Children's home run by New Start in Sefton

Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 1 SC409738 Registered provider: New Start Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private provider. It provides care for up to four children who are unable to live at home due to emotional and social difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

There is a manager in place. He has submitted an application to register 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

Date of last inspection: 20 October 2021

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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Enforcement action since last inspection:

A full inspection took place on 20 October 2021 and the home was judged inadequate. Following this, the provider decided to close the home and a three- month condition was put in place. The home reopened after a monitoring visit took place on 26 May 2022. Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

20/10/2021 Full Inadequate 14/07/2021 Full Inadequate 10/10/2019 Full Good 15/03/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 3

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improvement to be good

There are three children living at the home. The home provides a homely environment for the children. Children’s bedrooms are personalised to their tastes.

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improvement to be good

Children are regularly consulted about their life at the home, including what activities they would like to do and what they would like to see changed. The manager regularly provides engaging written feedback in response to their requests. This helps children to feel that their views are valued and provides them with a sense of control in their lives.

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improvement to be good

A stable and consistent team means that children can build relationships with staff and form positive attachments. When additional staff are needed, these are usually individuals who have worked regularly at the home and are already known to children. This promotes consistency for children.

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improvement to be good

Children have made some progress. All the children attend full-time education, which will help to equip them with the knowledge to progress into further education and employment in later life.

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improvement to be good

Individual care plans do not contain all the relevant information for staff to know how to provide consistent care for the children. One child has complex needs and communication difficulties. This was not reflected in his care plan and staff were unsure how they were working consistently to meet his needs.

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improvement to be good

Some of the children’s health needs are met. They are registered with local primary health services and are supported to attend appointments. However, there is no health plan in place for one child. The manager has not sought enough information from the local authority and health services to develop a health plan to meet the child’s specific needs.

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improvement to be good

Impact risk assessments consider how potential risks between the children would be managed. However, they are not clear about how staff are trained and equipped to meet the children’s needs.

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improvement to be good

The staff demonstrate good knowledge and understanding of risks to the children and the protective strategies in place. However, the quality of written risk assessments is variable, and at times information is inconsistent. This is a recording issue that reflects weaknesses in the manager’s monitoring of the paperwork. Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 4 Use of restraint is poorly recorded and records are at times unclear. On one occasion, the use of restraint was unnecessary. In addition, staff had not acted earlier to prevent a distressing incident. Children are not offered a debrief from the manager, but from staff involved in the incident. This does not allow the child to share their views in an open way. The manager’s evaluation of these incidents is limited . This is a missed opportunity for the staff to learn from incidents and see how to further help and protect children.

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improvement to be good

Consequences are used proportionately in response to negative behaviours in the home and in the community. However, they are not restorative in nature and therefore do not allow the child to link the consequence to their behaviour. Positive behaviour is recognised through rewards and verbal praise.

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improvement to be good

Allegations against staff are managed inconsistently. Some are referred to the relevant agencies. However, some are recorded in a chronology with no context to them. There is not a clear rationale to the decisions made or records detailing the child’s account. On one occasion, the person involved in the allegation continued to work in the home without a risk assessment in place and had some involvement in the handling of the allegation.

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improvement to be good

Managers recruit new staff safely. Staff are thoroughly vetted and assessed before any appointment is confirmed. These safer recruitment procedures make sure that children are protected, by preventing unsuitable adults from working in the home.

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improvement to be good

The home is physically safe and secure. Staff complete regular health and safety checks and follow a range of safety procedures to protect children from harm. This includes fire drills to ensure children know what to do in case of an emergency.

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good

The manager has been in post since the home reopened in May 2022. He is an experienced manager with a relevant qualification.

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good

The manager has devised clear development plans for the home and the workforce. The plans identify strengths and limitations and detail actions to address any shortfalls.

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good

All staff receive regular supervision, but meaningful reflection does not always take place. Better use could be made of supervision to reflect on practice and address any areas for improvement.

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good

Staff meetings occur regularly and are clearly recorded. However, children’s progress is not discussed. There is no evaluation of the care provided or discussion of how children might be better supported. This is a missed opportunity for the manager and staff to review as a team the care provided for children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 5 Staff and the manager have undertaken a range of training in safeguarding matters. However, staff have not received training in relation to some children’s specific needs, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and non-verbal communication techniques. This fails to adequately equip the staff to meet the children’s needs.

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good

There are gaps in the registered manager’s monitoring and review systems. This limits the analysis and evaluation of the care provided for children and how this supports children’s outcomes. A more effective monitoring and review system would allow the manager to ensure continued improvements to children’s care. Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 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, the 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 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 that staff—

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(v)(vi)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

This is in relation to ensuring that allegations about staff are consistently and appropriately managed. 28 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

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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 have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child; 28 October 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 7 use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(h))

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Requirement Due date

This refers to the manager ensuring that staff have the relevant training to meet children’s needs, specifically around communication. Additionally, this refers to the manager having oversight through monitoring to improve the quality of care.

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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.

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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 each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This is in relation to ensuring that each child has an up-to- date care plan which details how to meet their needs and improve their outcomes. 28 October 2022

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child is only permitted for the purpose of preventing—

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Requirement Due date

injury to any person (including the child);

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Requirement Due date

serious damage to the property of any person (including the child); or

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Requirement Due date

a child who is accommodated in a secure children’s home from absconding from the home.

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Requirement Due date

Restraint in relation to a child must be necessary and proportionate. (Regulation 20 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2))

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Requirement Due date

This is in relation to ensuring that restraints are necessary and proportionate. 28 October 2022

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Requirement Due date

within 24 hours of the use of a measure of control, discipline or restraint in relation to a child in the home, a record is made which includes— 28 October 2022 Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 8 the name of the child;

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Requirement Due date

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

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Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person who used the measure (“the user”), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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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)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This is in relation to ensuring that the records of restraints are in line with regulation.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff supervision enables staff to reflect on their own feelings and behaviour and how their feelings and behaviour may Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 9 affect the children they care for. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.15)  The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature, to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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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: SC409738 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 179 Townsend Lane, Clubmoor, Liverpool L13 9DY

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Inspectors

Rachael Crook, Social Care Inspector Pauline Yates, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC409738 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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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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