Children's Home run by North Yorkshire County Council in North Yorkshire

Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 1 SC034235 Registered provider: North Yorkshire County Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a local authority under the ‘No Wrong Door’ model. The home provides care for up to six children between the ages of 13 and 18 years who have social, emotional, or mental health difficulties. The home can also care for a further two children in separate accommodation for up to 28 days.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in February 2020.

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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. The care and experiences of children are poor, and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Date of last inspection: 15 February 2022

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/02/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 03/09/2019 Full Outstanding 18/02/2019 Full Outstanding 16/01/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 3

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inadequate

The overall experiences for children living in this home are poor. Some children have told staff that they do not want to live in the home. Others have walked out of the home, sometimes at night, because of their own personal circumstances and sometimes in response to situations in the home. At these times, children are at risk. Evenings in the home are often characterised by chaos. There has been no progress made to address the most significant shortfalls identified at the last inspection. This failure to make improvements means that children’s progress is hampered. In addition, they are sometimes unhappy and scared, and are not being consistently protected from harm.

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inadequate

Most children do not make good progress. Children’s care plans are not robust and do not reflect the ethos of the model of care used in the home. Plans lack individualised and specific strategies for staff to help children achieve their identified outcomes. Management oversight does not ensure that plans reflect children’s needs or track children’s progress. Children who live in the home for a long time are not being helped sufficiently by staff to develop skills for the future.

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inadequate

Some professionals raise concerns about the progress for children who live in the home for a long time. One said that recent improvements for one child were related to the influence of a potential carer, rather than the impact of living in the home. Children who live in the home for a shorter time sometimes become embroiled in the situations occurring in the home, while others become upset by these difficulties. This prevents them from being able to work with staff on the issues that matter to them most.

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inadequate

Children’s experiences of moving into and on from the home are mixed. For example, matching of new children with those already living in the home is not always well considered. Although two children who have moved on are being supported to live at home with their families, they left the home quickly and in crisis. Leaving the home in this way, after living there for several months, was not a positive experience for either child. Some children who move on from the home keep in contact with staff. This suggests that those staff have a significant meaning for them.

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inadequate

Children lack structure to their day. They often stay in bed during the morning and even into the afternoon. Without good routines, children are not supported to become more secure in themselves and their home.

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inadequate

Children compete for staff attention. They voice their unhappiness if they believe staff spend more time with other children. They then act out of anxiety and Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 4 frustration to try to secure recognition from staff. This contributes to some of the situations that occur in the home and undermines their experiences at the home.

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inadequate

Children’s educational needs are not being met. There has been some progress for one child who has been working towards some GCSEs. Staff make good efforts to find appropriate education providers. However, none of the other children regularly take part in any form of learning activity. This is both affected by and contributes to the issues around a lack of structured routines in the home. Many of the children are at a crucial stage of their education and are not effectively supported to achieve their potential.

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inadequate

Children have access to the psychologist who works from the home. For one child, this support is available when most needed. Other children do not engage with the psychologist for reasons that are not well understood by staff. This means that the potential value of this support is mixed and progress as a result is unclear.

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inadequate

Attempts have been made to improve some aspects of the home’s conditions since the last inspection. Graffiti in the home has been painted over. Although some repairs are generally organised as soon as possible, and damaged furniture removed, the home looks worn. For example, the front and back door are damaged and have been for a long time. The state of the home does not give children the message that staff value them and want them to live in nice surroundings.

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inadequate

Children’s bedrooms are also a concern. One child is living in a room that shows damage to the walls caused by the child who lived in it previously. Another child’s room was in a very poor state. Leaders do not accept that standards in bedrooms have fallen below what is right for children and that this has an impact on their emotional well-being.

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inadequate

Staff are committed to children and want them to do well. Some have raised concerns about children’s experiences. They continue to try to help children to make progress. There are daily examples of positive interactions between children and staff, alongside more difficult incidents. Family members and professionals recognise this and see these relationships as a positive aspect of the home.

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inadequate

Despite the shortfalls, children do have some positive experiences and make some progress. For example, a child has gone to a boxing match and played football and another child enjoys cooking with staff on occasion. One child’s risks relating to associating with unsafe adults have reduced and they are safer as a result.

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

Children are not consistently protected from the risk of harm. Risk assessments do not reflect children’s current issues, despite being regularly reviewed. For example, staff are not provided with clear guidance on what to do if there is a concern about medication. Staff do not follow the home’s medication policy or take appropriate action in response to medication issues. They do not monitor children’s welfare, or ensure that children are not at risk of harm. Furthermore, when children raise issues Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 5 of bullying, there is a lack of planned response to provide children with reassurance that their concerns are taken seriously and dealt with.

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

The arrangements to keep children safe when they leave the home are mixed. If children have an identified risk when they are missing, staff’s responses are mostly effective. However, children who are missing for other reasons, including because of unhappiness in the home, are not safeguarded. One child left the home in the early hours of the morning without staff taking any meaningful action to ensure their well- being. The plan for another child, newly moved into the home, referred to staff going to bed if the child had not returned by their curfew. These arrangements do not keep children safe. They do not tell children that staff worry about them and will act to ensure they are protected. This means that children do not feel secure in their home.

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

Staff do manage children’s presenting emotional behaviour consistently well. This was a significant concern at the last inspection. There has been no progress in helping staff to know what to do when difficulties begin. Incidents are very difficult for all concerned. Children and staff have been injured and some children have self- harmed. There has been significant damage to the home and some children have become involved with the police. Children who are not generally involved in these incidents are affected by living in this environment. These children raise concerns about the impact of such incidents but no sustained improvement takes place.

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

Staff cannot consistently influence children. Recent examples include children spending the night together in one bedroom, smoking cannabis. Staff ‘monitored’ what happened but could not ensure that children did as was expected of them. Staff do not successfully help children to observe boundaries if children do not want to. There have been many examples when this has led to more significant incidents. Children do not experience staff as being competent and confident at these times. This is detrimental to children’s sense of security.

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

On occasion, staff do respond more proactively to the difficulties that children experience. When they do, they are effective in helping children. There is no oversight from managers to explore the differences between these and other incidents. This means that staff are not helped to take more appropriate action, more often.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not have a good understanding of the progress that children make. Monitoring is overly positive and does not focus on the experiences of children. Incidents are reviewed in isolation and required learning is not identified. As a result, there has been no meaningful positive change for children in different aspects of their development since the last inspection and for some children, their situation has deteriorated.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers have not made adequate progress against shortfalls identified at the last inspection. There is insufficient attention to the requirement to Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 6 comply with the regulatory framework. Leaders do not ensure that the day-to-day experiences of children are at the centre of their thinking. As a result, children’s progress is poor.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Leaders and managers do not consider the needs of children already living in the home when they admit another child. This has a significant impact on children. Leaders and managers state that difficulties always increase around the time a child moves into the home. There is insufficient effort made to reduce such consequences or to evaluate why this is the case. Arrangements to provide staff with training about how to manage children’s behaviour and group dynamics have been slow. Although this was being delivered during this inspection, it has not been delivered in time to have had a positive impact on children’s experiences and welfare since the last inspection.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Ofsted has not been notified of several serious incidents. This was raised as a shortfall at the last inspection. This means that Ofsted cannot be assured that leaders and managers properly understand and respond to significant issues in the home. The responsible individual was unaware of this and accepted this shortfall on this occasion.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The reports of the independent person are not always sent to Ofsted promptly. This reduces Ofsted’s oversight of the way in which the home functions. This means that Ofsted cannot be assured that children are being well cared for.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff receive supervision of their practice regularly. They report that leaders and managers are readily available for ad hoc conversations. This is valued by staff and helps them to continue to work hard, even when the circumstances in the home are difficult.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff turnover remains low. Many staff have worked in the home for a long time and are committed to their roles. Managers have struggled to recruit new staff, in common with other social care providers. However, the practice of having a large pool of relief staff means that children are looked after by those who are familiar to them. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 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

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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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

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment; and

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(iv)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

This is repeated from the last inspection. 3 July 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. 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 8 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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

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; and

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(xi))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, staff must meet the behavioural and emotional needs of the group of children living in the home.

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Requirement Due date

This is repeated from the last inspection.

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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

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and 19 June 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 9 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)(a)(i)(vi)(b))

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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 work as a team where appropriate;

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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; and

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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)(b)(c)(f)(h)) 19 June 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. (Regulation 14 (1)(a))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, staff must consider the impact on children already living in the home when planning for a child to move into the home. 19 June 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation; 3 July 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 10 an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

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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

a child protection enquiry involving a child —

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Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

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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)(a)(b)(c)(d)(e))

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Requirement Due date

This is repeated from the last inspection.

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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 6 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—

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Requirement Due date

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

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) (5))

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Requirement Due date

This is repeated from the last inspection, because a review of the quality of care is not yet due to be undertaken. 3 July 2022

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice. Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 11

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children live in a homely, domestic environment that limits an impression of being institutional. This will require that repairs are carried out swiftly. Children should have bedrooms that are well maintained, and they should be helped to keep them in a reasonable state of order. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.19)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should actively seek independent scrutiny of the home and make best use of information from independent and internal monitoring (including under regulations 44 and 45) to ensure continuous improvement. The reports from such monitoring should be provided to HMCI without delay. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 55, paragraph 10.24)

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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: SC034235 12

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: North Yorkshire County Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: County Hall, Northallerton DL7 8AD

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Inspectors

Jane Titley, Social Care Inspector (17 and 18 May 2022) Jamie Richardson, Social Care Inspector (17 and 18 May 2022)

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Inspectors

Elaine Allison, Regulatory Inspection Manager (26 May 2022) Karen Willson, Social Care Inspector (26 May 2022) Inspection report for children’s home: SC034235 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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