Children's home run by Wrottesley Care Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 1 Registered provider: Wrottesley Care 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 owned children’s home run by a small company. The home is registered to provide care for up to three children with complex needs.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has been in post for six months and became the registered manager of the home on 26 September 2022.

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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 failures that mean children and young people are not protected or their welfare is not promoted or safeguarded, and the care and experiences of children and young people are poor and they are not making progress.

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inadequate

Overall judgement at last inspection: improved effectiveness

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/03/2022 Interim Improved effectiveness 21/04/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 02/12/2019 Interim Improved effectiveness 23/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 3

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inadequate

Three children live in the home. They have lived here for nearly one year or longer. Children told the inspector they are happy living in their home and the adults help them to feel safe living there. Children told the inspector they can talk to staff and feel well supported. Positive relationships were observed between children and staff. These positive relationships help children feel more settled.

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inadequate

However, one child has not received effectively planned care. Managers do not have the child’s most up-to-date plans. Managers have failed to escalate requests for children’s plans in a timely manner. This includes a child’s education and health care plan [EHCP] which contains out-of-date information detrimental to the child and has led to the withdrawal of the child’s offer of a placement from college. As a result, the child is not receiving formal education, which is having a negative impact on them. The child is struggling to feel motivated and is spending increasing amounts of time in their bedroom playing computer games. The manager is currently working with external professionals to address the child’s education.

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inadequate

Two of the three children have had a holiday. However, no arrangements were made for the third child to have a holiday as the manager felt it would be difficult to manage their medical condition away from home. The manager has not considered how the child could be supported to ensure they enjoyed a holiday and new experiences. Consequently, the child has missed opportunities to enjoy themselves, to make new memories and to feel that they are being included.

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inadequate

Children know how to make complaints and raise concerns about the care they receive. When complaints and allegations have been made, these are taken seriously and the appropriate professionals are informed. However, there are occasions when managers do not support children in line with the home’s internal policy and do not write to them to inform them of the outcome of complaints.

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inadequate

One child has a door alarm on their bedroom door at night. The child told the inspector they did not know why they had an alarm on their door. Managers have not completed a rigorous assessment of the child’s needs to support the requirement for this measure and it is not clear why the alarm is used. As a result, the alarm is used unnecessarily, which impacts on a homely environment.

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inadequate

While there are significant shortfalls, there are elements of children receiving care to help them make progress. For example, two children who are attending education settings have made significant progress with their attendance. One tutor directly attributed this to the new manager’s appointment. One child’s headteacher reported that the child has made great progress since moving into the home, and they have been nurtured and well supported by staff. Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 4 Staff support children to develop their independence skills at a pace that suits their personal needs and development. As a result, children are learning to cook, clean and take care of their personal surroundings.

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inadequate

Staff support children to spend time with people who are important to them. This has included paying for one child and their parent to go on a day out and for a meal. Staff are respectful of children’s wishes when they do not want to see family members and advocate on children’s behalf when appropriate. As a result, children are supported in their wishes and feelings regarding their family life.

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inadequate

The house has ample space for children to enjoy time together and separately. Children have personalised their bedrooms and have a say in how their home is decorated.

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

There has been a serious incident that left one child at potential risk of harm and their welfare not being safeguarded. Staff failed to collect a child when they were missing from home and alerted staff to their whereabouts. The manager directed staff to advise the child to walk to a police station in the early hours of the morning. Due to the police station being closed, there were further delays in the child’s safe return, which left them without appropriate support to return home for over two hours. Staff then arranged for a taxi to collect the child. The manager failed to reflect on the risky situation this put the child in and improve protocols to avoid a reoccurrence.

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

Children have missing-from-home protocols. However, staff do not always follow these and report children missing to police in line with their plans. As a result, there are delays in police looking for children who are missing from home. Additionally, one child’s plan does not direct staff on how long to wait to inform the police that the child is missing. This has the potential to lead to inconsistency in staff practice and delays in finding the child.

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

Children’s plans do not support staff to understand the actions they should take when known risks arise. This has the potential for staff practice to be inconsistent and impact on the quality of care and responses children receive. On one occasion the manager advised staff to call the police to manage one child’s behaviour. The records are not clear why this was necessary and demonstrate poor management of the incident. This had the potential to put the child at risk of criminalisation. When the police were informed of the situation they did not attend but sent an ambulance to the home instead.

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

Managers have also failed to consider the potential impact of the home environment on children’s known vulnerabilities and risks. For example, a toilet door was not able to be unlocked by staff in the event of an emergency. The manager was quick to have the lock changed. Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager has worked at the home for six months and has recently become the registered manager. She has the appropriate qualifications and experience for being a registered manager. She recognises the home is going through a transition period and further measures need to be implemented to support positive changes.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Despite the experience of the manager, there are shortfalls that impact negatively on the quality of care children receive. In one example, the manager advised staff to inform a child who was missing from home to find a police station rather than staff collecting them. She also advised staff to call the police to manage one child’s behaviour. In addition, poor planning of how to meet a child’s needs resulted in one child not having a holiday and the same opportunities as other children living in the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are omissions in management monitoring systems to support oversight of the service. This has a direct impact on children’s care. For example, the manager has not picked up on staff not responding to children being missing, in line with their plans. In addition, the manager has not reviewed staff practice when staff failed to visit a known place where a missing child was reportedly seen. The manager failed to ensure that one record of restraint details the effectiveness of the restraint. These are missed opportunities to further understand children’s behaviours and to evaluate staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Children’s records are not always written in a child-friendly way. For example, instead of using ‘home’, some staff often refer to it as a ‘site’. This gives an institutional impression and reflects a poor culture in relation to language.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager and responsible individual are keen to make improvements. They aim to do this through looking at lessons learned to improve the quality of care and experiences children receive. This is not yet embedded or effective.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Staff told the inspector they feel well supported and that the new manager has had a positive impact. Staff are recruited in line with safe recruitment practice and supported with inductions and regular practice-based supervision. The responsible individual supervises the manager and information is passed on through supervision, showing that the responsible individual has oversight of children’s progress and staff practice.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Despite staff feeling well supported, they have not benefited from training particular to children’s known risks and vulnerabilities. This means there may be gaps in staff knowledge and understanding and consequently their responses could be inconsistent. Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 6 A requirement raised at the last inspection required managers to submit a quality of care review report to the regulator. This specifically referred to the need for the feedback and opinions of children about the quality of care they receive living in the home to be included. This shortfall remains unmet and the requirement has been restated at this inspection. Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 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. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to managers requesting children’s education plans and escalating concerns if there are delays that mean children are missing out on their education. 7 November 2022

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Requirement Due date

The enjoyment and achievement standard is that children take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that meet their needs and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical and social interests and skills. (Regulation 9 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff planning to support all children to have a holiday. 1 December 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

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; 30 November Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 8 have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(i)(iii)(v)(vi)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff ensuring children are safeguarded effectively and that they are appropriately supported when missing from home, including collecting them at their request.

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Requirement Due date

Additionally, staff are to follow children’s missing-from-home protocols to avoid delays in children being reported missing from home.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to ensuring that children’s plans identify the actions to be taken by staff when risks occur.

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Requirement Due date

It also relates to ensuring that lockable doors can be opened by staff in the event of an emergency.

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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 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

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 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

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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)(c)(f)(h)) 30 November Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 9 This specifically relates to the registered manager giving staff guidance that promotes the welfare and safety of children when they are missing from home.

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Requirement Due date

Also, to the registered manager ensuring staff have the skills to manage children’s behaviours and not directing them to call the police without good reason.

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Requirement Due date

Also, to the registered manager recognising and addressing poor practice when having oversight of the actions taken by staff when children are missing from home.

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Requirement Due date

And, to staff receiving training in relation to children’s known risks and vulnerabilities.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that— the privacy of children is appropriately protected;

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Requirement Due date

children can access all appropriate areas of the children’s home’s premises; and

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Requirement Due date

any limitation placed on a child’s privacy or access to any area of the home’s premises— is intended to safeguard each child accommodated in the home;

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Requirement Due date

is kept under review and, if necessary, revised; and allows children as much freedom as is possible when balanced against the need to protect them and keep them safe. (Regulation 21 (a)(b)(c)(i)(ii)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to bedroom door alarms only being used to safeguard children. There should be a thorough and robust risk assessment to evidence their need, which should be kept under review. Children should know the reason why restrictions are in place. 13 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—

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(vii)) 30 November Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 10 Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must establish a procedure for considering complaints made by or on behalf of children. (Regulation 39 (1))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to following actions laid down in the procedure, namely writing to children after a complaint has been made to advise them of the outcome. 30 November

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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 feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was raised at the previous inspection and is restated. 31 January 2023

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Recommendation

 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. For example, records should be child-friendly and use terminology that is not institutional, recognising that the home is a ‘home’ for children and not a ‘site’. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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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: 1280623 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Wrottesley Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Office 28, 28 Cleveland Street, Wolverhampton WV1 3HT

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Inspector

Jodie Lewis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1280623 12 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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