Children's home run by White Orchid Marston Moretaine Limited in Dacorum

Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 1 SC483714 Registered provider: White Orchid Marston Moretaine Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This privately owned home is registered to provide care for up to six children. It aims to provide specialist therapeutic care for children who have experienced trauma.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

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

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

03/08/2021 Full Outstanding 05/02/2020 Full Outstanding 08/10/2018 Full Outstanding 18/05/2017 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

At the time of this inspection, six children were living at the home. The staff plan children’s moves effectively, and this helps children to feel welcome and settle quickly.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff strongly advocate for children to access education. Five of the children have a formal education placement. Two children were not in school when they moved to the home and have since returned to school. The staff are helping one child with informal education at the home and in the community until an education provision is identified. This ensures that the children can build relationships with their peers and make academic progress.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children have built positive relationship with the staff. The staff spend a lot of time with the children playing games and listening to them. The children can identify staff who they can go to for nurture and support. This has helped the children feel loved and cared for.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The children enjoy a range of activities, including swimming, going to parks, theme parks, gaming and cycling. When children are ready, they are encouraged to join clubs to develop their confidence and peer relationships.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff strongly advocate to ensure that the children’s physical and emotional health needs are met. Referrals are made for children to access health services and support. All children have regular access to face-to-face therapeutic support. One child said that he was ‘happy’ when he spent time with his therapist. Therapy has helped children to understand how they feel, and learn strategies to help overcome challenging experiences.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Staff support the children to spend positive time together and respect each other’s differences. When children are not kind to each other, the staff intervene appropriately to help children to understand how their behaviours affect others. However, some of the negative interactions between children are not captured in a bullying record. The way in which these interactions are recorded could potentially make oversight difficult.

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

The children’s behaviour management plans provide staff with suitable strategies to help children understand how they feel and help them to make positive choices. Children’s behaviours are managed well. The children rarely go missing from the home and physical interventions are only used on occasion. Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 4 Staff have a good understanding of the whistle-blowing and safeguarding policies. The staff are confident about who they would speak to in regard to any safeguarding concerns about a child.

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

Staff focus on rewarding children when they achieve. The children benefit from the staff using restorative interventions to help children to understand how their behaviours impact on others. This helps children to make positive choices, feel valued and grow in self-confidence.

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

Risk assessments provide staff with appropriate actions to mitigate the risks to children. However, one risk assessment for a child who moved from the home to an apartment was not adhered to by the staff. This resulted in the child being able to access a knife and use it threateningly.

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

The home is welcoming, spacious and maintained well by staff. However, the cupboard that stores cleaning products is not locked when the products are being used. This could present a safety hazard for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The appointed manager is suitably experienced. She has her level 5 qualification, and is in the process of registering with Ofsted. The existing registered manager continues to have oversight of the home. The appointed manager and the registered manager work well together to support staff. They understand the needs of the children and are committed to providing the children with good-quality care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff say that they are well supported by the manager and can go to her for advice. Staff receive regular supervision sessions. The staff value this time; it gives them the opportunity to discuss the needs of the children and consider their own professional development. The staff appreciate the manager’s support and emphasis on emotional well-being. This helps the staff feel valued and enhances team morale.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Team meetings are weekly and give staff the opportunity to discuss the needs of the children, reflect on their practice, and take part in training and development. The home’s therapist regularly attends the team meetings to help develop the staff’s understanding of the children and their past traumas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The staff take part in core training and continue to develop their skills through training targeted to support new children who move to the home.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Despite numerous attempts, the manager has been unable to ensure that external monitoring visits take place monthly. There has been no independent oversight of the staff’s ability to safeguard the children and promote their welfare. The independent person failed to provide reports to Ofsted for a period of three months. Therefore, this prevented Ofsted from being able to monitor the home effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 5 The manager has not always sought independent oversight from another member of staff in regard to documents relating to incidents of physical intervention. These are when the manager was involved in the incident. This does not support full understanding and learning from the children’s experiences.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has reviewed the home’s statement of purpose and has made relevant changes to the information included. However, this was not shared with Ofsted. This prevents Ofsted from fully understanding and monitoring changes at the home. Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 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, 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—

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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. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that kitchen knives are stored safely and are not accessible to children. 1 March 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that an independent person visits the children’s home at least once each month.

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Requirement Due date

When the independent person is carrying out a visit, the registered person must help the independent person—

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Requirement Due date

if they consent, to interview in private such of the children, their parents, relatives and persons working at the home as the independent person requires; and

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Requirement Due date

to inspect the premises of the home and such of the home’s records (except for a child’s case records, unless the child and the placing authority consent) as the independent person requires.

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Requirement Due date

The independent person must produce a report about a visit (“the independent person’s report”) which sets out, in particular, the independent person’s opinion as to whether—

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Requirement Due date

children are effectively safeguarded; and 1 March 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 7 the conduct of the home promotes children’s well-being.

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Requirement Due date

The independent visitors report may recommend actions that the registered person may take in relation to the home and timescales within which the registered person must consider whether or not to take those actions. (Regulation 44 (1) (2)(a)(b) (4)(a)(b) (5))

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff continually and actively assess the risks to each child and the arrangements in place to protect them. In particular, ensure that cleaning products and hazardous products are locked away at all times. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 42, paragraph 9.5)  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. In particular, ensure that the records of physical intervention and episodes of going missing from care are reviewed, suspected bullying is recorded and the statement or purpose is sent to Ofsted within 28 days of update. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 8

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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: SC483714 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: White Orchid Marston Moretaine Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 77 Marlowes, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1 1LF

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Inspector

Laraine Edmondson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC483714 10 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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