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Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 1 SC064050 Registered provider: Keys BR Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This is a privately run children’s home that provides care and accommodation for up to three children aged between eight and 18 years.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted in August 2021

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 20 October 2021

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/10/2021 Full Good 28/08/2019 Full Good 16/01/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 01/08/2018 Full Good Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have a positive experience living at the home and have made good progress from their starting points. Staff make efforts to get to know the children from the moment they arrive. Staff cater to children’s individual needs. This means that children settle quickly into the home and develop a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are supported to take part in a wide range of new and established activities. One child has been supported to continue with a theatre-based activity, which is some distance from the home. Staff recognise the value of creating opportunities for children to follow their individual hobbies. Children have rewarding experiences that encourage their individuality.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Overall, the home offers a warm and friendly environment. Good progress is being made with the maintenance and décor of the home. Children’s bedrooms are personalised with family photos and mementos. Children’s belongings can be found in all shared areas of the home. However, the staff have their own bathroom, which is routinely locked when not in use. This detracts from the overall homeliness of the environment.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The inspector identified that there were alarms on the children’s bedroom doors. This practice has not been assessed and there is no clear rationale for the decision. For example, it is not clear whether these alarms are in place to safeguard the welfare of the children. Unclear use of these alarms mean that children’s privacy could be unduly affected.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

All children living at the home have access to an independent visitor. Staff routinely consult with children and take account of their views. This means that children are empowered to complain and influence decisions that affect them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s plans are set out clearly and are easy to follow. They are child friendly. Children’s plans reflect the children’s individuality, their development and what they need to progress. However, on occasions, staff have not followed these plans consistently. This means that children’s experiences of care are sometimes variable and this could hinder their progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff are creative in the way that they help children to build and maintain relationships with their family and friends. Staff use their skills to ensure that family time is meaningful. This means that children can socialise with their peers and maintain links with their loved ones.

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

Children’s individual plans contain all relevant information and risk assessments are regularly reviewed. They tell staff what to do should they have concerns about a Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 4 child. Staff are kept up to date with any changes through effective communication. This helps them to understand the specific risks for each child and what to do to safeguard them.

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

When children are missing from home, the response from staff is consistently in line with procedures and the children’s individual risk assessments. Staff work hard to ensure that children are returned safely home. One staff member helped to search for a missing child when they were not at work because they knew the area well. Work is completed with children to help them understand the risks. This means that, over time, children are less likely to go missing from home and those who do are found quickly.

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

The manager is not risk adverse and understands the importance of children learning how to take measured risks. Children are encouraged to take risks that are appropriate to their age and abilities. Children can learn from experience in a safe way. Children develop knowledge and skills to keep themselves safe.

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

Staff are helped to better understand children’s past and current experiences and how these affect them by working closely with the home’s therapist. Staff can read children’s non-verbal cues and predict when a situation could escalate. Consequently, staff are intervening quickly and incidents in the home have significantly decreased. This means that children are benefitting from a more settled experience at home.

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

When agency staff are required to ensure safe levels of care for children, these staff are carefully recruited. The home uses a small number of known agency staff, who have undertaken checks and references that determine they are safe to work with children. Children are cared for by people who are appropriate to do so.

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

Medication is safely stored away from children. However, records of medication administration are not always maintained in line with the company’s procedures. This could mean that errors go unnoticed, and that children could become unwell.

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

Allegations against staff are treated seriously. Children are believed and well supported through the investigations, and appropriate steps are taken to safeguard the children in the home. The manager has developed an effective partnership with designated officers in the relevant local authorities. This ensures that concerns are dealt with quickly and effectively. Staff returning to work following unfounded or unsubstantiated allegations receive good support and management oversight. Restorative meetings are held to repair relationships between children and staff. This helps to ensure that the children feel listened to.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is a committed and enthusiastic leader. She understands the strengths of the home and the areas that require further development. She has ambitious ideas of how to further develop the quality of care provided to children and improve their outcomes. She has put systems in place to help her monitor and evaluate Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 5 children’s experiences. This means that she has a good understanding of how staff are practicing and how this is helping children to make progress.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager strongly advocates for children. She has shown tenacity when challenging the local authority when addressing the lack of suitable education for one child. She quickly escalates her concerns when she is not provided with timely or adequate responses. This means that children get the help they need without unnecessary drift and delay.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff told the inspector that managers are effective. They find managers are approachable and they feel well supported. Supervision is regular and the quality is consistently good. Supervision is used to support staff to reflect on their skills and understanding. Personal matters and practice issues are discussed as standard. Staff continue to develop their skills in caring for the children, and practice concerns that could affect children are addressed.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

When concerns are raised through complaints, the manager ensures that prompt and thorough investigations are completed and appropriate action taken. Resolutions are achieved. This ensures that children can continue to live in harmony within the local community.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Recently, a child moved into the home. Good matching was achieved for the children because the manager made sure all relevant information was made available to her and all children were consulted. Transition plans were carefully considered to include all children in the home. This has enabled the child to move in to the home in a positive way. Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 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 registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (2)(c)) 8 September 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff take a consistent approach to caring for children in line with each child’s plan. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 14, paragraph 3.1)

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Recommendations

 The registered manager should seek to maintain a homely environment. Staff bathrooms should remain unlocked if not in use. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that door alarms on children’s bedrooms that monitor children’s activity should only be in place to safeguard the welfare of the child. The registered managers decision to use door alarms should be informed by individual risk assessments. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)

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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: SC064050 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Queensway, Halesowen, Worcestershire B63 4AH

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Inspector

Rachel Walker, Social Care Inspector Inspection report children’s home: SC064050 8 to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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