Purple Heart Project - Children's Services

Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 1 Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services St Chads Vicarage, Ragpath Lane, Stockton-on-Tees TS19 9JN

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential family centre

This service is privately run and is registered to provide parenting assessments for up to three families. At the time of this visit, only one family was living at the centre.

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Information about this residential family centre

The registered manager has been in post since the registration of this service.

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This monitoring visit

This residential family centre was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 26 and 27 July 2022. There were significant shortfalls in the assessment and safety for children and parents and in the leadership and management of the centre. These shortfalls placed families at serious risk of harm. As a result of that inspection, Ofsted issued a notice restricting accommodation and two compliance notices under regulations 11 and 13.

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This monitoring visit

Ofsted carried out a monitoring visit on 7 September 2022 to review the actions taken to address the steps detailed in the compliance notices and the notice restricting accommodation. The inspectors concluded from this visit that steps set in the compliance notice regarding regulation 13 were not fully met. This notice was reissued.

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This monitoring visit

The purpose of this visit was to review the progress and actions taken to meet the reissued compliance notice and the notice restricting accommodation. This visit included a review of documents and discussions with the manager, the responsible individual, the staff and a parent. The inspector concluded from this visit that all the Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 2 steps set in the compliance notice regarding regulation 13 have been met. The notice restricting accommodation will end on 23 October 2022.

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This monitoring visit

Family support plans are developed from the instruction of the court or local authority plan. This means that there is structure to the assessment work. Support plans are reviewed and amended to reflect the family’s progress against the instruction of the court or local authority plan. The family is involved in reviewing the support plan. This process provides them with insight into their parenting assessment. Families are provided with fair opportunity to address any identified shortfalls while the support plans ensure the safety and protection of children.

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This monitoring visit

Assessment work is structured. The family currently living at the centre receives a weekly timetable. This schedules in planned education and observational sessions with staff and external professionals. The scheduled sessions include the necessary work for the family, for example budgeting and daily routine. This provides the family with fair notice of the expectations that are placed on them. The sessions link to the instruction of the court or local authority plan.

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This monitoring visit

The family’s views are captured every day. The manager has adapted the delivery of education sessions based on parental feedback. A specific staff member has been assigned to complete budgeting work, to relieve the parent’s angst. This approach serves to support the parent’s engagement and commitment to learning. This provides further evidence of the action taken by the manager to make assessments fair.

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This monitoring visit

The parenting assessment for the family is still being undertaken and their end of placement report has not been completed. A qualified social worker has been appointed who will have oversight and responsibility for the parent assessments. The parenting mid-point assessment submitted to the family’s placing local authority is still not completed or quality assured by a qualified social worker and lacks parental feedback.

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This monitoring visit

The quality and review of risk assessments has improved. The manager has sourced relevant assessments from placing local authorities to inform the parent and child risk assessments. Children still do not have a separate risk assessment. The parent assessment is detailed and includes strategies to provide staff guidance to mitigate risk for both the parent and the child. The manager is clear that their role is to keep children safe from harm. Immediate and proportionate action is taken by the staff and social workers in response to concerns.

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This monitoring visit

The manager has improved her understanding of the functioning of a residential family centre and how this links to the national minimum standards which are underpinned by the Residential Family Centres Regulations 2002. The service has a range of internal and external monitoring systems, and a new independent visitor has been appointed. Ofsted awaits their initial report. Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 3 Commissioned services have helped the manager to implement a well-structured filing system. The families’ case records now evidence the instruction of the court or local authority plan. The manager, with the support of the responsible individual, has also developed the service’s statement of purpose. This is written in line with regulation and therefore provides clarity about the service offer.

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This monitoring visit

The remaining six requirements and one recommendation issued in July 2022 have not been reviewed at this visit and are repeated. Since the last inspection, no families have moved into the centre. This means that the manager has adhered to the notice restricting accommodation. Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 4

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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, Residential Family Centre Regulations 2002 and the national minimum standards. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that the parents’ capacity to respond to the children’s needs and to safeguard their welfare is monitored or assessed by a suitably qualified person in accordance with the requirements of this regulation. (Regulation 13A (1)) 23 September

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Requirement Due date

employ a person to work at the residential family centre unless that person is fit to work at a residential family centre.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (1), a person is not fit to work at a residential family centre unless—

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to him in respect of each of the matters specified in Schedule 2. (Regulation 16 (1)(a) (3)(d)) 23 September

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall also maintain the records specified in Schedule 4 in respect of the residential family centre. (Regulation 19 (3)) 23 September

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall establish a procedure (“the complaints procedure”) for considering complaints made to the registered person by a resident or a person acting on behalf of a resident.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall ensure that any complaint made under the complaints procedure is fully investigated.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person shall, within 28 days after the date on which the complaint is made, or such shorter period as may be reasonable in the circumstances, inform the person who made the complaint of the action (if any) that is to be taken. (Regulation 20 (1) (2) (5)) 23 September Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 5 The person carrying out the visit shall—

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Requirement Due date

interview, with their consent and in private, such of the residents and persons working at the residential family centre as appears necessary in order to form an opinion of the standard of care provided in the residential family centre. (Regulation 25 (4)(a)) 23 September

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Requirement Due date

If, in relation to a residential family centre, any of the events listed in column 1 of the table in Schedule 5 takes place, the registered person shall without delay notify the persons indicated in respect of the event in column 2 of the table. (Regulation 26 (1)) 4 September 2022

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that families receive a robust, fair and evidence-based assessment that is carried out by a registered social worker in a manner that is consistent with guidance in ‘Working together to safeguard children’. (‘Residential family centres: national minimum standards’, page 6, paragraph 1.2)

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Information about this inspection

The purpose of this visit was to monitor the action taken and the progress made by the residential family centre since its last Ofsted inspection.

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Information about this inspection

This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000. Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 6

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Residential family centre details

Registered provider: VKYB Enterprises Limited

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Residential family centre details

Registered provider address: St Chads Vicarage, Ragpath Lane, Stockton-on- Tees TS19 9JN

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Inspector

Jennifer Fenlon, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for residential family centre - monitoring visit: Purple Heart Project – Children’s Services 7 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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