Children's Home run by Dorset Emergency Placement Services Ltd in Dorset

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 1 Registered provider: Dorset Emergency Placement Services Ltd.

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Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home provides care for up to two children. The home is operated by a private provider. One child lives in this home.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager has moved roles within the organisation. A manager has been appointed and has applied to register with Ofsted.

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Information about this children’s home

Date of last inspection: 1 and 2 November 2022

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Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: none

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Information about this inspection

At these inspections, the inspectors evaluated:

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Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children, using the social care common inspection framework. This assurance 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’. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 2

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Findings from the inspection

We did not identify any serious or widespread concerns in relation to the care or protection of children at this assurance inspection.

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The care of children

Staff have welcomed a new child into the home since the previous inspection. Staff treat the child with warmth and affection, using playfulness and curiosity to get to know them. Staff offer the child different opportunities for outings such as visiting the beach and local attractions. The child has a part-time education timetable, and the manager has challenged the local authority to find more permanent solutions. The child says they like living in the home, and they feel safe and supported by adults.

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The care of children

Two children have left the home since the last inspection. One child returned to family following a successful plan. The other child’s placement ended in an unplanned way, following an increase in risk and concerns. The management team has reflected on this child’s time in the home and has taken learning from this to consider for the future.

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The care of children

Internal redecoration is in progress, with one bathroom nearly completed and another underway. A mural has been painted on one landing, with another one planned. This helps the home to feel more homely and personalised.

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The safety of children

Staff understand how to keep the child living in the home safe. Staff have supported the child to reduce the number of times they go missing, through implementation of clear plans. As a result, the child’s safety has improved. Staff support the child to speak openly about their worries and to reflect on concerns. When the child was missing, staff reported incidents to the police swiftly. While safeguarding concerns are identified and responded to, these are not recorded separately as safeguarding incidents on the child’s file. This impacts on the manager’s ability to maintain oversight of concerns and the actions taken.

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The safety of children

One child moved on from the home as staff were unable to keep them safe. Staff used restraint with this child due to concerns about their safety and the safety of others in the home. These incidents have been mostly clearly recorded. Records of debriefs have improved, with more scrutiny of the event and learning identified. However, inconsistencies in the quality of the recordings remain. The language used when writing about these incidents does not always say clearly what has happened. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 3

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Leaders and managers produced an action plan to address the shortfalls identified at the previous inspection. The manager has focused on streamlining the documents used in the home to make them meaningful and useful for staff. The manager works closely with the home’s management team. Weekly meetings follow a clear agenda and set a plan for the coming week. This includes regular review of staff development needs based on actions set in supervision.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff continue to receive ongoing training related to the therapeutic parenting approach used by the home. This remains to be embedded in how staff write about children. The manager’s oversight of incidents is critically reflective and identifies opportunities for learning. This level of detail is being developed amongst the management team.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Two of the requirements and one recommendation made at the previous inspection have been met. Progress has been seen against the remaining two requirements and two of the recommendations, but remains to be embedded. One recommendation was not reviewed. One new recommendation has been made. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 4

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/11/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 22/03/2022 Interim Sustained effectiveness 18/08/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 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

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

use monitoring and review systems to make continuous improvements in the quality of care provided in the home. (Regulation 13 (2)(a)(h))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that the therapeutic ethos of the home is embedded throughout the work carried out in the home. The registered person should also ensure that management oversight of incidents includes critical evaluation of the quality of records, and information provided to identify opportunities for learning and improvement.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement remains from the previous inspection 30 December

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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

details of the child’s behaviour leading to the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

within 5 days of the use of the measure, the registered person or the authorised person adds to the record confirmation that they have spoken to the child about the measure. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(ii)(vii)(c)(iv))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that records of restraint and consequence contain clear details of the incident that has led 2 December 2022 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 6 to the intervention being used. The registered person should ensure that they evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. The registered person should also ensure that children are spoken to about the use of a consequence or restraint.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement remains from the previous inspection

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that application forms for new staff contain, where possible, full dates of employment, and that gaps in employment are identified and explored. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.1)  The registered person should ensure that the home is a welcoming environment in good repair. The areas around the stairs and the bathrooms are looking worn and in need of decorative attention. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that records made in the home use language that is easy to understand, and use language that reflects the ethos of the home. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)  The registered person should ensure that consideration is given to recording

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Recommendations

concerns about safeguarding and self-harm separately from the incidents where they are identified, in order to have comprehensive oversight. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 43, paragraph 9.8) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Dorset Emergency Placement Services Ltd.

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: 5 Lorton Gardens, Weymouth DT3 5FB

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Inspector

Clare Nixson, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2579887 8 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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