Children's Home run by Ivory Cottage Limited in Worcestershire

Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 1 Registered provider: Ivory Cottage Limited

p.1

Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

p.1

Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private company. It provides care for up to three children who may have experienced childhood instability resulting in trauma and associated complex behaviours.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

The registered manager post is currently vacant.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Date of last inspection: 22 November 2022

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Enforcement action since last inspection: On 20 March 2023, Ofsted undertook an assurance inspection and found widespread and serious concerns in relation to the care or protection of children.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

Due to the concerns identified during the inspection, Ofsted issued a notice of restriction of accommodation, which meant no children could move into the home. Ofsted also issued a compliance notice under regulation 13 of the Children’s Homes Regulations 2015.

p.1

Information about this children’s home

A monitoring visit took place on 19 April 2023. No children were living at the home. At the time of the visit, the date for completing the actions linked to the compliance notice had not passed. The notice of restriction of accommodation remained in place

p.1

Information about this inspection

At this inspection, the inspectors evaluated:

p.1

Information about this inspection

 the care of children  the safety of children  the effectiveness of leaders and managers. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 2 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: 2633744 3

p.1

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.

p.3

The care of children

Since the last inspection, no children have moved into the home . At the time of this inspection, no children were living at the home.

p.3

The care of children

The home is clean and freshly decorated. The manager has added new furniture and soft furnishing s. This has made the environment more homely, comfortable and welcoming.

p.3

The safety of children

The manager has implemented new systems to ensure that staff understand the actions they need to take to keep children safe. In addition, staff working in the home have completed necessary safeguarding training and t he manager regularly discusses safeguarding with staff during staff meetings.

p.3

The safety of children

Since the last inspection, the manager has recruited a number of new members of staff. When appointing staff, managers follow safer recruitment practice guidelines.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Since the last inspection, a new manager has been appointed. She is suitably qualified and has submitted her application to Ofsted.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The manager has a good understanding of the home and significant progress has been made. The compliance notice under regulation 13 has been met and the notice of restriction of accommodation has been lifted.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The responsible individual has implemented a new monitoring and evaluation tool to review the quality of care provided to children. This is in its infancy and, therefore, its effectiveness is not fully tested.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The responsible individual and manager have reviewed the staff team’s experience and skills. The review has highlighted that the staff are suitably qualified and have a range of experience and skills. As a result of the review, some staff have left the home. Current and new staff have completed an induction programme to consolidate their learning, skills and experience and embed these into their practice.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

Staff now benefit from a varied training programme which is tailored to help the staff meet the individual needs of the children. Most staff hold a level 3 qualification and those who do not are working towards it. This equips staff with the level of knowledge and skills needed for the role. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 4 The responsible individual has commissioned an independent person to complete visits in line with regulation 44. The first visit has taken place, and recommendations have been made by the independent person to support the responsible individual to make improvements.

p.3

The effectiveness of leaders and managers

The requirements raised at the last inspection that were not subject to a compliance notice were not considered as part of this inspection and have been restated. Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 5

p.4

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

22/11/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 15/02/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good 24/11/2021 Full Inadequate Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 6

p.5

Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The 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.

p.6

Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

p.6

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.6

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;

p.6

Requirement Due date

help each child to understand how to keep safe;

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

manage relationships between children to prevent them from harming each other;

p.6

Requirement Due date

understand the roles and responsibilities in relation to protecting children that are assigned to them by the registered person;

p.6

Requirement Due date

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

p.6

Requirement Due date

are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the home’s child protection policies. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)(vii))

p.6

Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to staff understanding and implementing children’s risk assessments, the monitoring and supervision of children, and their role in keeping children safe 10 July 2023 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 7 The care planning standard is that children—

p.6

Requirement Due date

receive effectively planned care in or through the children’s home.

p.7

Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

p.7

Requirement Due date

manage and review the placement of each child in the home; and

p.7

Requirement Due date

that each child’s relevant plans are followed. (Regulation 14 (1)(a) (2)(b)(ii)(d)

p.7

Requirement Due date

This specifically relates to children having up-to-date plans that are reflective of their needs. 10 July 2023

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person must prepare and implement a policy ("the behaviour management policy") which sets out—

p.7

Requirement Due date

how appropriate behaviour is to be promoted in the children’s home;

p.7

Requirement Due date

the measures of control, discipline and restraint which may be used in relation to children in the home.

p.7

Requirement Due date

The registered person must keep the behaviour management policy under review and, where appropriate, revise it.

p.7

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—

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.7

Requirement Due date

a description of the measure and its duration;

p.7

Requirement Due date

details of any methods used or steps taken to avoid the need to use the measure; 10 July 2023 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 8 the name of the person who used the measure ("the user"), and of any other person present when the measure was used;

p.7

Requirement Due date

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

p.8

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;

p.8

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")—

p.8

Requirement Due date

has spoken to the user about the measure; and

p.8

Requirement Due date

has signed the record to confirm it is accurate; and

p.8

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 (1)(a)(b) (2) (3)(a)(i)(ii)(iii)(iv) (v)(vi)(vii)(viii)(b)(i)(ii)(c))

p.8

Requirement Due date

The registered person must maintain records ("case records") for each child which—

p.8

Requirement Due date

include the information and documents listed in Schedule 3 in relation to each child;

p.8

Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)) 10 July 2023

p.8

Requirement Due date

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

p.8

Requirement Due date

a child is involved in or subject to, or is suspected of being involved in or subject to, sexual exploitation;

p.8

Requirement Due date

an incident requiring police involvement occurs in relation to a child which the registered person considers to be serious;

p.8

Requirement Due date

there is an allegation of abuse against the home or a person working there;

p.8

Requirement Due date

a child protection enquiry involving a child— 10 July 2023 Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 9 is instigated; or

p.8

Requirement Due date

concludes (in which case, the notification must include the outcome of the child protection enquiry); or

p.9

Requirement Due date

there is any other incident relating to a child which the registered person considers to be serious. (Regulation 40 (4) (a)(b)(c)(d)(i)(ii)(e))

p.9

Recommendations

 The registered person must have systems in place so that all staff, including the manager, receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2) Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 10

p.9

Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Ivory Cottage Ltd, Skytax, 37th Floor, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AA

p.10

Inspectors

Lydia Isaac, Social Care Inspector Jas Nahar, Social Care Inspector Assurance inspection report for children’s home: 2633744 11 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.

p.10

Inspectors

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.11

Inspectors

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.11

Inspectors

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.11

Inspectors

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.11