Children's home run by Halliwell Homes Limited in Staffordshire Moorlands

Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 1 SC043697

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Halliwell Homes Limited

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned and provides care for up to seven children. The home’s statement of purpose states that children living in this home may experience a range of social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The home is currently operating without a registered manager. A new manager started his role in August 2022. He is suitably qualified and experienced. He will apply to Ofsted for registration.

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This monitoring visit

Ofsted carried out a visit to the home to monitor a restriction of accommodation notice. The provider has complied with this notice, as no children have been admitted to the home since the last inspection. However, a further restriction of accommodation notice has been served on 8 November 2022 with immediate effect until 31 January 2023. This is because the inspector identified that there are insufficient numbers of staff to care for the number of children the home is registered for and that some safeguarding processes have not been followed.

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This monitoring visit

There are currently four children living in the home. There are suitable numbers of staff in the team to meet the individual needs of the children currently living in the home. However, there continues to be a significant turnover of staff. Four staff have left their positions and a further three staff have submitted their resignations and are due to leave their roles in the next few weeks. This means that there would be insufficient numbers of staff who are suitably trained to deliver therapeutic informed care to support and safeguard any additional children in the home.

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This monitoring visit

The manager is yet to address the staff team’s broader understanding of safeguarding practice. This specifically relates to staff contacting the local authority emergency duty team or duty social worker without delay if a child makes an Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 2 allegation about a person who previously cared for them. This is to ensure that children who are not looked after in the home and are in other care provisions are also protected. A requirement was made at the last monitoring visit to address this shortfall and so it has been restated.

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This monitoring visit

The staff team continues to implement consistent security measures within the external grounds of the home. This means that children are being kept safe from the busy main road outside the home or any potential risks from people in the community being able to access the home.

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This monitoring visit

Children and staff told the inspector that there have been improvements to the overall management of the home. Staff are confident in the manager’s leadership abilities and his knowledge of the role. He has continued to offer reassurance and some stability to the staff team, whose members have experienced significant changes in managers in the last year.

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This monitoring visit

The manager’s oversight of behaviour support plans has improved. The records are now up to date, proportionately graded, and include appropriate safeguarding strategies. This means that staff are provided with clearer guidance of how to manage children’s behaviours safely.

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This monitoring visit

The manager’s monthly monitoring of the use of restraint looks at trends and patterns of children’s behaviour. This enables the manager to make changes to support children to manage their behaviour more effectively. The manager’s monitoring reports provide evidence that, overall, there has been a reduction in the use of restraint for all children. The children are more responsive to de-escalation strategies implemented by the staff team.

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This monitoring visit

Children attend activities together only when their behaviours have been assessed as safe to do so. The staff team ensures that all recreational activities that children access are age appropriate. However, the manager is yet to complete work with the staff team so that they have the skills to effectively risk assess the suitability of specific activities for children. A good practice recommendation has been made to address this.

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This monitoring visit

A safety workshop has now been undertaken with all children to explore their understanding of how to travel safely in cars, including the action that staff would be required to take if children were putting themselves or others at risk on busy roads and motorways. Consequently, children have not displayed any further risk-taking behaviour while travelling in cars with staff.

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This monitoring visit

Staff have attended face-to-face training specific to the needs and risks of the children living in the home, such as sexually harmful behaviour and attachment training. This was identified as a priority at the last visit, to help the staff team to understand children’s behaviour. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 3 The remaining areas of concern raised at the full inspection were not looked at during this visit. Therefore, they remain requirements and recommendations until the home’s next inspection. Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

15/08/2022 Full Inadequate 14/07/2021 Full Good 07/01/2020 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/10/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 5

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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 health and well-being standard is that—

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Requirement Due date

the health and well-being needs of children are met; and

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Requirement Due date

children receive advice, services and support in relation to their health and well-being. (Regulation 10 (1)(a)(b)) 25 September 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

help each child to understand how to keep safe; and

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(ii)(v)) 4 December 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must compile in relation to the children’s home a statement ("the statement of purpose") which covers the matters listed in Schedule 1.

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Requirement Due date

keep the statement of purpose under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

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Requirement Due date

Subject to paragraph (6), the registered person must ensure that the home is at all times conducted in a manner which is consistent with its statement of purpose. (Regulation 16 (1) (3)(a) (5)) 25 September 2022 Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 6 The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)) 25 September 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (3)(d)) 25 September 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience. (Regulation 33 (4)(b)) 25 September 2022

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must notify HMCI and each other relevant person without delay if—

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Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there. (Regulation 40 (4)(c)) 25 September 2022

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff skills for safeguarding should include being able to identify signs that children may be at risk, and support children in strategies to manage and reduce any risks. Specifically, in relation to safely risk assessing children’s activities and implementing clear strategies to protect them. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.10)

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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 children’s home 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 children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Halliwell Homes Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Pearce House, 80 Cawdor Street, Eccles M30 0QF

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Inspector

Cheryl Field, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home – monitoring visit: SC043697 8 regulates and inspects 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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