Children's Home run by Children & Adolescents Placement Provisions Ltd in West Northamptonshire

Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 1 Registered provider: Children and Adolescents Placement Provisions Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is privately owned. It is registered to provide care for up to four children who experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

The post for a registered manager has been vacant since 22 November 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 widespread failures that mean children and young people are not protected and their welfare is not promoted, 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: requires improvement to be good

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inadequate

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

19/04/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/11/2021 Full Requires improvement to be good 21/09/2021 Full Inadequate Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 3

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inadequate

Children’s care plans are not clear. They are not always followed by staff. There is no evidence of a plan for one child. The separation of each part of the plan without an overview is difficult to understand. This makes it hard for staff to know how to support and care for the children.

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inadequate

Plans to support children’s independence skills are poor. There is a useful template in place which is not being used. This is an important area to address as three of the children will become adults this year.

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inadequate

Children’s days are not structured. This leads to children often choosing to remain in their rooms with no purposeful activity. Although there are some plans for changes in this area, these are not yet embedded in staff practice. Children are not all making progress with their education, training or employment. Education arrangements are limited for three children. There is not an ethos that encourages and supports children’s learning. This impacts on children achieving their full potential.

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inadequate

Children have regular one-to-one key-work sessions with staff. Issues that are important to each child are discussed. This gives children the opportunity to express their wishes and feelings.

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inadequate

The manager has overseen improvement of the home’s decor. However, some significant damage has not been repaired in a timely way. The office door is damaged, which compromises the confidentiality of information. Also, the children’s bathroom door has no working lock. This means that children’s privacy and dignity are compromised.

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

Children’s risk assessments lack clarity. They are not always understood or followed by staff. One member of staff was not able to identify if the scoring of risk means that the risk is low or high. As a result, staff are unclear of the risks to children and how to keep children and staff safe.

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

Children’s records following incidents are not detailed. They are also not easily accessible. Incident reports from some serious incidents were not available. In one case, a very serious disclosure from a child was only written in the notes of a key- work session rather than as a significant safeguarding incident. This makes it difficult for managers to oversee incidents and make improvements to recording and practice. Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 4 Staff are not following the legal arrangements of a child’s deprivation of liberty order. This has led to some serious incidents for the child. For example, a staff member assigned to work with the child has not received the necessary training on de-escalation and physical intervention. Therefore, staff have not got the skills or knowledge to keep the child safe.

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

Staff are not consistently addressing children’s behaviours and setting boundaries. Children have alleged that they have come to harm in the community. Staff have been unable to prevent children from going missing from the home.

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

Staff have not followed agreed procedures for administering and recording children’s medication. It is unclear if medication has been administered or refused. Unsafe practice when administering medication led to a serious incident with a child. Staff left the office door open during medication administration contrary to the child’s risk assessment. This resulted in the child removing the medication and taking it into their possession.

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

Local authority social workers expressed dissatisfaction at the level of service and care for the children. One social worker described the home as ‘chaotic’ and said that support and monitoring of the child are missing.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

There are numerous shortfalls in the leadership and management of this home. Staff report a lack of leadership until very recently. Staff have felt unsupported. The interim manager has been in post for four weeks. She acknowledges the shortfalls and has made some quick changes, which the staff appreciate.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Quality assurance and monitoring of the home are very weak. Although there has been a recent introduction of a daily checklist, other monitoring systems are not in place. Legislative requirements have not been met. This has included the organisation’s own independent visitor reports and the manager’s review of care being out of timescale. Notifications of some serious incidents to relevant authorities have also been significantly delayed. This demonstrates poor management oversight.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

The manager’s supervision of staff members has not met the home’s own policy. One new member of staff has not received supervision until their seventh week in post. Staff, especially new starters, have therefore not had the opportunity to reflect on their practice and learn from a manager.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: inadequate

Managers have not ensured that new members of staff have received an appropriate induction programme. There is a template that details what is to be covered in an induction. There is no evidence that this is used. This does not equip staff with the confidence and skills to keep children safe and meet their needs. This has meant that some new starters have already left their post or have felt unsupported. Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 5 Managers have not ensured that staff receive necessary training. There are gaps in staff training in important areas, such as behaviour management and physical intervention. One member of staff, who is new to working in a children’s home, has not completed their mandatory training in line with the organisation’s own policy. Therefore, staff have not received the training required to care for children safely and effectively. Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 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 quality and purpose of care standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

understand the children’s home’s overall aims and the outcomes it seeks to achieve for children;

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Requirement Due date

use this understanding to deliver care that meets children’s needs and supports them to fulfil their potential.

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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

ensure that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed and furnished so as to—

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Requirement Due date

enable each child to participate in the daily life of the home. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(c)(i)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that damage to the home is repaired quickly to keep children safe and promote privacy and confidentiality. 9 May 2023

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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;

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Requirement Due date

support each child’s learning and development, including helping the child to develop independent study skills and, 9 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 7 where appropriate, helping the child to complete independent study;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand the importance and value of education, learning, training and employment;

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Requirement Due date

promote opportunities for each child to learn informally;

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Requirement Due date

help a child who is excluded from school, or who is of compulsory school age but not attending school, to access educational and training support throughout the period of exclusion or non-attendance and to return to school as soon as possible;

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Requirement Due date

help each child who is above compulsory school age to participate in further education, training or employment and to prepare for future care, education or employment;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to attend education or training in accordance with the expectations in the child’s relevant plans; and

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Requirement Due date

that each child has access to appropriate equipment, facilities and resources to support the child’s learning. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(ix)(x)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly relates to ensuring that the home has plans regarding children’s education and that days are structured for children who are not in school, college or employment so that they continue to learn.

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Requirement Due date

The positive relationships standard is that children are helped to develop, and to benefit from, relationships based on—

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Requirement Due date

an understanding about acceptable behaviour; and

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Requirement Due date

positive responses to other children and adults.

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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

that staff— 9 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 8 help each child to develop socially aware behaviour;

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Requirement Due date

encourage each child to take responsibility for the child’s behaviour, in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to develop and practise skills to resolve conflicts positively and without harm to anyone;

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Requirement Due date

communicate to each child expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding;

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Requirement Due date

strive to gain each child’s respect and trust;

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Requirement Due date

de-escalate confrontations with or between children, or potentially violent behaviour by children;

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Requirement Due date

that each child is encouraged to build and maintain positive relationships with others. (Regulation 11 (1)(a)(b)(c) (2)(a)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(viii)(xi)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly relates to ensuring that staff have the skills to address children’s behaviour and are consistent in doing so, and that positive relationships are built between staff and children.

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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;

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Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other; 9 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 9 understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare; and

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Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies;

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Requirement Due date

that the home’s day-to-day care is arranged and delivered so as to keep each child safe and to protect each child effectively from harm;

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Requirement Due date

that the premises used for the purposes of the home are designed, furnished and maintained so as to protect each child from avoidable hazards to the child’s health. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii)(b)(d))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that: plans and risk assessments are in place for all children and that staff understand the risks and how to address them; all incidents are recorded in detail and identified actions are completed; all staff are aware of the policies of the home and work in line with them to keep children safe.

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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

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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 9 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 10 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))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that: new members of staff receive a thorough induction and complete the necessary training; staff receive regular supervision; managers have a quality assurance process in place and can demonstrate effective management oversight; managers ensure that notifications and reports are completed and submitted in line with regulations 40, 44 and 45 of the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must make arrangements for the handling, recording, safekeeping, safe administration and disposal of medicines received into the children’s home.

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Requirement Due date

In particular the registered person must ensure that—

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Requirement Due date

medicines kept in the home are stored in a secure place so as to prevent any child from having unsupervised access to them;

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Requirement Due date

a record is kept of the administration of medicine to each child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(a)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to ensuring that all medication is safely stored, safely administered in line with the home’s policy and clearly recorded with the reasons for gaps clearly explained. 9 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

* These requirements are subject to a compliance notice.

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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: 2625585 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Children and Adolescents Placement Provisions Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Barratt House Office G3a, Kingsthorpe Road, Northampton NN2 6EZ

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Inspectors

Shaun Caplis, Social Care Inspector Alli Tandy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2625585 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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