep children safe from the risks posed to them online. Despite potential risks for children being known, these are not carefully considered and managed. Managers have not taken effective action to put clear plans in place to guide staff on how to promote children’s safety while using the internet.

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

Staff do not raise concerns of potential harm to their designated safeguarding lead. Some staff are reluctant to raise issues due to fear of repercussions. This means that children live in a home that does not have a culture of openness. Delays in raising concerns leave children vulnerable to harm.

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

The organisation’s robust safer recruitment practice means that staff are appropriately vetted.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Failure to make improvements since the last inspection highlights that management oversight and monitoring of the home are inadequate. Existing monitoring systems Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 6 have failed to identify shortfalls in recordings, quality of care and safeguarding practice. Managers do not have sufficient insight into the quality of care provided to the children and how this can be improved. This inadequate leadership has adversely affected children’s safety and the provision of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers fail to monitor and review incident records and missing-from-care reports. Due to this, some reports are incomplete and relevant information is missing. This lack of effective oversight prevents managers from being able to clearly identify and act on shortfalls in staff practice, highlight patterns and trends and make improvements to the way in which staff manage children’s behaviours that cause concern.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff contact professionals from relevant partner agencies when children go missing from the home. However, managers and staff do not challenge professionals from children’s placing authorities when they fail to take the necessary steps to ensure a child’s safety and welfare. For example, children are not always provided with an opportunity to have an independent return home interview. This means that they do not have the opportunity to discuss potential concerns with someone who is independent about why they went missing from the home and what happened while they were away.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home does not have enough staff to meet the children’s needs. Managers rely heavily on agency staff to fill these gaps. High levels of staff turnover and significant use of agency staff mean that children do not always receive consistent care from adults who know them well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have failed to notify Ofsted of serious incidents in line with regulation. This prevents the regulator from having oversight of practice in the home, to help ensure that children are sufficiently safeguarded.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Only one core staff member is qualified to level 3 in residential childcare. Staff are provided with some training to support their professional development. However, this is not being used effectively to help staff to provide good-quality care to children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

A notice restricting accommodation was issued to the provider following this inspection. This means that no other children can move into the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

In addition, Ofsted has issued a notice of proposal to cancel the provider’s registration. The provider can make representations in response to this before any decision is made. Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 7

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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

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 (c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that children are provided with an opportunity to have an independent return home interview following missing-from-care episodes. 31 May 2022

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Requirement Due date

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met;

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being; and

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Requirement Due date

children are helped to lead healthy lifestyles.

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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

achieve the health and well-being outcomes that are recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

take part in activities, and attend any appointments, for the purpose of meeting the child’s health and well-being needs. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that staff follow actions from health plans and encourage children to attend required appointments. 31 May 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 8 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

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to direct work being carried out with children following incidents, and discussions taking place about the impact of behaviours on themselves and others. 31 May 2022

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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

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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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

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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(v)(vi)(vii)) 31 May 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 9 This specifically relates to ensuring that managers and staff understand an act on risks to children’s welfare and safety promptly and effectively. This includes children being in areas that are known to be unsafe, being in one another’s bedrooms during the night, and managers and staff acting on issues pertaining to internet safety.

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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

lead and manage 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

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care for 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. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(d)(e)(f))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that: the home has sufficient staff to provide good-quality care to children; staff are qualified; and managers lead the service effectively. 31 May 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 31 May 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 10 have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

that children are admitted to the home only if their needs are within the range of needs of children for whom it is intended that the home is to provide care and accommodation, as set out in the home’s statement of purpose. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that children experience both positive arrivals to and from the home.

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises—

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Requirement Due date

is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and

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Requirement Due date

allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(c)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that bedroom door alarms are not used as a blanket approach and that each risk is assessed individually. 31 May 2022

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Requirement Due date

An individual may only carry on a children’s home if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (5).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2; 31 May 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 11 the individual is mentally and physically fit to carry on the home; and

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Requirement Due date

the individual is financially fit to carry on the home.

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Requirement Due date

satisfy the requirements in paragraph (5)(a) to (c); and

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Requirement Due date

have the capacity, experience and skills to supervise the management of the home, or the homes, in respect of which the responsible individual is nominated. (Regulation 26 (1) (5)(a)(b)(c)(d) (7)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that individuals responsible for the running of the home have suitable capacity to do so and oversee the management of the home effectively.

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home; and

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Requirement Due date

is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person so appointed; and

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Requirement Due date

the date on which the appointment takes effect. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to appointing a suitable manager and informing Ofsted of this without delay. 31 May 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if— 31 May 2022 Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 12 there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that the provider informs Ofsted of any allegations made in the home and that notifications to Ofsted are made without delay.

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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: 2548333 13

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Haven Care Group Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Unit 6 Barberry Court, Parkway, Centrum One Hundred, Burton on Trent DE14 2UE

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Inspector

Kev Brammer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: 2548333 14 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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