Children's home run by Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 1 Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned by a private company and is registered to provide care for up to three children with autism spectrum disorder and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

There is no registered manager in the home. An interim manager is in post and is applying to be registered with Ofsted.

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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

Date of last inspection: 30 November 2022

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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: 1247776 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

30/11/2022 Full Good 05/01/2022 Full Good 13/01/2020 Interim Sustained effectiveness 10/04/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 3

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improvement to be good

At the time of the inspection, three children were living in the home. The children regularly spend time in the outdoor sensory room and play area. They also play in the garden and help staff to prepare healthy food in the kitchen. This promotes children’s health needs and helps them relax.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children’s communication and understanding through Makaton, social stories and British Sign Language. However, children do not consistently have access to resources to promote their views, feelings and understanding. The manager is not aware of the local offer, which sets out the support available for children with special education needs and/or disabilities. This is a missed opportunity to access additional resources for children.

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improvement to be good

Staff support children to enjoy time with their family and friends. This helps children to build positive relationships. It also helps them to develop their social and emotional skills.

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improvement to be good

Staff work closely with partner agencies as part of a multi-agency approach. As a result, children’s health needs are well met, and they are making good progress. One independent reviewing officer said: ‘Staff have really helped [name of child] to reach his full potential.’

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improvement to be good

Staff work closely with education professionals to ensure that children make progress with their education. One child had not attended school for many years. They now have 100% attendance.

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improvement to be good

The manager regularly reviews and updates the statement of purpose. However, not all staff are familiar with the document. This means that some staff are not aware of the ethos and outcomes that they are working towards.

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improvement to be good

Staff respond quickly to prevent children from going missing from home. Each child has a detailed missing-from-home plan for staff to follow. As a result, there have not been any recent missing-from-home incidents.

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improvement to be good

Managers have not maintained some areas of the home. However, they are continuing to make improvements to areas such as the bathroom. This ensures that children have a safe and nurturing environment in which to live. Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 4 Medication procedures are not robust. On one occasion, one child missed their medication. On another occasion, a child was able to access medication from the staff office. Leaders and managers are reviewing their procedures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

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improvement to be good

Staff complete regular key-work sessions with children. Staff promote children’s understanding of issues, such as keeping safe online. This helps children to develop their knowledge of risks and to keep them safe.

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improvement to be good

Children’s risk management plans provide clear strategies for staff to keep children safe. However, for one child, the manager has not included a serious risk in the child’s risk management plan. This means that staff may respond differently to manage this safeguarding concern.

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improvement to be good

Staff are aware of the whistle-blowing procedure. They use this to raise concerns regarding staff practice. However, on one occasion a member of staff did not follow the internal procedure and delayed reporting the allegation. Senior managers responded quickly to investigate the allegations and take appropriate action.

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improvement to be good

Staff use restraint as a last resort to manage children’s behaviour. When staff use restraint, children and staff review the incident afterwards. This helps to limit the need for physical interventions.

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good

An experienced manager was appointed to the home in April 2023 and is in the process of applying to register with Ofsted. They are reviewing practice alongside the responsible individual to make improvements.

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good

Staff changes in recent months have affected the continuity of care provided to children. This prevents children from developing long-lasting relationships with all staff. However, the staff team is now more stable, and children are making progress.

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good

Staff now receive regular supervision and feel fully supported in their roles. They also attend regular team meetings. A member of staff said: ‘You can see a significant improvement since [name of manager] came in April. We now have a good team to build on.’

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good

Staff attend a wide range of training to develop their skills and knowledge. This helps them to provide better care for children. The manager regularly reviews staff training as part of their workforce development plan.

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good

The manager uses a range of tools to monitor and review practice. However, children’s case records and plans are not consistently up to date. As a result, the manager is making improvements to monitoring systems to help identify and rectify shortfalls in practice. Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 5 The manager keeps the children’s guide under review. Staff individualise this for each child and use pictures, photos and symbols. This helps children to understand how to complain and how to access advocacy support. Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 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;

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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

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 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)(vi)(vii)(d))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, ensure that staff follow whistle-blowing procedures whenever they have a concern regarding a child’s safety. Also, ensure that the manager provides staff with clear strategies to manage all children’s risks as identified in their plans. 23 June 2023

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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. 23 June 2023 Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 7 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

medicine which is prescribed for a child is administered as prescribed to the child for whom it is prescribed and to no other child. (Regulation 23 (1) (2)(a)(b))

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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 the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child;

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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)(e)(h)) 23 June 2023

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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

understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff— 23 June 2023 Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 8 understand and apply the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

provide to children living in the home the physical necessities they need in order to live there comfortably. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(b)(i)(vii))

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must complete a review of the quality of care provided for children (“a quality of care review”) at least once every 6 months.

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Requirement Due date

In order to complete a quality of care review the registered person must establish and maintain a system for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating—

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Requirement Due date

the quality of care provided for children;

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Requirement Due date

the feedback and opinions of children about the children’s home, its facilities and the quality of care they receive in it; and

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Requirement Due date

any actions that the registered person considers necessary in order to improve or maintain the quality of care provided for children.

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Requirement Due date

The system referred to in paragraph (2) must provide for ascertaining and considering the opinions of children, their parents, placing authorities and staff. (Regulation 45 (1) (2)(a)(b)(c) (5)) 30 September

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that children have access to a broad range of resources and communication aids throughout the home to help them express their views, wishes and feelings. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 26, paragraph 5.4)  The registered person should ensure that managers and staff are aware of the local offer setting out the support available for children with special education needs and/or disabilities. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 22, paragraph 4.10)

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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 Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 9 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: 1247776 10

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Keys Group Progressive Care & Education Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Maybrook House, Second Floor, Queensway, Halesowen, Worcestershire B63 4AH

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Inspectors

Mark Woodbridge, Social Care Inspector Alexandra Pearson, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children's home: 1247776 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.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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