Children's Home run by Aspris Children’s Services Limited in Hampshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 1 SC467155 Registered provider: Aspris Children’s Services 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 is run by a large provider. It is registered to care for up to four children with learning disabilities and focuses on caring for children with complex needs that may include autism spectrum disorder and associated difficulties. The home is located on the campus of the provider’s school, which the children attend.

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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 and young people are not protected and their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded. 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: SC467155 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/06/2021 Full Good 23/01/2019 Full Good 26/02/2018 Interim Declined in effectiveness 05/07/2017 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 3

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inadequate

The service is judged inadequate, due to the poor care being provided to the child at the home. There are insufficient staff to meet the needs of the child, and staff are ill equipped to support the child to make progress. The senior leadership team in the organisation is not providing adequate support to the acting manager or the staff team.

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inadequate

The child at the home is not making good progress. He is out of education and has limited engagement in socially or emotionally stimulating activities. Staff in the small and highly dedicated staff team, who have some very strong relationships with the child, are concerned for the child and how he is presenting. His parents reflect staff concerns that he is not getting the stimulation that he needs and that he has become more withdrawn.

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inadequate

The child’s views are sought on how staff can support him when he is worried or upset. Individual sessions are used to help him to develop his understanding and to reduce anxiety. The child is able to share his views on his behaviour support and what he classes as his safe spaces.

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inadequate

Staff support the child to lead a healthy lifestyle. The menu at the home is varied, with plenty of fresh foods. The child knows that he needs to take his medication and staff explain what this is for. Records of medication and the potential side effects are clear, and staff are mindful of any adverse reactions. Plans for the signs of seizures and responding to them are detailed and easy to follow. However, the child’s written care plans are confusing, as they do not consistently contain correct information regarding the child’s medical diagnosis. The therapies team at the on-site school has not seen the child in the home or supported staff to develop effective strategies to engage the child and to manage his behaviours.

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

The child living in the home is not consistently or effectively safeguarded. There are concerns that the child is experiencing a poor quality of life. Incidents are frequent and staff are not equipped to manage the behaviours presented or to help the child to make progress. For example, at times, staff leave the building in response to behaviours that they feel put them at risk. This leaves the child alone in the house and hinders the ability of staff to monitor his safety. There is no consideration of the impact on the child of this strategy, in terms of him feeling safe and contained when he is distressed.

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

There is a lack of guidance from senior leaders as to how staff can support the child, and staff have no clear strategies in place to help the child to develop coping skills to manage his feelings. This means that the child spends most of his time in his Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 4 room. Staff say that they feel disempowered and deskilled. Staff do not have training in the organisation’s current prescribed behaviour management technique and feel that they are ill equipped to meet the physically challenging aspects of the child’s communication. The child’s mother is concerned that, despite staff doing their best to support him, ‘He is not happy, and he is frightened, as he is not feeling safe.’

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

The child’s support plans are regularly updated to reflect changes in behaviour. However, not all staff have read the plans. Behavioural incidents are recorded in daily reports, but they have not been collated and evaluated for trends and patterns. This means that valuable information on how to support the child could be lost. Details of physical interventions are well recorded and staff reviews allow for reflection and consideration of how they could respond differently in the future.

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

Safeguarding concerns are shared with partner agencies as necessary and responses are clear and well recorded. Staff know how to respond to safeguarding concerns and actively challenge poor practice if they see it.

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

Recruitment processes are thorough and follow safer recruitment practice. However, there is a serious shortage of staff in the home. Staff in the small team of six are working excessive hours to meet the needs of the child at the home, potentially placing the child and themselves at risk.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The home has been without a registered manager since September 2021 and the responsible individual for the home is currently away from work. The absence of senior staff, including the responsible individual, means that the acting manager and staff feel left to manage themselves. There has been continued drift in the management of the home, leading to a lack of direction for staff. The child’s mother commented that senior managers have not been liaising with her, despite her requests for them to do so.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The requirements from the last inspection have not been met. In particular, children’s behaviour is not being evaluated or monitored and there is a lack of management oversight of the quality of recording and care practice. Additionally, staff returning to work following safeguarding investigations do not have the support and training recommended before their return.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have failed to seek a medical appointment for the child, despite concerns that there may be a medical reason for his change in behaviour and presentation. The lack of joint working with the on-site therapies team means that they have not engaged effectively with the staff team in the home to help them to support the child.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are significant gaps in the monitoring of the home by managers. The acting manager has completed a report on her review of the quality of care provided to children. However, she has had no feedback on this from her manager and the report has not been submitted to Ofsted as required by regulation. The lack of Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 5 senior manager oversight of the home has left the management team drifting, and subsequently the child is not making progress and has a poor experience of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff are working a significant number of hours and are clearly tired. They feel demoralised. The organisation’s move to a new computerised records system has meant that appraisals from last year cannot be located and areas identified for staff development are lost. Staff are beginning to have regular supervision, but there have been significant gaps. In addition, the lack of regular team meetings reduces the opportunity for the staff team to come together and agree how they can support children cohesively. Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose; ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

protect and promote each child’s welfare;

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Requirement Due date

provide personalised care that meets each child’s needs, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans, taking account of the child’s background;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop resilience and skills that prepare the child to return home, to live in a new placement or to live independently as an adult;

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Requirement Due date

make decisions about the day-to-day arrangements for each child, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans, which give the child an appropriate degree of freedom and choice. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(ii)(iv)(vi)(ix))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children are looked after in line with the statement of purpose, including ensuring that they have experiences to help them prepare for their next move, that they make choices in line with living as part of a group, and that plans are clear and accurate. 30 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 7 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

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;

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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)(b)(i)(ii)(iii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that plans contain the correct information for a child’s diagnosis and that the child has access to medical treatment when they appear to be in pain or unwell. 30 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

meet each child’s behavioural and emotional needs, as set out in the child’s relevant plans; 30 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 8 help each child to develop socially aware behaviour. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that staff have the skills to meet children’s behavioural needs and that behaviours are monitored and evaluated.

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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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(vi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that when staff return to work following an investigation into a safeguarding concern, they undertake the training identified in the return-to-work plan. 30 June 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

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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

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Requirement Due date

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; 30 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 9 ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to 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)(d)(e)(f)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the responsible individual should ensure there are a suitable number of staff working in the home who have the training needed to meet the needs of the child, including behavioural needs, that in the absence of a registered manager staff have support from senior leaders, that there is effective joint working with professionals across the site, and that all aspects of the home and child’s needs are monitored effectively.

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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 for children’s home: SC467155 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Aspris Children’s Services Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Forge, Church Street West, Woking, Surrey GU21 6HT

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Inspector

Jennie Christopher, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC467155 11 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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