Children's Home run by Castle Homes Care Limited in Birmingham

Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 1 SC377825 Registered provider: Castle Homes Care Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned by a private company and provides care for up to three children. Children living at the home have experienced neglect or abuse which has led to them displaying complex behaviours. Some children may have learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager has submitted an application to be registered with Ofsted. They are working towards a level 5 qualification in leadership and management.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

01/03/2022 Full Good 19/12/2019 Full Good 04/07/2018 Full Good 07/02/2018 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 3

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improvement to be good

Since the previous inspection, in March 2022, no children have moved into or out of the home. At the time of the inspection, two children were living at the home.

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improvement to be good

Staff do not always encourage children to attend education. One child has been out of education since June 2022. There are no current plans for education or training in place for this child. As a result, this child is not making progress with their education.

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improvement to be good

Some areas of the home require further attention to feel homely. There are fire exit signs on walls and automatic fire door signs on bedroom doors. There are also locks on the lounge and kitchen doors. Although the locks are not being used, having them in place gives an institutionalised feel.

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improvement to be good

Staff support family time for children. Family time has improved for children since they moved into the home. Staff have supported one child to see their parent more consistently. There is a plan for this child to move back in with family over the coming months. One child has been supported with independence development and will be moving in with their sibling in the next month.

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improvement to be good

Key-work sessions are creative and well planned by the staff team. Important topics are covered with children, including independence, healthy eating and healthy relationships. The team creates a book for children to have a visual reminder of the discussions held, which children can then take with them when they leave.

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improvement to be good

Staff are invested in their relationships with children. Staff come in on their days off to support children with appointments. One child told the inspector that they like the home and are happy with their care. One external professional stated that the staff really advocate for their child and they really care about them. As a result, children feel valued by the team around them.

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improvement to be good

The effectiveness of consequences is not always reviewed in a timely manner. On one occasion, the manager did not record the effectiveness of a consequence that was in place. On other occasions when consequences were implemented in relation to a child who was not engaging with education, the manager did not review their effectiveness within 24 hours of them being put in place. There has not been good oversight of consequences to ensure that they have been fair or effective.

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improvement to be good

Staff’s recording of incidents is not always clear. On one occasion, a member of staff did not clearly record their actions following a child walking off. It appeared that this Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 4 staff member did not respond appropriately, and a lot of information was missing from the report. This does not provide a full picture of the incident or an insight into how effective staff responses are to incidents of this nature to inform future practice.

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improvement to be good

Children have not gone missing from this home. Children are supported by the staff to understand the dangers of going missing. As a result, children are learning how to keep themselves safe.

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improvement to be good

When physical interventions take place, staff respond well to try and de-escalate situations. When children have been held, this has been appropriate and restorative work has been done to repair the relationships between the child and staff members involved.

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improvement to be good

Allegations are managed well and the manager takes appropriate action to ensure children are safe. The manager reflects on allegations to identify if there is any learning from the allegation to improve practice. As a result, children feel confident and safe, knowing that the concern has been managed promptly.

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good

The previous registered manager left his role in June 2022. The home’s deputy manager stepped up to take over the manager position. The new manager has provided consistency, as they were familiar to the children and the staff team.

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good

Children’s plans are not always up to date or easy to understand. A child’s care plan contained incorrect information. Another child’s missing-from-care protocol did not provide clear guidance to staff on how to support the child. This poses a risk of staff not being consistent in how they support the child.

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good

Safer recruitment practices are not always carried out. On one occasion, the manager did not receive the full employment history of a new staff member. This meant that the manager did not have a full understanding of the staff member’s previous employment or training over a 10-year period. As a result, it is not evident how the manager was able to assess the staff member’s suitability.

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good

Not all staff are suitably qualified to work with children. Currently, two staff members are out of timescale in completing their level 3 diploma. There has not been good oversight of staff’s progress, which has meant that staff have now fallen behind in completing their qualifications.

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good

The staff team is trained in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Staff complete a range of training, including safeguarding, e-safety, medication administration and first aid. Training specific to the needs of the children is also provided. As a result, staff feel more equipped to support children. Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 5 Staff receive regular supervision sessions from leaders and the manager. These enable staff to reflect on their practice and provide a space for the staff to review their own personal development and progress. As a result, staff feel supported by the leaders and manager. Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 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 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

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 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. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(iii)(iv)(v)(ix)(x))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all children above compulsory school age participate in further education, training or employment. A child should be supported by the team to obtain an appropriate placement. 28 May 2023

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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

promotes their welfare. 28 May 2023 Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 7 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 the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(e))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that children’s individual care plans and risk assessments are up to date and relevant at all times.

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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

employ an individual to work at the children’s home; or

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Requirement Due date

if an individual is employed by a person other than the registered person to work at the home in a position in which the individual may have regular contact with children, allow that individual to work at the home.

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

the individual is of integrity and good character;

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Requirement Due date

the individual has the appropriate experience, qualification and skills for the work that the individual is to perform;

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Requirement Due date

the individual is mentally and physically fit for the purposes of the work that the

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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.

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Requirement Due date

For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), an individual who works in the home in a care role has the appropriate qualification if, by the relevant date, the individual has attained— 28 May 2023 Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 8 the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare (England) (“the Level 3 Diploma”); or

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Requirement Due date

a qualification which the registered person considers to be equivalent to the Level 3 Diploma.

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who starts working in a care role in a home after 1st April 2014, the date which falls 2 years after the date on which the individual started working in a care role in a home; or

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Requirement Due date

in the case of an individual who was working in a care role in a home on 1st April 2014, 1st April 2016.

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may defer the relevant date if the individual—

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Requirement Due date

does not work, or has not worked, in a care role in a home for a prolonged period; or

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Requirement Due date

works, or has worked, in a care role in a home on a part- time basis.

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Requirement Due date

(Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a)(b) (3)(a)(b)(c)(d)) (4)(a)(b) (5)(a)(b) (6)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that when recruiting staff, a full employment history is obtained, and all gaps are accounted for. In addition, the registered person must ensure that all staff complete their level 3 or equivalent qualification within timescale.

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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 date, time and location of the use of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration; 28 May 2023 Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 9 the effectiveness and any consequences of the use of the measure; and

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Requirement Due date

a description of any injury to the child or any other person, and any medical treatment administered, as a result of the measure;

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Requirement Due date

within 48 hours of the use of the measure, the registered person, or a person who is authorised by the registered person to do so (“the authorised person”)—

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Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate. (Regulation 35 (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(vii)(viii)(b)(ii))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the registered person must ensure that all consequences are reviewed within 24 hours of them being implemented. This must include the registered person reviewing and recording the effectiveness of the consequence.

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the children’s home is a nurturing and supportive environment that provides a domestic rather than institutional impression. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.9)  The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping. Staff should understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4) Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 10

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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: SC377825 11

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Castle Homes Care Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: The Forge, Church Street West, Woking, Surrey GU21 6HT

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Inspector

Chanel Bryant, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: SC377825 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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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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