Children's Home run by Acorn Norfolk Limited in Norfolk

Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 1 Registered provider: Acorn Norfolk Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home provides care for up to six children with learning disabilities. It is operated by a national provider.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered at the same time as the home in June 2022.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is in the grounds of a special school and other children’s homes that are all operated by the same national provider. The school is independently registered.

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Information about this children’s home

The inspector only inspected the social care provision.

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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

Date of last inspection: not previously inspected

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

Not previously inspected Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 3

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improvement to be good

The home registered in June 2022. Prior to this, it was operating as part of a larger registration on this site. Children were already living at the home before the re- registration. Since the re-registration, one child has left the home and one child has moved in. Currently, five children live there.

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improvement to be good

Overall, most children have made progress at the home.

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improvement to be good

One child’s needs are beyond the scope of the aims set out in the home’s statement of purpose. The aim of the home is to help children to develop their independence. This child’s primary needs relate to mental health. The staff are not equipped and trained to manage these needs. The decision for the child to move to the home has had a detrimental impact on other children living at the home. In addition, staff morale has been poor. Some staff have been absent from the home due to work- related fatigue. The management team is working well with the child’s placing authority to ensure that the child has a planned ending before moving to a more suitable home.

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improvement to be good

Except for one child, all children attend the on-site school. These children have made good progress in education and have achieved most of their education, health and care plan targets. The child who attends an off-site educational provision struggled to engage in education before the summer holidays. Since the new academic term in September 2022, the child has attended and engaged well. The child’s social worker said that the registered manager was responsible for the child’s positive changes and has ‘turned him around’.

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improvement to be good

Staff help children to establish and maintain friendships at the home. This is particularly notable given that some of the children have not made a friend before or wanted to play with another child.

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improvement to be good

The home is well maintained, and children’s bedrooms are attractively decorated to their preferences. The manager has provided children with a substantial budget to make improvements to their rooms. This enables children to feel empowered and gain a sense of permanence at the home. However, one child’s bedroom did not have curtains due to the risks that they could present to the child. Consequently, the bare window means that the child does not have appropriate privacy. Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 4

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improvement to be good

On one occasion, a member of staff failed to report an allegation to the designated safeguarding lead. This led to an unnecessary delay in escalation and management of the allegation. This put the child at increased risk.

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improvement to be good

One child has been involved in an incident that led to hospitalisation. The staff cannot manage the risks to the child, which means the child has been exposed to harm.

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improvement to be good

There have been occasions when children have been verbally and physically abusive to one another. Although staff have intervened to de-escalate these situations, this has not always been successful. On occasion, this has led to some children feeling targeted and bullied.

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improvement to be good

The designated safeguarding lead refers safeguarding concerns and allegations routinely and responds to these effectively. The local authority designated officer (LADO) said, ‘I am of the view that they take the allegations seriously and respond to additional queries in a timely manner.’ Safeguarding records are updated to reflect developments and outcomes.

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improvement to be good

Restraint, when used, is reasonable, proportionate and necessary. Debriefs are held with staff and children. The manager monitors the restraint records to good effect, providing advice and direction when needed.

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improvement to be good

Children are taught how to keep safe online. Staff have meaningful conversations with children about online risks. These conversations are age- and stage- appropriate.

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improvement to be good

Staff’s understanding of risks to children matches the information recorded in children’s individual risk assessments. Staff are responsive to emerging risks. This helps to keep children safe.

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improvement to be good

Staff have delivered some highly personalised key-work sessions that discuss matters that are important to children. Discussions have been held about sexuality, sexual health and relationships. Some staff have used their own personal experiences to help children understand and make sense of some of their own feelings and thoughts. This has been carried out in a professional yet personal way. This enriches children’s understanding at this important time of identity development. Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 5

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good

The registered manager is suitably qualified and experienced.

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good

There has been a two-week period in which neither the manager nor the deputy manager were at the home. This led to reduced managerial oversight. During this time, some staff did not feel sufficiently supported.

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good

In an incident which involved a child being hospitalised, an allegation was made about a staff member. The incident report was not reviewed by a manager until six days after the incident took place. This led to an unnecessary delay in the referral of the allegation to the LADO.

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good

The manager has failed to ensure that the children’s placing authority care reviews and related records are maintained at the home. In the absence of these records, it is unclear how well the staff are working towards the children’s targets and objectives, as required by their placing authority.

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good

The manager has not provided staff with supervision sessions as described in the home’s supervision policy. Given the poor staff morale and challenges that staff face relating to the risks to one child, opportunities have been missed to provide staff with the guidance and support that they need.

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good

One member of staff has not achieved a relevant level 3 qualification in the required time frame. Out of the 11 staff working at the home, only four have the required qualification. Although these staff members are within the time frame to gain the qualification, most staff are unqualified. This affects the quality of care that staff can provide to children.

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good

The manager has worked shifts during the day, night and weekends due to the needs of the staff team. This has resulted in a lack of managerial oversight, contributing to some shortfalls identified at this inspection.

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good

Staff, parents and social workers recognise that the manager has been a positive influence on the children, the staff team and the development of the home. Staff find the manager supportive.

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good

The manager has a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the home. He has created a comprehensive development plan to make the necessary improvements.

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good

External monitoring undertaken by an independent person is extremely thorough. The monitoring process is rigorous. Monitoring reports detail actions to drive improvements. Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 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 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

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(iv)) 21 October 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

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that staff follow the home’s child protection policy. 21 October 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 21 October 2022 Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 7 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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to the registered manager ensuring that:

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Requirement Due date

staff receive supervision in line with the home’s policy;

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Requirement Due date

placing authority plans for children are retained at the home; and

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Requirement Due date

incident reports are monitored promptly and effectively.

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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

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Requirement Due date

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)) 21 October 2022

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Requirement Due date

the privacy of children is appropriately protected. (Regulation 21 (a))

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Requirement Due date

Specifically, ensure that privacy screening is in place for children who cannot have curtains in their bedrooms. 21 October 2022

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or 21 October 2022 Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 8 if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home, if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3)

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained—

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Requirement Due date

the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home. (Regulation 32 (2)(a)(b) (3)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a))

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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: 2688701 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Acorn Norfolk Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Atria, Spa Road, Bolton BL1 4AG

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Inspector

Lianne Bradford, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 2688701 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 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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