Children's home run by Lavender Grove Cares Ltd

Inspection report children's home: 2569520 1 Registered provider: Lavender Grove Cares Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children's home

This privately owned home provides care for up to three children aged between five and 18 with complex social and emotional needs.

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Information about this children's home

There has been no registered manager since April 2020. The current manager has been in post since November 2021 and is in the process of applying to be registered with Ofsted.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children's home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children's home: 2569520 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

09/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 27/10/2021 Interim Declined in effectiveness 28/09/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report children's home: 2569520 3

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improvement to be good

Two children have moved out of the home since the last inspection and two children have moved in. One child moved back to their home area. Another child moved to semi-independent living. The two children who moved on were frequently missing from the home and therefore did not spend much time there. There were three children living at the home at the time of this inspection.

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improvement to be good

The leadership and management of the home and how children are helped and protected require improvement to be good. This is reflected in the overall judgement for children’s experiences and progress.

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improvement to be good

Children who have recently moved into the home have been out of education for some time or had minimal attendance. The manager is working with virtual schools to source appropriate education placements. Staff are helping children to do schoolwork on laptops.

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improvement to be good

Children’s plans are written in the child’s voice. However, children are not involved in writing or updating these plans and their views are not recorded. This does not put children at the centre of their care or support them to understand or contribute to their plans.

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improvement to be good

Children’s health plans are sparse. They do not give staff enough information about the children’s health appointments and the outcomes of these. As a result, it is unclear if some children have attended routine health appointments. Immunisations and past medical conditions have not been recorded.

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improvement to be good

When appropriate, and in consultation with social workers, children are supported to visit their friends. Children benefit from valuable opportunities to build and maintain friendships. One child said that they can stay at a friend’s house and that staff have met him.

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improvement to be good

A child-friendly guide in the form of a book is available to the children. When children receive the guide, they also receive a lavender-filled teddy. This helps children to feel welcomed.

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improvement to be good

Children benefit from regular key-work sessions. Records of sessions have improved, are more detailed and show children’s contribution to the conversation.

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improvement to be good

The atmosphere at the home is calm, inviting and friendly. Children and staff appeared happy and relaxed in each other’s company. There was laughter and appropriate jokes and teasing between staff and the children. Children spoke positively about the staff and said that they enjoy spending time with them and going on activities. Inspection report children's home: 2569520 4 Children are beginning to make progress. A child said that they are due to move on to semi-independence. They recognise the changes that they have made that are enabling them to move on.

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improvement to be good

Social workers for children who have recently moved to the home both said that the children are settled and happy and that unwanted behaviours have significantly reduced.

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improvement to be good

Staff have not always been vigilant when working with the children. This has led to two serious safeguarding concerns since the last inspection. A full investigation took place during which several practice shortfalls were identified and addressed. Staff have attended extra safeguarding training and workshops to look at their roles and responsibilities to safeguard the children.

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improvement to be good

Children’s behaviour management plans and risk assessments do not fully support staff to safeguard children or understand the implications of children’s behaviours. Plans do not look at behaviour triggers through stages of crisis and what strategies can be put in place to support staff to defuse situations and rebuild relationships. This does not enable staff, particularly agency staff who do not work permanently at the home, to keep children safe. A requirement was raised at the last inspection in relation to the protection of children and is restated.

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improvement to be good

Incidents of children going missing have increased since the last inspection. On one occasion, a child left the house during the night without the waking night staff being aware. The manager investigated the incident, and the child was moved to the first floor of the home to reduce the risk of this happening again. Staff actively look for and try to contact children when they go missing.

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improvement to be good

Sanctions are appropriate. However, records of these are not monitored and reviewed effectively by the manager to look at trends and patterns of behaviour.

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improvement to be good

Children say that they feel safe and that the staff look after and care about them. They can talk to staff if they are worried or upset and staff will help them.

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improvement to be good

The manager has made a detailed impact risk assessment for two children who have recently moved to the home.

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good

The registered manager left in April 2020. There have been two managers in post since who have not been registered with Ofsted. The most recent manager has been in post since November 2021 and is the process of registering with Ofsted. She has the experience to manage the home and is working towards a relevant qualification. Inspection report children's home: 2569520 5 The home has experienced a turbulent time since the last inspection, which has affected staff and children. A child said that a lot of staff suddenly left, which was unsettling. A new staff team is in the process of being recruited.

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good

Internal monitoring is poor. Health and safety files do not have up-to-date information. Fire certificates are not kept at the home. This makes it difficult for the manager to ensure that all checks are in place and current.

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good

An updated statement of purpose has not been sent to Ofsted. The statement of purpose does not have information about the current manager or staffing. This makes it did difficult to monitor whether the home is working in line with its objectives.

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good

Staff have regular, effective supervision which they say supports them in working with the children and develops their skills and understanding. Regular staff meetings enable staff to share and look at practice issues.

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good

Staff have undertaken all mandatory training as defined by the organisation. The staff have achieved or are working towards a relevant level 3 qualification. Inspection report children's home: 2569520 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

The health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

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

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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

understand the child’s health and well-being needs and the options that are available in relation to the child’s health and well-being, in a way that is appropriate to the child’s age and understanding. (Regulation (10)(1)(b) (2)(a)(i)(ii)

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that children have detailed health plans with a record of outcomes and actions. 8 July 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; have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation (12) (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)) 8 July 2022 Inspection report children's home: 2569520 7 This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated.

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that —

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Requirement Due date

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

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;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(iv)(vii)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that behaviour plans identify triggers and de-escalation strategies to enable staff to manage behaviour effectively. 8 July 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 work as a team where appropriate;

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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)(b)(f)(h)) 30 July 2022 Inspection report children's home: 2569520 8 The registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it; and

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Requirement Due date

notify HMCI of any revisions and send HMCI a copy of the revised statement within 28 days of the revision. (Regulation 16 (3)(a)(b)) 30 July 2022

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Requirement Due date

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)(b)(i)(ii)(c)) 8 July 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should encourage children to contribute to their records in a way that reflects their voice on a regular basis. ('Guide to the Children's Homes Regulations, including the quality standards', page 58, paragraph 11.19)

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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: 2569520 9

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Children's home details

Registered provider: Lavender Grove Cares Limited

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Children's home details

Registered provider address: Gothic Cottage, Moreton Road, Ongar, Essex CM5 0EZ

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Inspector

Trish Palmer, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children's home: 2569520 10 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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