Children's Home run by Talbot House Children’s Charity Limited in Newcastle upon Tyne

Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 1 SC432843 Registered provider: Talbot House Children’s Charity Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is operated by a charity and may care for up to five children who have emotional and social difficulties and/or learning disabilities.

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Information about this children’s home

Three children were living in the home at the time of inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

There has been no registered manager since July 2022. The home has an interim manager who has applied for registration.

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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: SC432843 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

14/06/2022 Full Good 18/05/2021 Full Good 21/10/2019 Interim Sustained effectiveness 13/05/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 3

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improvement to be good

The managers are not delivering good help and care for children to support them to make good progress. For some children, their development has declined after their initial progress.

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improvement to be good

Not all children attend education regularly. When children refuse to attend school, staff do not encourage them to take part in educational activities. Staff have stated that managers instruct them not to engage with children who are not in school. This approach does not ensure that children participate in planned activities to promote their learning.

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improvement to be good

Some children’s essential documents are not present on children’s files. This means that staff do not have access to current information and care plans for children. This prevents staff from meeting the needs of children effectively.

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improvement to be good

The home uses alarms to alert staff when children leave their bedrooms at night. The manager does not assess the need for these alarms or review their use. This means children may be subject to unnecessary restrictions in their home.

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improvement to be good

Children are supported by staff to develop trusting relationships. Staff seek their views, and children say they feel comfortable speaking with staff. Children are aware how to make a complaint and know they will be listened to. As a result, children feel valued by those who care for them.

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improvement to be good

Children are registered with general practitioners, dentists and opticians when they move into the home. They are supported to attend health appointments when necessary. Children are referred for additional support such as therapeutic services when this is an identified need. This supports children to receive help and support in relation to their physical and emotional health and well-being.

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improvement to be good

The manager and staff recognise the importance of children’s relationships with their families. Staff support children to spend time with their family, which helps children to maintain these relationships. This ensures that children are not isolated from their families and supports the development of their identity.

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improvement to be good

The communal areas of the property are well furnished and tidy. However, one child’s bedroom was not in a fit state to be occupied. While staff took immediate action to address the condition of the room, this had not been noticed prior to the inspection. This means that staff had not ensured this child was sleeping in a safe and healthy environment. Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 4 There are times when there are not enough staff on duty to ensure the safety and well-being of all children. This has meant that children have been left without adequate supervision at times. Furthermore, when a child was missing from the home, staff did not follow the procedure as detailed in the child’s risk assessment. This has led to a child being exposed to police involvement unnecessarily.

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improvement to be good

The manager has imposed restrictions to manage behaviour that impacts on all children in the home. This means that children do not have access to snacks without the permission or oversight of staff. There are no other plans in place to address any individual behaviours. These actions do not support the children to feel valued or learn about healthy choices.

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improvement to be good

Staff record consequences and the reasons why they have been used. However, the manager does not have oversight of the use of those consequences. This means there is no assessment of the impact or effectiveness of consequences in managing the behaviour of children.

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improvement to be good

When physical interventions take place in the home, these are managed by staff who have completed positive handling training. The manager completes a debrief with the children and staff to ensure that any intervention is both proportionate and necessary. This also enables all involved to reflect and learn from incidents and ensure children are safeguarded effectively.

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good

There is no registered manager in post and the home is managed by an interim manager who has submitted an application to register. There is no deputy manager, or senior residential care workers, to support her in her role. The provider has had difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. This impacts on the experiences and progress of children living in the home.

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good

The manager has taken the decision to move children on from the home for reasons that are not in the best interests of children. For example, one child was moved from the home, in part, for not attending school. The manager stated that this was because the home would be unable to meet the requirements of the regulation. This demonstrates a lack of understanding of the role of the registered manager in ensuring children’s needs are prioritised. This could leave children feeling rejected as a result of being moved from their home.

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good

Not all staff are receiving regular supervision, including the manager. Some staff have stated that supervision is an opportunity to reflect on practice and focus on the care and safety of children. However, other staff do not have the same opportunity and, therefore, the manager does not have sufficient oversight of the needs of the whole staff team. Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 5 Monitoring systems in place have not been sufficient to ensure that children’s progress and experiences are understood. This prevents managers from reviewing the standard of care provided to children to help make improvements.

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good

Regular team meetings are taking place and there is a structured training programme to support the learning and development of staff. Staff meet as a group to focus on the children and what is happening in their lives and to learn from their collective experience. This supports staff to have a consistent approach to understanding children’s individual needs.

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good

The provider follows safer recruitment practices, which ensure that the adults who care for children are safe to do so. Staff are enrolled onto the appropriate courses to gain the necessary qualifications. This provides staff with the opportunity to learn the right skills to meet the needs of children. Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 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

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

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)(v)(d)) 22 June 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

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

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home has sufficient staff to provide care for 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)(d)(h)) 22 June 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. 22 June 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 7 In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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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. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(viii))

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Requirement Due date

No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child.

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Requirement Due date

The following measures may not be used to discipline any child—

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Requirement Due date

any punishment involving the consumption or deprivation of food or drink;

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Requirement Due date

any measure involving punishing a group of children for the behaviour of an individual child. (Regulation 19 (1) (2)(b)(j))

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Requirement Due date

In particular, that all children have free access to snacks in the home. 22 June 2023

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Requirement Due date

The care planning standard is that children—

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Requirement Due date

have a positive experience of arriving at or moving on from the home.

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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

plan for, and help, each child to prepare to leave the home or to move into adult care in a way that is consistent with arrangements agreed with the child’s placing authority. (Regulation 14 (1)(b) (2)(iii)) 22 June 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person may only use devices for the monitoring or surveillance of children if—

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Requirement Due date

the monitoring or surveillance is for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child concerned, or other children; 22 June 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 8 the monitoring or surveillance is no more intrusive than necessary, having regard to the child’s need for privacy. (Regulation 24 (1)(a)(d)) In particular, that the manager assesses and reviews the use of bedroom door alarms.

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

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

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Requirement Due date

are kept up to date. (Regulation 36 (1)(a)(b)) 29 June 2023

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Recommendation

 The registered person should 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. Professionally qualified staff employed by the home, for example teachers or social workers, should be provided with relevant professional or clinical supervision by an appropriately qualified and experienced professional. (‘Guide to the Children’s Home Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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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: SC432843 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Talbot House Children’s Charity Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Talbot House School, Newcastle upon Tyne

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Inspector

Joanne Wallis, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC432843 10 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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