Children's home run by Willcob Care Ltd

Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 1 Registered provider: Willcob Care Ltd Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

A limited company owns and runs this short-break service. The home provides residential short breaks for a maximum of seven children at any time. The service is for children with emotional and social difficulties and/or learning disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder. The provider also runs care services for adults and children living in the community.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The manager was registered with Ofsted at the same time as the service, on 17 December 2021.

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

p.1

good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

p.1

good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

p.1

good

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

p.1

good

Overall judgement at last inspection: not applicable

p.1

good

Enforcement action since last inspection: not applicable Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 2

p.1

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children receive individualised care when they attend their short breaks. Children have fun when they visit and are kept busy with a high ratio of staff who meet their needs and encourage them to learn independence and self-care skills.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s records contain detailed and important information, including medical consents and their likes and dislikes, enabling staff to care for them. Arrangements for the administration of medication are clear and well documented and all staff have received online training in this area.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Although the service is still developing and children have only stayed at the home for a maximum of two weekends, parents spoken to value the support offered and gave very positive feedback about the service. Parents said that their children enjoyed attending and had opportunities to experience activities and go out on visits in the community, which they may not do at home.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is well cared for and maintained. It is spacious and has a sensory room, giving plenty of room for children to relax and play. The bedrooms and the lounge lack some personal touches and decoration. The registered person stated that children will be involved and supported to personalise these rooms when they come to stay. However, some rooms present as bare and do not give the impression of a homely environment.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Transitions for children have been inconsistent. Some children have had very structured introductory meetings, including visits to the home before coming to stay overnight, while others have not. When introductory visits do not take place, opportunities are missed to prepare children for change.

p.2

Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Due to the vulnerability of the children attending the short-break services, the front door and kitchen door are kept locked. Children are only allowed access to the kitchen or out in the community with a staff member, for their own safety and protection. The reasons for these restrictions are not routinely recorded in children’s care plans.

p.2

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

Children’s needs and risks are well identified before they have a short break at the home. Risk assessments support staff to understand any potential risk factors and provide strategies to de-escalate and reduce risks for children and therefore make them increasingly safe.

p.2

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

Children who come to stay at the home require high levels of supervision. There are adequate staff available to ensure this. Staff pre-empt any potential difficulties and Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 3 support children by keeping them busy and supporting them to enjoy activities in the home and in the community.

p.2

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

Children do not generally go missing from the home and there are high staffing levels due to children’s vulnerabilities. When a child did go missing from the home, staff acted promptly, alerted the police, and followed the correct procedures. The registered provider investigated this thoroughly, and managers and staff learned from this incident. However, this incident was not notified to the regulator in line with requirements and guidance for vulnerable children.

p.3

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

Staff have completed specific training around the needs of the children they care for, which has enabled them to understand and provide a better quality of care. All children have behaviour-management plans that support staff to understand and respond consistently to the individual needs of each child.

p.3

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

Children benefit from staff who understand safeguarding processes. Staff spoken to were aware of how to report child-protection concerns. Staff have received some training around child sexual exploitation but the provider could not demonstrate that staff have had training on all forms of exploitation.

p.3

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

Staff have completed de-escalation training to support them in managing difficult behaviour and keeping children calm and safe. Further training is planned once the staff team is fully established.

p.3

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

Safe staff recruitment processes meet regulations and are supporting children to be safer when they come for short breaks at the home.

p.3

good

The registered person has an ambitious vision and wants to provide high-quality and individualised care to children. However, despite the home being registered since December 2021, there is not yet a fully established staff team in place.

p.3

good

The registered manager was on annual leave at the time of this inspection. The inspector was informed that the registered manager will be leaving their employment as soon as a replacement manager is appointed. The service does not have a deputy manager or senior support workers in post, which could leave the service in a position of vulnerability when considering expansion.

p.3

good

It is unclear who will be driving forward the establishment of this service. In addition, due to the staff team being a new team they have not benefitted from having consistent team meetings and supervisions to support them to work together.

p.3

good

The registered person has a good understanding of children’s needs, but it is too early to see the full impact of this service on children’s progress and outcomes. The registered person runs other community services and, although there is oversight, it Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 4 is unclear how much day-to-day focus there is on the running of operational services for this short-break service.

p.3

good

Staff spoken to said that they feel supported and described a positive induction to the home. However, this is not supported in their first month with any recorded supervision of practice and induction records do not clearly demonstrate the progress and completion of staff induction. When supervisions do take place, they are well recorded but do not always address previous actions; therefore, there is no follow-up to check or improve practice.

p.4

good

Children’s case records are mainly well documented and clear. However, some records do not include the managers comments or signature to demonstrate management oversight. This is a missed opportunity to ensure consistency of practice.

p.4

good

Other records and guidance documents have reference to incorrect legislation and do not always use language that cares and is respectful to children, for example some risk assessments and a member of staff spoken to refer to children as clients.

p.4

good

Children’s views and participation are reflected across their records, indicating that they are given choices for meals, activities and outings. There is no specific format for recording outcomes at this stage, although photographs of children document outings and activities that they have attended. Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 5

p.4

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.

p.5

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—

p.5

Requirement Due date

helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and promotes their welfare.

p.5

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

p.5

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;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

p.5

Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

p.5

Requirement Due date

demonstrate that practice in the home is informed and improved by taking into account and acting on—

p.5

Requirement Due date

research and developments in relation to the ways in which the needs of children are best met; and

p.5

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)(e)(g)(i)(h)) 31 January 2023

p.5

Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

p.5

Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 31 January 2023

p.5

Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children— 31 January 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 6 receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home; and

p.5

Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

Requirement Due date

ensure the effective induction of each child into the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b) (2)(b)(i))

p.6

Requirement Due date

This is specifically in relation to planning individualised transitions for children having short breaks at the home.

p.6

Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that meets the needs of the children living there, and provides a homely, domestic environment. Specifically, this is in respect of decorations in the bedrooms, lounge and sensory room area. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. Specifically, this is in respect of ensuring clear case records and use of language that cares and is child-focused. (‘Guide to the

p.6

Recommendations

Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should understand that regulation 40(4) requires the registered person to notify Ofsted and other relevant persons if one of the situations specified in regulation 40(4)(a)-(d) occurs, or if there is an incident relating to the protection, safeguarding or welfare of a child living in the home which the registered person considers to be serious (40(4)(e)).Specifically, this is in relation to notifying Ofsted when vulnerable children go missing from the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 63, paragraph 14.10)  The registered person should ensure that decisions to restrict children’s access to any areas of the home are proportionate, rigorously assessed, continuously Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 7 reviewed and clearly recorded in children’s care plans. (‘Guide to the Children’s

p.6

Recommendations

Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.10)  The registered person should ensure that performance management of staff includes access to appropriate training that safeguards children and minimises potential harm. This is specifically in respect of ensuring that staff have training in all forms of exploitation risks to children. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)

p.7

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: 2651802 8

p.7

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Cavendish House, Plumpton Road, Hoddesdon EN11 0LB

p.8

Inspector

Christine Kennet, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2651802 9 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.

p.8

Inspector

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.9

Inspector

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspector

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.9