Children's Home run by Derby City Council in Derby

Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 1 SC036240 Registered provider: Derby City Council Full inspection 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 six children who need support with social and emotional difficulties. The home is owned and operated by a local authority.

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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: 8 February 2023

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

08/02/2023 Full Requires improvement to be good 09/11/2021 Full Good 15/04/2019 Full Good 01/05/2018 Full Outstanding Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 3

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improvement to be good

Children live in a spacious home. They all have bedrooms personalised to meet their individual needs. The home has several shared areas that allow for children to have the space to be alone or with the wider group. Some areas need redecoration so children can be proud of and fully enjoy their home. The manager has plans to improve the physical conditions and to make this a more welcoming space. Indeed, the required improvements have already started.

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improvement to be good

Children’s engagement in education is prioritised by staff. Children are now attending school or accessing tutors at home. Managers communicate well with schools, allowing for bespoke approaches to learning to be established for children. Children’s successes are celebrated and praised by managers and staff. This encourages their attendance at school and motivates them to learn.

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improvement to be good

Children’s care plans set out the needs of children in the context of their past experiences. They offer advice on how staff can engage children and de-escalate more challenging behaviours. However, several members of staff are new and not always confident in their understanding of the care plans or how best to keep children safe. This area requires improvement.

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improvement to be good

The home has a separate living space for one older child to learn skills for independent living. Care planning for this child is not sufficiently structured or clear. Consequently, staff do not clearly understand their caring responsibilities for this child. Furthermore, the conditions in the child’s living space were not clean or well maintained. This child is not being meaningfully prepared for independence or adulthood.

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improvement to be good

Children do not always have the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings. Children’s meetings vary in quality and attendance. Individual key-work sessions rarely take place. As a result, there are missed opportunities to talk and reflect with children on changes in the home or indeed following any incidents. Additionally, this means children are not currently able to influence the care they are offered in the home or to explore any worries they may have.

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improvement to be good

Children rarely go missing from care. When this happens, incidents tend to be for short periods, and children usually return home of their own accord. Children have individual risk assessments that set out necessary steps for staff to take to keep children safe. Children are not always offered a warm response on their return. Debriefs are not always taking place in a focused manner, meaning that children are not being discouraged from going missing again. Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 4 Staff resort to using physical intervention with children as a last resort, and these are infrequent. Records do not always reflect the actions taken by staff to distract or de-escalate more challenging behaviours from children. It is therefore difficult to understand the full context of incidents. Children are not consistently offered the chance to talk through with staff after such incidents. As a result, opportunities to

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improvement to be good

There have been several serious incidents in this home. Staff have not always been proactive in exploring the impact of incidents on children and providing them with reassurance. Children are not supported to understand their feelings over incidents, and one child said that they did not feel safe. Additionally, managers have taken appropriate action when the behaviour and conduct of staff has fallen below expectation.

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improvement to be good

The staff speak highly of the children and want them to reach their full potential. Trusting relationships are beginning to develop between the children and staff, and children could identify people who they could talk to. However, there have been significant changes with several new staff members joining the team. Children have experienced changes to the staff team and see this as a loss. This is not yet being properly considered, nor is the right support being provided to children to manage these changes.

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good

The home has been without a registered manager for a considerable period. The registration of a suitable manager is an important regulatory requirement. The acting manager and deputy manager are relatively new to these positions. They are ambitious and accept that some areas need improvement. The management team is well respected by staff, who feel supported by them. Staff report that they enjoy working at the home and morale is good.

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good

Staff have not been provided with regular supervision meetings with their manager. When concerns have been raised in supervision sessions, these have not always been followed up by the manager. Team meetings are not regularly taking place. Staff do not have the appropriate space to discuss their concerns, the children or to develop their learning. Opportunities to reflect on and adapt staff practice is not consistently available to staff.

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good

There is a lack of management oversight of recording, and some fundamental tasks are not being completed. As a result, staff are not able to identify areas requiring development, and some care practices require improvement to prevent them from becoming embedded. The manager recognises this and has plans to improve practices across several areas of care practice.

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good

The manager completes audits in many areas of the day-to-day functioning of the home. However, this is not being utilised fully to track progress or patterns of Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 5 behaviour for children. As a result, the manager does not currently have effective oversight of the home.

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good

Managers are well supported by senior leaders and are offered regular supervision and advice. They are accepting of the improvements needed to the home and are aspirational for change to ensure children make progress and have good experiences. Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 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

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. (Regulation 12 (1)(2)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically refers to the living conditions of the independence flat being unclean and the need for staff to ensure records of incidents are clear, detailed and demonstrate management oversight, reflection and learning.

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Requirement Due date

This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 26 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered provider must appoint a person to manage the children’s home if—

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Requirement Due date

there is no registered manager in respect of the home; and

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Requirement Due date

is not, or does not intend to be, in day-to-day charge of the home.

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Requirement Due date

If the registered provider appoints a person to manage the home, the registered provider must, without delay, give HMCI notice of—

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Requirement Due date

the name of the person so appointed; and 26 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 7 the date on which the appointment takes effect. (Regulation 27 (1)(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii) (2)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically refers to there being no registered manager in position since March 2022.

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home. (Regulation 14 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This specifically refers to a lack of planning for children who are on a pathway to independence and the need to ensure that children are moved on from the home positively. 26 May 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must ensure that all employees—

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Requirement Due date

undertake appropriate continuing professional development;

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Requirement Due date

receive practice-related supervision by a person with appropriate experience; and

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Requirement Due date

have their performance and fitness to perform their roles appraised at least once every year. (Regulation 33 (4)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to supervision of staff and team meetings not taking place regularly and identified concerns in supervision not always being followed up. This requirement was made at the last inspection and is restated. 26 May 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. (Regulation 6 (1)(a)(b))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to a lack of understanding by staff of the details of children’s care plans and knowledge of the needs of children. 26 May 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 8 The children’s views, wishes and feelings standard is that children receive care from staff who—

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Requirement Due date

develop positive relationships with them;

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Requirement Due date

take their views, wishes and feelings into account in relation to matters affecting the children’s care and welfare and their lives. (Regulation 7 (1)(a)(b)(c))

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Requirement Due date

This particularly refers to a lack of key-work sessions and consultation with children to ascertain their wishes and feelings about the care they receive. 26 May 2023

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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: SC036240 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Derby City Council, Treasurers Department, Council House, Corporation Street, DERBY DE1 2FE

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Inspectors

Louise Copping, Social Care Inspector Alli Tandy, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC036240 10 inspects 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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